The Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC), the state-run bus company, will run extra metro feeder buses starting from midnight of the New Year's Eve for all the days of the week.
BMTC officials said this would facilitate comfortable, reliable and affordable transport facility in and around Bengaluru city for those working till late hours. These new bus services will be in addition to the 143 night services that the BMTC already operates.
On Saturday, the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited said it will run metro service till 2 am only for New Year’s Day.
Earlier, City Police Commissioner Bhaskar Rao told the media that he had requested both BMRCL and BMTC to extend their service timings for those who gather in public places for the New Year celebrations. New Year’s Eve celebrations at Bengaluru’s MG Road and Brigade Road attract thousands of people from across the city every year.
Other than extended bus and metro services, police have taken a number of safety measures like deploying additional CCTV cameras, drones, watch towers and LED screens in specific areas. Tents with two or three police officers, including a woman police officer, will also be set up so that the public can report any case of harassment or crime easily. These tents will be coming up in areas in Bengaluru’s Central Business District.
Further, Deputy Commissioners of Police will be doing the rounds on New Year’s Eve. Drunk driving checks will also be conducted in the city. Personnel from Civil Defence, City Armed Reserve Police and Karnataka State Reserve Police will also be deployed in the city.