Thiruvananthapuram: After a six-year wait, new buses have finally started arriving for the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC). Transport Minister K.B. Ganesh Kumar took the wheel himself on Tuesday, conducting a trial run of one of the newly acquired Tata Super Fast buses.

Earlier this week, Tata handed over two buses to KSRTC, one Super Fast and one Fast Passenger model. The minister shared a video of his test drive on Facebook.

“New buses were promised, and they’ve arrived. Took a trial run of the newly purchased Super Fast and Fast Passenger buses. I have already given a few suggestions to the concerned officials. Minor tweaks will be made, and the remaining buses will arrive soon. These buses come equipped with the latest technology and better passenger comfort. Comfortable journeys are not far away,” the minister wrote.

This is the first time since 2018, when 100 diesel buses were procured, that new buses are being inducted into the KSRTC fleet. So far, under the second Pinarayi Vijayan government, 434 buses have been acquired but handed over to KSRTC’s subsidiary, SWIFT.

Of the 80 Tata buses being procured now, a mix of Super Fast and Fast Passenger services is included. The state government has earmarked ₹107 crore in the budget for bus purchases, with ₹63 crore allocated in the first phase. A total of 143 buses are being bought, of which 106 will be given to SWIFT. Additional buses are also being sourced from Ashok Leyland and Eicher.