Gurugram bus service ridership touches 50,000 people per day

This increase, officials said, can be attributed to two factors — the first being the addition of two important routes since May, from Iffco Chowk to IMT Manesar, and from Huda City Centre to Bhondsi.

Gurugram Almost a year after its launch, in September 2018, the Gurugaman bus service hit a daily ridership of 50,000 last month. According to data shared by the Gurugram Metropolitan City Bus Limited, ridership on the service jumped 67% between May and July, going from about 30,000 passengers per day to 50,000 per day.

Gurugram Almost a year after its launch, in September 2018, the Gurugaman bus service hit a daily ridership of 50,000 last month. (Biplov Bhuyan/HT PHOTO)

This increase, officials said, can be attributed to two factors — the first being the addition of two important routes since May, from Iffco Chowk to IMT Manesar, and from Huda City Centre to Bhondsi.

“Both these routes have added 26 buses to the Gurugaman fleet and are attracting about 6,000 users per day,” said Vanita Akhauri, public communications officer, GMCBL. Moreover, other routes have also been revised slightly for better performance, which may be attracting more commuters, GMCBL officials said.

The other reason, according to a senior official of the Delhi Integrated Multi-Modal Transit System (DIMTS), which is a consultant for the Gurugaman bus service, is seasonal. “In July, when schools reopen and summer holidays end, we usually see an uptick in mobility. It is definitely a reason for the numbers going up on the Gurugaman bus service as well,” the official said.

This seasonal upsurge could not be observed last year as the service was launched in September.  The official also said that this jump in ridership is typical of a growing bus network.

“As the various routes become more integrated, more people will use the service because they can travel longer distances,” he said.

Presently, four important routes make up more than half of Gurugaman’s daily ridership — Route 212 (from Basai to Huda City Centre and back), Route 134 (from IFFCO Chowk to IMT Manesar), Route 112 (from Sector 56 to Gurugram Railway station) and Route 111 (from Huda City Centre to Bhondsi). In all, these have a daily average ridership of about 33,000.