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Transport Facilities in Karnataka

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Transport Facilities in Karnataka

Karnataka is one of the biggest states in South West India and shares its boundaries with Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Hence Karnataka is well connected by roads, railway, airway and waterway with all its neighboring metros and within the state as well. KSRTC buses, NWKRTC and BMTC buses operate within  Karnataka with a well built nexus of roads i.e State and National Highways.

Bangalore, the capital city of Karnataka is well connected with rest of India and foreign countries through Bangalore International Airport and sees a lot of air traffic for being the IT hub. Hubli district in Karnataka acts as the base of South Western Railway and Konkan Railway also crisscrosses through the coastal belt of Karnataka. Buses, cars, auto rickshaws , motorcycles , local trains are the common means of conveyance within Karnataka and also for inter and intra city transportation.

Airways in Karnataka

Airways in Karnataka
Nightview of Bengaluru International Airport / Apaoindia

Bangalore International Airport serves as a ground to 19 International airlines and 9 major domestic airlines thus connecting the city with 50 destinations across India and the world. Bangalore International Airport is one of the busiest airport in South India for housing the IT hub and also handles 300-315 traffic aka air movement on a daily basis and ferries 10 million commuters across different destinations. Major airlines flying to and from Bangalore International Airport are Singapore Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Lufthansa, Air France, British Airways, Air India, Indigo, Spicejet, Goair and many more.

Mangalore is the second busiest airport in Karnataka links 7 international zones like Muscat, Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, Dammam and Abu Dhabi. It also links domestic zones in India like Delhi, Chennai, Calicut, Bangalore, Mumbai, Chennai and accounts for ferrying 1.5 million commuters at present to different destinations across the world and within India.

Mention should be made of Hubli airport which ferries commuters to Bangalore, Chennai, Jabalpur, Delhi, Mumbai.  There are also airports at Bidar, Bellary but not for commercial airfare as well as private airspace at Koppal, Harihar and Sedam. Three airports at Gulbarga, Bijapur and Shimoga were inaugurated in 2013 created under Public Private Partnership Model and have started operating as commercial airbase.


Waterways in Karnataka


Waterways in Karnataka
A commercial ship anchoring at the Mangalore Port / Flickr

Karnataka acts as a base for one principal port or harbour at Mangalore known as New Mangalore Port and 10 small interfaces or ports at Malpe, Belekeri, Karwar, Honnavar, Tadri, Kundapur, Bhatkal, Padubidri, Hangarkatta and Old Mangalore.  New Mangalore Harbour which was set up in 1974 acts as the 9th principal ports in India and 32.04 million tonnes of traffic ; 14.12 million tonnes of export and 17.92 million tonnes of import every year. However the inland water transport interface in Karnataka is not up to the mark.


Roadways in Karnataka


Roadways in Karnataka
National highways in Karnataka / Panoramio

Karnataka is connected by a huge expanse of roadways via National Highway spanning 3973 kilometres and via a nexus of State Highways spanning 9829 kilometres. State Highway 17 connects Bangalore with Mysore. Karnataka state road transport corporation operates a network of buses known as KSRTC since 1961 and it strives to offer effective and convenient bus services via road transport. KSRTC engages 10,400 fleet of buses ferrying 2.2 million commuters daily across Karnataka’s several cities covering 1.95 kilometres of roadway.

To facilitate better connectivity and enhance bus service, KSRTC has been fragmented into three sections namely Bangalore  Metropolitan Transport Corporation in Bangalore, North West Karnataka Road Transport Corporation in Hubli and North East Karnataka Road Transport Corporation in Gulbarga between 1997 -2000. KSRTC services can be availed across Karnataka via online and computerized reservation over kiosks and terminuses. NWKRTC caters to commuters ferrying from and to Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra.

KSRTC online reservation is hassle free and is known as AWATAR and it has a commendable fleet of buses ranging from Airavat Bliss and Superia (sophisticated luxury Volvo AC buses), Airavat Club Class (elite Mercedez Benz/ Volvo multi axle AC buses), Mercedez Benz (luxury AC buses), Ambaari (Corona AC Sleeper/Executive), Non AC sleeper buses, Rajahamsa Executive (Deluxe buses), Karnataka Saarige (Express buses), Karnataka Vaibhav (Semi Deluxe), Suvarna Saarige and Grameen Saarige – an opening move to facilitate rural commuters and connect them with major towns and cities in Karnataka. The buses are fully air conditioned with GPS, chemical toilets, pantry, TV and sleeper seat. With 15 divisions,77 depots and 145 bus terminuses. Moreover, KSRTC runs a service known as Flybus to feery commuters to and from Bangalore International and Mysore.

Private buses also operate in Karnataka, but mostly in zones like Dharwad, Bangalore, Mangalore, Dakshin Kannada and Udupi districts. Maxi Cabs  and Omni buses also ply on routes where KSRTC does not have access or don’t run their service. The aim of KSRTC is to connect Karnataka with major cities of Chennai, Trivandrum, Kochi, Mumbai, Pune and Vijaywada apart from running intra city bus service.

BMTC also runs a fleet of vehicles like Big 10, Red Buses and Suvarna, Pushpak, Big Circle, Vajra, Vayu Vajra, Atal Saarige, Marcopolo and Metro Feeder buses ferrying passengers across the city and also to metro stations exclusively. Hop on Hop off are a specialized fleet for sightseeing opportunities across Bangalore.

Bus Day
Launched on February 4th,2010, Bus Day is an initiative by the government of Karnataka in Bangalore to encourage and create awareness among citizens to avail public transport and to sensitize citizens about environment and individual health. Therefore 4th of every month is celebrated as Bus Day in Bangalore.

Also See: Bangalore State Transport Corporation | Buses in Bangalore | Buses in Mangaluru | Local Transport in Mangaluru | Roadways in Mangalore | Roadways and Highways in Dharwad | Road Distance from Hubli to other cities | Bus Routes in Vijapura | Local Transportation in Vijapura | Roadways and Highways in Bijapur


Railways in Karnataka


Railways in Karnataka
A trains running through the plains in Karnataka / YouTube

Hubli acts as the base of South Western Railway in Karnataka since 2003 and the railway track in Karnataka spans across 3089 kilometers. Coastal belt of Karnataka is supervised by the Konkan Railway Track. Bangalore which is the capital of Karnataka is well linked with major cities in the state and outside the state with metro cities in India as well. Superfast Express trains like Shatabdi and Jan Shatabdi ply between Mysore, Bangalore and Tamil Nadu and Jan Shatabdi is the first train to be fitted with GPS for enhanced local announcement system.

A luxury train crowned Golden Chariot ply across Goa and Karnataka also known as Pride of South. The train is destined to cover sightseeing destinations like Bangalore, Kabini/Bandipur, Mysore, Hassan, Hampi, Goa and back to Bangalore. Golden Chariot is also known as Southern Splendour and it travels to Tamil Nadu , Kerala and Karnataka travelling to Tiruchirapalli, Trivandrum, Pondicherry, Madurai, Mamallapura, Allepey, Kanyakumari, Thanjavur, Kochi, Chennai and Bangalore.

Mangalore is well linked with cities like Hubli, Bangalore and Mysore via railway network yet there are several districts like Chikkmagaluru and Madikeri are not linked via railway nexus.

Don't forget to check out: Trains From Bengaluru | Mangalore Railway Station | Trains From Mangaluru | Trains From Dharwad | Trains From Hubballi | Railway Service in Vijapura

Also See:   Transport in Mangaluru | Transport System of Davanagere | Transport in ShivamoggaTransport System in Hassan | Transport Services in Hampi | Transport in Ballari | Transport in Dharwad | Transportation in Vijapura | Transport in Raichur
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