This BMTC bus has a garden on wheels

BENGALURU: A ride on route 314 is bound to bring a smile on your face. The moment you step in, you’re welcomed by a little garden which is set up by the driver and conductor duo on the bus. This little patch of green has sustained for over a year and is a spectacle for passengers.

“It all started a year-and-a-half ago when passengers appreciated the plastic flowers kept in the bus. Back then we would have to tell them that the flowers are fake. This is when we thought of bringing natural plants and making a mini garden in the bus itself,” said bus driver Chennappa Badiyar.

The garden was Badiyar’s brainchild and he was helped by conductor Siddhu S Tahsildar. A delighted Badiyar said that not a day passes without someone clicking a picture with the plants. Badiyar has tried to replicate this little garden at his hometown in Gajendragad, Gadag too. 

“I take care that the plants stay alive and the bus is clean. Another bus in Indiranagar has also followed suit. They’ve gone a step ahead and set up a water dispenser for passengers,” he said. 
The driver and conductor say a local school helped them make the garden a reality. Besides, they also chipped in money from their pockets for the pots and plants.

What makes all this effort worthwhile for Siddhu and Badiyar is the enthusiasm with which senior citizens take their bus in Vidyaranyapura. “They choose our bus as opposed to other modes of transport,” Chennappa said, and added that he hopes to soon set up water dispensers too.