Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation. The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) is a state-owned public road transport corporation company in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is wholly owned by the Government of Karnataka. It serves routes to 31 districts and as well as to towns and cities in the southern part of Karnataka and connects it to the rest of the state and the states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Goa and the Union territory of Puducherry. In June 2021, Kerala State Road Transport Corporation KSRTC was awarded the acronym KSRTC by the Controller General of Patents Designs and Trade Marks, which is part of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India when Kerala filed a case against Karnataka SRTC in response to a legal notice by the Karnataka SRTC to stop using the acronym KSRTC. As of April 2024, it has a fleet strength of 8837 vehicles.

History

Foundation
Mysore Government Road Transport Department was inaugurated on 12 September 1948 with 120 buses. The transport department of The Mysore state administrated it until 1961.

Corporatization
It was subsequently converted into an independent corporation under Section 3 of the Road Transport Corporation Act, 1950 on 1 August 1961, In 1961, after successfully converting into an independent corporation all assets and liabilities of MGRTD were transferred to Mysore State Road Transport Corporation.

Merger 
On 1 October 1961, Bangalore Transport Service was merged with it.

Renaming
On 1 November 1973, the Mysore state was renamed as Karnataka, thus Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation.

Bifurcation
 On 15 August 1997, Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation was bifurcated to cater to the transportation needs of Bangalore Metropolitan Region. It was formed by separating the Bangalore Transport Service.
 On 1 November 1997, North Western Karnataka Road Transport Corporation was bifurcated to cater to the transportation needs of Northwestern parts of Karnataka.
 On 15 August 2000, Kalyana Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (then North Eastern Karnataka Road Transport Corporation) was bifurcated to cater to the transportation needs of northeastern parts of Karnataka. This left the corporation to serve the southern part of Karnataka.
 On 23 November 2009, Bijapur division was transferred from NWKRTC to KKRTC.

Services

Karnataka Sarige It is a non-AC bus service with 3+2 non-reclining seats built on bi-axle Ashok Leyland, Tata and Eicher suburban chassis with a durangi livery of two colours consisting of silver and red colours. It is an interdistrict, interstate service in Dakshina Karnataka (Southern Karnataka).
Gramantara Sarige It is a non-AC bus service with 3+2 non-reclining seats built on bi-axle Ashok Leyland, Tata and Eicher suburban chassis with a durangi livery of two colours consisting of blue and white colours. It is a service to connect villages to nearby cities and towns in Dakshina Karnataka (Southern Karnataka).
Nagara Sarige: It is a non-AC bus service with 2+2 non-reclining seats built on bi-axle Ashok Leyland, Tata and Eicher urban chassis with various liveries depending upon the locale. It is an intracity and town service in Dakshina Karnataka (Southern Karnataka) except for Bangalore. Bangalore Metropolitan Region is served by Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation.
AC Nagara Sarige It is an  AC bus service with 2+2 non-reclining seats built on multi-axle Volvo urban chassis with various liveries depending upon the locale. It is an intracity and town service in Dakshina Karnataka (Southern Karnataka) except for Bangalore. Bangalore Metropolitan Region is served by Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation.
Samparka Sarige: It is a non-AC bus service with 2+2 non-reclining seats built on bi-axle Ashok Leyland, Tata and Eicher with white-pink livery. It is a shuttle bus service between Kempegowda Bus Station and Mysuru Road Bus Station in Bangalore.
Ashwameda Classic Class: It is a non-AC bus service with 3+2 non-reclining seats with more comfort than Karnataka Sarige built on bi-axle Ashok Leyland suburban chassis with a durangi livery of two colours consisting of silver and red colours. It is an interdistrict, interstate point-to-point service in Dakshina Karnataka (Southern Karnataka).
Rajahamsa Executive Class: It is a non-AC ultra-deluxe bus service with 2+2 reclining seats built on bi-axle Ashok Leyland, Tata and Eicher chassis with a white livery. It is a long-distance service operating out of Dakshina Karnataka (Southern Karnataka).
Pallakki Class: It is a non-AC ultra-deluxe bus service with 2+1 lower and upper berth sleeper seats built on bi-axle Ashok Leyland Viking 222WB 11.3m chassis with a silver livery. It is a long-distance service operating out of Dakshina Karnataka (Southern Karnataka).
Airavat Class
Launched in 2003, It is an AC luxury bus service with 2+2 reclining semi-sleeper seats built on a bi-axle Volvo B7R (Old) or Volvo B8R (New) chassis with a white livery. It is a long-distance service operating out of Dakshina Karnataka (Southern Karnataka).
Airavat Club Class 
Launched in 2004, It is an AC luxury bus service with 2+2 reclining seats built on a multi-axle Volvo B9R (Old) or Volvo B11R (New), Scania Metrolink and Mercedes-Benz 0 500 R 1830 chassis with a white livery. It is a long-distance service operating out of Dakshina Karnataka (Southern Karnataka).
Airavat Club Class 2.0: Launched in 2024, It is an AC luxury bus service with 2+2 reclining seats using Volvo 9600 multi-axle semi-sleeper buses with a white livery. It is a long-distance service operating out of Dakshina Karnataka (Southern Karnataka).
Flybus: It is an AC luxury bus service with 2+2 reclining seats with chemical toilets, Wi-Fi, and an auto hand wash system built on a multi-axle Volvo B9R (Old) or Volvo B11R (New) chassis with a golden livery. It is a service connecting Kempegowda International Airport, Bangalore to Mysore, Madikeri and Kundapura.
Ambaari Class 
It is an AC luxury bus service with 2+1 lower and upper berth sleeper seats built on a single-axle Corona chassis with a white livery. It is a long-distance service operating out of Dakshina Karnataka (Southern Karnataka).
Ambaari Dream Class: It is an AC luxury bus service with 2+1 lower and upper berth sleeper seats built on a multi-axle Volvo B11R chassis with a white livery. It is a long-distance service operating out of Dakshina Karnataka (Southern Karnataka).
Ambaari Utsav Class: It is an AC luxury bus service with 2+1 lower and upper berth sleeper seats on a Volvo 9600 multi-axle sleeper with a light-blue livery. It is a long-distance service operating out of Dakshina Karnataka (Southern Karnataka).
EV- Power Plus+: It is an AC  electric luxury bus service with 2+2 reclining seats built by Olectra with a blue livery. It is presently running between the cities of Bengaluru and Mysore, Madikeri, Virajpet, Davanagere, Chikmagalur and Shimoga. It is expected to be operated on various intrastate and interstate routes out of Dakshina Karnataka (Southern Karnataka).

Former services
Meghdooth Class: It was an AC luxury bus service with 2+2 reclining seats built on a single-axle Ashok Leyland chassis with a dark blue-white livery. It was a long-distance service operating out of Dakshina Karnataka (Southern Karnataka). This service was replaced with Sheethal Class.
Sheethal Class: It was an AC luxury bus service with 2+2 reclining seats built on a single-axle Ashok Leyland chassis with a green livery. It was a long-distance service operating out of Dakshina Karnataka (Southern Karnataka). This service was replaced with Airavat Class.
Vaibhav Class: It was an AC luxury bus service with 2+2 reclining seats with less reclining compared to Rajahamsa Executive Class built on a single-axle Ashok Leyland chassis with a white livery. It was a long-distance service operating out of Dakshina Karnataka (Southern Karnataka). Currently defunct.
Airavat Bliss Class: It was an AC luxury bus service with 2+2 reclining seats with chemical toilets, Wi-Fi, pantry and individual TV screens built on a multi-axle Volvo chassis with a white livery. It was a long-distance service operating out of Dakshina Karnataka (Southern Karnataka). Currently defunct.
Airavat Superia Class:  It was an AC luxury bus service with 2+2 reclining seats with chemical toilets, Wi-Fi, and an auto hand wash system built on a multi-axle Volvo chassis with a white livery. It was a long-distance service operating out of Dakshina Karnataka (Southern Karnataka). Currently defunct.
Airavat Diamond Class: It was an AC luxury bus service with 2+2 reclining seats built on a multi-axle Scania chassis with a white livery. It was a long-distance service operating out of Dakshina Karnataka (Southern Karnataka). This service was rebranded and merged with Airavat Club Class.

'Shakti Scheme' Free Bus Service for women 
'Shakti Scheme' was announced by the Second Siddaramaiah ministry on 2 June 2023. It started on 11 June 2023, providing free-of-charge bus service to Karnataka-domiciled women. Beneficiaries show their government-issued photo identity and address proof for the first three months. Bus conductors issue them zero-fare tickets. Thereafter, beneficiaries obtain Shakti smartcards (named after the name of the scheme) through an application submitted via the government's Seva Sindhu website.

Terms and conditions of the scheme 
 The scheme will apply to all four Road Transport Corporations in the state (KSRTC, BMTC, NWKRTC and KKRTC). 
 Nagara Sarige, Gramantara Sarige, Karnataka Sarige, Vayavya Nagara Sarige, Vayavya Gramantara Sarige, Vayavya Karnataka Sarige, Kalyana Nagara Sarige, Kalyana Gramantara Sarige, Kalyana Karnataka Sarige, Bengaluru Sarige, Samparka and Astra services will be part of the scheme.
 Women can travel for free only on bus services within the state. Bus services to destinations outside Karnataka will be outside the scheme's purview even if women travel within the state. For example, a woman travelling to Mangaluru in Karnataka i.e., within the state on an Udupi-Kasaragod bus service which is an interstate service to Kasaragod in neighbouring Kerala, will have to buy a ticket.
 The scheme will not apply to luxury buses (Rajahamsa Executive Class, Airavat Class, Airavat Club Class, Pallakki Class, Amoghavarsha Class, Ambaari Class, Ambaari Dream Class, Ambaari Utsav Class, Kalyana Ratha Class, Fly Bus, EV- Power Plus+, Bengaluru Darshini, Vajra and Vayu Vajra services).
 Half of the seats on KSRTC, NWKRTC and KKRTC's ordinary and express buses will be reserved for men. Luxury, AC and interstate buses as well as BMTC buses will be exempted from this. 
 The government will reimburse the RTCs based on the distance women travel.

Karnataka's Road Transport Undertakings
KSRTC, Bangalore: Operates out of Southern Karnataka.
NWKRTC, Hubli: Operates out of North-Western Karnataka except Bijapur district.
KKRTC, Gulbarga: Operates out of North-Eastern Karnataka and Bijapur district.
BMTC, Bangalore: Operates in Bangalore Metropolitan Region offering transit service.

Namma Cargo Logistics and Parcel Services 
Namma Cargo Logistics and Parcel Services was launched on 26 February 2021. It provides cargo and parcel services on the routes in which The KSRTC (Karnataka), NWKRTC and KKRTC buses travel.

See also

List of bus depots in Karnataka
List of bus stations in Karnataka
North Western Karnataka Road Transport Corporation
Kalyana Karnataka Road Transport Corporation

References

Transport in Karnataka
Bus companies of India
Economy of Karnataka
State agencies of Karnataka
State road transport corporations of India
Companies based in Bengaluru
1961 establishments in Mysore State
Transport companies established in 1961
Bus transport in Karnataka