While the slump in bookings began on March 3, it was on March 8 that bookings in the state reduced by 4,000 in a day.
The fears of contracting coronavirus have affected ridership in Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) buses, particularly on its inter-state services. The transport organisation reported a 20% reduction in bookings of premier air-conditioned bus services. As per officials, the reduction in bookings and rise in cancellations started from March 3, the day when the Karnataka government confirmed that a Hyderabad techie who works in Bengaluru had contracted coronavirus. An official told The Hindu that buses to cities in neighbouring Kerala including Kottayam, Ernakulam, Calicut and Thiruvananthapuram were among the most affected. Buses to Hyderabad, Vijayawada, Pune and Mumbai also saw a decline in demand. The official said that since most of these journeys are long and booked in advance, there was a 20% drop in passenger traffic. While the slump in bookings began on March 3, it was on March 8 that bookings in the state reduced to 17,000 in a day, Deccan Herald reported. Usually, KSRTC receives about 21,000 bookings per day but after the dip, the bookings have not yet increased. Both KSRTC and Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) have been sanitising their buses since the case of the Hyderabad techie emerged. Officials claimed that all cancellations are not linked to the coronavirus but confirmed that the decline in bookings was consistent with the dates of the virus reported in the state. However, South Western Railways has not reported any major decline in bookings or rise in cancellations due to the spread of the virus. On Tuesday, the Karnataka Health and Family Welfare Department confirmed that there were 4 cases of coronavirus in Bengaluru. The four cases are: a techie who returned from the United States of America, his wife, his daughter, and another unrelated man. The health department is tracing as many as 2,678 people who may have come in primary or secondary contact with the four people who tested positive for the virus. The railways too seemed to be unaffected as on Tuesday with Bengaluru division officials stating that there was no change in the bookings.
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