Kolkata: The Bengal transport dept on Friday revived night bus services across Kolkata and adjoining areas, launching late-evening operations on 10 key routes to improve connectivity for patients, attendants, hospital staff, IT employees, hospitality workers and other late-night commuters.The services, which began operating from Friday night, will have the last scheduled departure at 10 pm on identified routes connecting major residential areas with some of the city’s largest govt and private hospitals, including Medical College Hospital, SSKM Hospital, RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, NRS Medical College, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, Apollo Multispeciality Hospital, Tata Medical Centre, Medica Superspecialty Hospital, Fortis Hospital and Peerless Hospital.The initiative comes weeks after the state govt announced its plan to revive night public transport as part of a broader strategy to support Kolkata’s emerging 24×7 economy. The services will be expanded and extended on the basis of demands.Transport minister Arjun Singh said the services were intended to address a long-felt gap in late-evening public transport. “A city that aspires to function round the clock must provide safe, affordable and dependable public transport beyond regular office hours. These night bus services will especially benefit patients, their family members, hospital staff, IT professionals, employees of bars and restaurants, and thousands of commuters who struggle to find reliable transport after 9 pm,” Singh said.The minister said the transport dept would closely monitor passenger demand and operational performance before expanding the network. “This is the first phase. We will assess commuter response route-wise and, wherever necessary, introduce additional services and extend timings. Our objective is to build a dependable late-night public transport network across Kolkata and its suburbs,” he added.Officials said the selected routes have been designed to cover the city’s major healthcare corridors while also serving important employment hubs, including Sector V and New Town. Several routes originate from Howrah Station, ensuring seamless connectivity for rail passengers arriving on late-night trains.Among the routes receiving extended departures are E-32 (Howrah-Barrackpore), S-7 and S-5 (Howrah-Garia), S-9A (Dunlop-Ballygunge), T-16 (Rajabazar-Mourigram), S-30 (Ultadanga-Eco Space), S-24 (Howrah-Kamalgazi) and AC-37 (Barasat-Garia). Existing services such as VS-2 and S-10A will continue with their present late-night schedules.The transport dept said the night services are also expected to support the govt’s proposal to permit all-night commercial activities in selected zones of the city by ensuring dependable public transport for employees working beyond conventional business hours.Passengers have been urged to utilise the services, while officials said the dept would continue reviewing ridership patterns and operational requirements to strengthen late-night connectivity in the coming months.
