Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation awaits funds, tech upgrade as daily feeder ridership hits 1.5 lakh | Bengaluru News
Bengaluru: With Namma Metro‘s expansion driving demand for first and last-mile connectivity, BMTC’s dedicated feeder services now clock 1.5 lakh daily riders, up by nearly 50,000 from last year. The fleet has grown to 236 buses from 180, linking 55 of 83 metro stations, but the corporation continues to grapple with funding gaps and delayed tech upgrades, including the rollout of the National Common Mobility Card (NCMC).Out of 83 metro stations, 55 are currently linked to dedicated BMTC metro feeder (MF) routes, covering 66% of the network. The most utilised routes on MF-5 connect Sir M Visvesvaraya Terminal (SMVT) and SV Road Metro station on Old Madras Road with Silk Board. A senior BMTC official said that feeder routes are primarily aligned with Purple and Green Line stations. However, the frequency of Yellow Line feeders remains comparatively low, although BMTC plans to increase services as demand grows.At the 28 unconnected stations, BMTC has cited issues such as a lack of parking bays, unsuitable approach roads, and strong coverage by regular routes in CBD. “Most of these metro stations are located in the CBD areas, which are already well connected by regular BMTC routes, so the necessity for running exclusive feeder services does not arise. Additionally, many of these stations lack parking bays, and the roads linking nearby residential and industrial areas are not suitable for city buses. However, if we see station-specific demand emerge, we will introduce bus services from these metro stations,” the official explained. Meanwhile, BMTC’s plans to run mini-buses remain unrealised.No viability gap funding from BMRCLBMTC has long sought viability gap funding from Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) to offset operational losses, as most feeder buses run at operational losses. Although BMRCL indicated that the matter would be addressed at the state govt level, no financial support has been provided thus far. In Feb 2025, during the metro fare hike, BMRCL stated that increased fares would help support feeder operations, but funding has not materialised. No common mobility platformFurthermore, over two and a half years after the launch of NCMC by Namma Metro, BMTC has yet to enable NCMC payments on its buses. Commuters are disappointed due to the lack of a unified payment platform and incentives for multimodal public transport. An official from BMTC noted that NCMC will only be functional after the corporation upgrades to new electronic ticketing machines (ETMs) IN NUMBERSOperational Metro Line – 96km Stations – 83 Stations covered with feeder services – 55 Routes operated – 70 Schedules – 236 Trips operated – 2,993 Top feeder services MF5 (SMVT terminal Byappanahalli and SV Road station ) to Central Silk Board — 25 schedulesVMFIC — KR Pura Metro station – Central Silk Board — 22 MF12 —Vijayanagar – Banashankari TTMC — 13 Jalahalli Metro station – BEL Circle – 8
