KSRTC to soon expand new ticket reservation system

KSRTC to soon expand new ticket reservation system
The Hindu

AWATAR allows passengers to also book tickets for return journey

# System will be thrown open to the public in a month
# 520 users can log in simultaneously
# Capacity can be expanded to 10,000

BANGALORE: With the success of its Anywhere Any Time Advance Ticket Reservation (AWATAR) system, the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) is ready to throw open the system to the public, besides empanelling 200 more franchisees.

What has made AWATAR a success is the flexibility of booking return journey tickets, which was limited to certain cities and a few seats in the earlier advance booking system, KSRTC officials told The Hindu .

When AWATAR was launched in April this year, the corporation offered the facility through 220 existing KSRTC and private advance reservation counters. It did not provide individual interface on order to study how the new software coped. The system will be made available to the public in a month.

Passengers can book return journey tickets under the new system. With AWATAR, the average booking each day has reached 11,000 as against 7,000 last year.

On Tuesday alone, the KSRTC collected Rs. 35 lakh with people booking onward and return journey tickets for the holidays from August 11 to 15.

The new system allows 520 users to simultaneously log in to book tickets. While 220 counters are already operational and 200 more are on the anvil, 100 individual users will be able to log in simultaneously.

Capacity

The capacity is not limited to 520, said an official associated with the project. It can be expanded up to 10,000 depending upon the number of "hits."

The software was developed by a consortium comprising BEL, IBM, Radiant Infosystem and the Central Railway Information System. The e-tickets will be offered on the KSRTC website, ksrtc.in. Major banks have agreed to provide payment gateways for cardholders.

While booking an e-ticket, passengers have to provide an identity proof, which has to be shown to the conductor for authentication. They can also exchange the e-ticket for a regular ticket at KSRTC counters at the boarding point.

Wide range of uses

AWATAR has a wide range of uses and can be an effective tool for the hospitality industry, officials say.

The corporation is exploring the possibility of facilitating the booking of hotel rooms, taxis, tourist packages and the like at the time of booking bus tickets. Booking tickets on buses run by road transport corporations of other States will also be possible.

KSRTC officials said the proposed 200 counters would predominantly be located in places where there was no advance booking counter, including rural areas where traffic was generated in large volumes. Presently, the facility is available only in major cities and towns. The franchisees are given a four per cent commission on bookings.