An RTI response from the Kalyana Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (KKRTC) central office has revealed that 282 out of the 456 buses in the Ballari division have traveled more than 9 lakh kilometers, with the average age of the fleet standing at 8.29 years. The information was provided by the corporation’s mechanical department in response to queries raised by a social worker in the city.
The division’s fleet is distributed across six depots: Ballari-1, Ballari-2, Ballari-3, Siruguppa, Kurugodu, and Sanduru. Of the total 456 buses, 159 (34.9%) are over 10 years old, while 176 (38.59%) are between 7 and 9 years old. Additionally, 129 buses have exceeded 12 lakh kilometers of travel, with 17 of those having covered more than 15 lakh kilometers. The average mileage for the division’s buses is 9.36 lakh kilometers.
Depot-wise data shows that 83 of the 102 buses at Ballari-1, 70 of the 100 at Ballari-2, 49 of the 79 at Siruguppa, 28 of the 44 at Kurugodu, and 39 of the 78 at Sanduru have crossed the 9 lakh kilometer threshold. In contrast, only 13 of the 53 buses at the Ballari-3 depot, which recently received new vehicles, have exceeded this mileage. The corporation stated that only 10 new city transport buses were allocated to the Ballari division for the 2025–26 fiscal year, making these the only vehicles less than a year old. This is significantly lower than the 159 buses that are over a decade old. The age distribution also highlights a gap, with no buses in the 3–5 or 6–7 year categories, only five in the 5–6 year bracket, 89 in the 7–8 year range, and 87 in the 8–9 year range.
Regarding the construction of an electric vehicle (EV) bus depot, the corporation transferred the RTI application to the works and traffic departments under Section 6(3) of the Right to Information Act, citing that the information pertains to those specific departments. This transfer indicates a lack of internal information on the project’s status, location, estimated cost, or intended routes. Furthermore, the corporation did not provide details on the number of buses proposed for scrapping or the criteria and timeline for retiring high-mileage vehicles from service.
Lokesh, a social worker in Ballari, stated that continued reliance on old buses would negatively impact maintenance costs, breakdown frequency, and travel quality. He emphasized that the transport department is responsible for ensuring passenger safety by inspecting buses and removing those that are unsafe or beyond repair from the roads, while also providing adequate bus services to rural areas.
