“Greet Your Crew” Series – Ramachandra Nalage speaks about Bus driving Challenges

Ramachandra Tatyasaheb Nalage, is a regular bus crew, working for SRS Travels with its head office at Bengaluru, Karnataka. I spoke to Mr Ramachandra, at Bengaluru regarding my new initiative under "Greet Your Crew" Blog Series, to highlight the Bus Crews in India who drive these machines connecting people and places. 

GREET YOUR CREW SERIES : RAMACHANDRA TATYASAHEB NALAGE ON SRS MERCEDES BENZ SHD

Driving Experience 

Ramachandra hails from Hattargi, near City of Belagavi, located at North part of Karnataka. He started his bus driving in 1998, with Kolhapur (Maharashtra) based bus fleet operator - Konduskar Travels, on routes connecting Pune, Mumbai, Nashik, Aurangabad, Panjim, Shirdi etc by Volvo multiaxles. In 2013, Ramachandra joined SRS Travels and is currently driving for the operator till 2018. Presently, he operates a Mercedes Benz Super High Deck Multiaxle on Bengaluru to Belagavi route, on a night schedule. He use to operate a Volvo B9R multiaxle before on the same route, before the coach was replaced by a Mercedes-Benz. 

Stating about his driving experiences, Ramachandra felt, "As a bus driver, we always remain overburdened with responsibilities on both the cargo-luggage and the passenger side. After our arrival at Head Hubs, we even have responsibilities of taking the vehicles for repairs on maintenance schedules. It hamphers our rest schedules and sometimes even we dont get proper continuous sleep and rest, during the day due to this overburden. I drive an average of 10 hours a day on Bengaluru to Belagavi route and also cater on Bengaluru to Mysore route, 4 times a month on to and fro schedule. This overburden of work, sometimes causes health issues and fatigue and even affects our concentrated driving on highways". He further added, "Regarding insurance cover for drivers, we are covered under PF and ESI which even covers the medical insurance part too. Under incentives, we are being paid Rs 1300/- per trip on Belagavi trip, which i feel needs to be incremented, keeping in view of our needs. There is a lack of a common platform for an operator management - driver / bus crew interaction in the company. In case we have such a base platform, it will help us to forward our daily issues and problems in a properly channelized way in front of the management".

SRS MERCEDES BENZ SUPER HIGH DECK COACH

Challenges and solutions 

Terming the present working conditions as a challenge for a bus driver in India, Ramachandra felt that a proper passenger management training would have helped the driver and the bus crew to offer more better services on board the coach. He also highlighted the problem of Driver Health issues on account of continuous driving conditions often, leading to accidents on highways. "We dont have regular driver health check ups in the company or may be i can generalize it for most bus operators, as i predict it. The rest and sleep deficiency affects the body and the mind often. If we undergo monthly health check ups with prioritized prescribed diet it will help us to make our driving safe and efficient", added Ramachandra. 

Speaking on importance of safe driving training and its implications, Ramachandra spoke, "I feel safe driving plays an essential role not only in driver safety but also for the safety of the travelling passenger on board our coaches. As far as OEM training is concerned, we have been given safe driving instructions during our driver training at Volvo and Mercedes-Benz (Daimler India). But we dont have any dedicated instructor on our fleet operator end". 

"In my opinion, my choice for the best quality driveline in the premium coach oem range, is the Volvo B9R multiaxle. The B9R comes with a well facilitated cabin space with respect to the other coach makers that i have driven. Its one of the reliable coaches in terms of ride and maintenance." felt Ramachandra. 

Concluding on the talk with feedbacks and suggestions to improve the driver conditions, Ramachandra told, "We need spacious and well facilitated bus parkings on behalf of the fleet operator in the country. Driver Well Being in terms of health care, working conditions and proper rest rooms and dormitories should be a priority. Bus Drivers work in the bus industry as a responsibility, so i feel if we have a proper and sustainable work ecosystem with better working conditions, it would be convenient for us to cater to efficient driving norms with dedicated passenger service in future".