150 special buses to ply from Tamil Nadu to Tirupati from September 16

CHENNAI: The State transport corporations will operate 150 special buses daily between Tamil Nadu and Tirupati from September 17-30 for devotees attending the annual Brahmotsavam festival at Tirumala.

The services will connect Tirupati with Chennai, Tiruchy, Thanjavur, Salem, Coimbatore, Madurai, Karaikudi, Kumbakonam, Nagapattinam, Sengottai, Puducherry, Kallakurichi, Villupuram, Vellore, Tirupattur, Tiruvannamalai, Kancheepuram, Tambaram, Krishnagiri, Dharmapuri, Harur and Hosur.

Advance booking will be available for services from Tiruchy, Thanjavur, Salem, Coimbatore, Madurai, Karaikudi, Kumbakonam, Nagapattinam, Sengottai and Puducherry. Devotees can book through www.tnstc.in and the TNSTC official app.

Also, 285 special buses have been planned for the Meenakshi Amman temple consecration in Madurai.

Meanwhile, 2,716 buses reached the city by Tuesday morning, bringing back passengers after the Vinayaka Chaturthi holiday, with another 623 buses kept ready for deployment based on demand.

Transport minister A Vijay Thamizhan Parthiban inspected the arrangements at Kilambakkam bus terminus and Koyambedu bus stand early Tuesday. He directed officials to deploy extra buses immediately wherever required and monitor crowding and connecting services at the terminals.

Of the 3,339 buses planned for Monday, 1,099 were regular services and 2,240 were special buses. For Tuesday, the department planned 1,099 regular buses and 1,325 special services.

The MTC also operated around 397 buses from Kilambakkam to different parts of Chennai from early morning to connect returning passengers to their destinations. Additional buses were kept ready depending on passenger arrivals.

Between September 11 and 13, state transport corporations operated 6,212 buses from Kilambakkam for passengers travelling out of Chennai for the holiday. The services comprised 3,297 regular and 2,915 special buses, carrying around 2.48 lakh passengers.