Mangalore :  The State Road Transport Corporations of both Kerala and Karnataka have pressed 36 buses each on either side on the Mangalore –Kasargod route. Presently, one bus leaves the bus terminus every three minutes proving highly convenient for frequent travelers on this route.

The NH 66 between Mangalore and Kasargod was nationalized in 2008 and since then government buses  have reigned on this sector. But just three months ago when Kerala transport corporation withdrew  as many as 15 bus services on the pretext of  increase in diesel prices and subsidy cut, private buses were granted a month’s permit to operate. The private bus operators had also moved Supreme Court seeking permission to run buses on the route. In the meantime, the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation re-introduced the suspended bus services. The Supreme Court had also constituted a committee to known public opinion regarding bus services on the route.

Presently there are 36 buses from Karnataka and another equal number of buses from Kerala. At the same time there are complaints that  the buses are resorting to unhealthy competition. Meanwhile Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation has withdrawn the Volvo buses on the Mangalore-Kasargod route on the grounds that it was incurring losses.