The launch of the first public road transport service on February 20, 1938, in the erstwhile Travancore will be recreated after 77 years on Friday, from East Fort to Kowdiar Square and back in a double-decker bus.
The bus will be flagged off by Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) CMD Antony Chacko at 11 a.m. as part of the ‘Bus Day’ celebrations by the Kerala State Road Transport Employees’ Association (KSRTEA) with the theme ‘healthy public transport for public health.’
Sree Chithira Tirunal, the then ruler of Travancore, inaugurated the service 77 years ago. He, along with Col. Goda Varma Raja and other members of the ruling family, were among the passengers. E.G. Salter, Assistant Operating Superintendent of London Passenger Board, drove the bus.
A fleet of 33 buses and a huge crowd joined the celebrations as the bus moved on. The first bus was operated from Thiruvanantapuram to Kanyakumari on February 21, 1938.
From England
Initially, the department imported Comet chassis for 60 buses from England and they were fitted with Frank Perkins-made diesel engines under the direct supervision of Salter. The experimental design of the body created by Salter became the standard design of the rest of the buses, say archival reports.
The early buses were like saloons with 23 soft leather seats. There were 10 First Class seats in the front. The schedules, fares and bus stops were fixed and published. A parcel service was also started. The services were extended to Kochi in 1949 and to Malabar, in 1956. The KSRTC came into existence in March 1965.
People’s representatives, top officials of the corporation, socio-cultural activists, and trade union leaders will be on the bus. The KSRTEA is trying to rope in the members of the ruling family of the erstwhile Travancore for the trip.
Bus Day is being observed as part of the second phase of the “Save KSRTC” campaign. KSRTEA general secretary C.K. Harikrishnan urged the public to shun private vehicles and to travel on KSRTC buses on Friday.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities. Thiruvananthapuram / by S. Anil RadhaKrishnan / Thiruvananthapuram – February 18th, 2015