After a wait of almost 12 years, residents of the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) apartments at Kaniminike, located off the Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway, finally got their first BMTC bus service, addressing their long-pending demand for better public transport connectivity to the area.

The new service will operate between Bidadi and Kengeri TTMC, passing through Hejjala Cross, Judicial Layout, the Kaniminike BDA Apartments (Phase 2), Kaniminike, Kumbalgodu, Anchepalya, Basavanagar and Kengeri Police Station before terminating at Kengeri TTMC.

Residents said the bus entering the apartment complex itself is a major relief, as the nearest bus stop was nearly 2 km away, leaving commuters to depend on autos and cabs that were difficult to access throughout the day. “For years, poor last-mile connectivity had remained one of the biggest concerns for residents and prospective homebuyers in the locality,” Asha, a resident, said. The apartment complex comprises around 1,500 flats, of which close to 500 are currently occupied.

Shashank Bharadwaj, a resident, said connectivity is one of the first issues potential buyers ask about, especially since the apartments, though close to the expressway, have remained poorly linked for the past 12 years. He added that bus connectivity up to Kengeri would help, as the locality has a private college, and many people from nearby Bhadrapura village work in the Kumbalgodu industrial area.

Residents had long sought a bus service connecting the locality either to Kengeri, Majestic or a Metro station, he said.  

Residents led survey

To support their demand, residents also conducted a survey among current occupants, covering 500 houses. The findings showed that nearly 40% of residents depend on public transport and do not own more than one two-wheeler. The survey also highlighted that women, senior citizens and college students were among the worst affected, with many having to walk long distances to access public transport.

Residents said they had repeatedly raised the issue with both the BDA and BMTC. Following this, BMTC has now introduced the service, which will initially operate during the morning peak hours between 8 am and 9 am. They said this was identified as the most critical travel window based on survey responses, though they have also requested similar services during evening peak hours. 

Residents also highlighted that they were earlier told that introducing a new service would be difficult, as BMTC estimated that the route could face nearly 10% operational loss due to insufficient passenger numbers. However, with occupancy increasing and repeated requests from residents, a depot officer recently conducted a survey and found the demand to be genuine.