soumitra nandikolkata: South Bengal State Transport Corporation (SBSTC) is planning to start bus services to North Bengal from the month of May.
To begin with, SBSTC will start air conditioned Volvo service on two routes – Asansol to Siliguri and Esplanade to Siliguri on a daily basis.
"We are very much eager to start bus services to North Bengal from this month itself. The survey of the various routes are going on in full swing. The routes are long so examining the feasibility of the routes is of utmost importance," Subhas Mondal, chairman of SBSTC said.
Mondal said that bus service from Bankura to Siliguri is also being planned.
Besides, AC buses, non AC services will also be rolled out in the days to come so that there are more options of government buses available to the common people.Presently, bus services to North Bengal are offered by North Bengal State Transport Corporation (NBSTC)while SBSTC caters to bus services within south Bengal.The fares in private buses have witnessed a hike with the rise in price of petrol and diesel. However, the government has not increased fares in any of the routes. More bus services will ensure that people can travel at reasonable rates .
In the summer months particularly till the middle of June, there is a huge flow of tourists to the Hills in North Bengal. Considering this, SBSTC is leaving no stone unturned to start services from this month itself.SBSTC also has future plans of starting electric bus service from Andal airport to Durgapur and Asansol.
The Corporation has plans to set up an electric vehicle charging station adjacent to Andal airport.