Bhubaneswar to Test Bus Priority Lanes to Cut Travel Time, Boost Speed

14 Aug 2026, 08:52 by Vinay Kakkad · KalingaTV

Bhubaneswar is set to test a new bus-priority system on two of its busiest corridors, with the Odisha government looking to improve public transport speeds, reduce congestion and make better use of limited road space.

The pilot will be implemented by the Comprehensive Region Urban Transport (CRUT) on the Biju Patnaik International Airport–Nandankanan and Vani Vihar–Sishu Bhawan corridors. The decision was taken during a high-level meeting chaired by Additional Chief Secretary Usha Padhee at Kharavela Bhawan.

The longer of the two routes, stretching 18 km between Biju Patnaik International Airport and Nandankanan, has 34 bus stops and carries an estimated 9,000–10,000 passengers each day. The Vani Vihar–Sishu Bhawan corridor covers 5 km, has 15 bus stops and serves around 5,000–6,500 daily riders.

CRUT estimates that buses operating in mixed traffic currently lose 16% of their trips because of traffic conditions. That translates into a loss of about 1,200–1,500 bus trips every month. The proposed intervention is intended to address those delays while improving the reliability of bus services.

Rather than introducing permanently segregated bus lanes, the pilot will use flexible kerb-side lanes. The arrangement will be backed by the city’s Intelligent Traffic Management System (ITMS), automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) CCTV cameras and enforcement teams on the ground.

The authorities are targeting a 10–20% reduction in travel time during the pilot, along with a projected 15–25% increase in bus speeds. The plan also includes training for bus crews, public awareness initiatives and integration with feeder routes so that the priority system works as part of a wider public transport network.

CRUT will assess the experiment against several indicators, including reductions in journey times, service reliability, passenger experience, effects on general traffic and the effectiveness of enforcement.

The results will determine whether the bus-priority model is extended to additional corridors across Bhubaneswar. The pilot therefore serves not only as a traffic-management measure on the two selected routes, but also as a test of whether flexible priority lanes can improve the city’s broader urban mobility system.