BMTC Bus Routes on Google Maps

Finally! And it had to come with some help from Google. We now can get bus routes with bus numbers (even broken journeys) on Google maps itself for Bangalore.

I think one of the biggest reasons why people do not intend to use public transport is because all the information is so muddled and confusing. We end up having to ask people at local bus-stands and the poor souls sometimes send us to the other end of Bangalore! :)

I have used BTIS.in in the past and the site is very good. It gives you a whole lot of information where Bus routes is just one of it. It does a pretty good job too.

But Google maps, by integrating the bus route information with their Maps, has made it much more simpler. I can use it on my mobile too. I am sure a whole lot of more people will atleast not be afraid to try public transport anymore! But one disclaimer though - Google says - "Only Vajra, Vayu Vajra (Airport Dedicated) and Big-10 services are covered by Google Transit at present.". But I am certain this will extend in the future to other buses too.

To those of you who has not used Google maps to get directions (are there any left? :)  ) - it is simple to use Google Maps to get bus routes. Get into Google Maps, click "Get Directions" on the top left corner. Enter your location in Bangalore. Here, I entered a random-on-top-of-my-head location - Madiwala. For the destination, I entered Indiranagar. Click "Get Directions". This would bring up and show on the map the driving directions.

You will need to change this to show bus routes by clicking the small icon next to the car icon - "By public transport". This shows up the route via public transport and also gives you the name(s) of buses you have to take, the closest bus stop, how far you will need to walk to and from a bus-stop etc.

Go check it out and take a bus today!

Educated Fools and Traffic

Damn, have been looking to write on this for a really long time. I have recently been riding a lot in Bangalore. And I ride a RE Thunderbird. So if you live in Bangalore, you will know how much of a pain it is to ride one of these beasts in lousy traffic. What I really get tired by is just riding the bike. Blame it on traffic and the other fuckers on the road. I mean, its such a fucking pain to hold the clutch for hours on end and at the end of the ride, you are left with one aching palm!. Other observations - too much traffic, lousy roads and the lousy bastards who ride on them. I mean, why the hell do you, when you see traffic moving in only one direction and the other direction free, go and park your vehicles all across the road?. Do you realise that you are blocking traffic both ways now? This is not a fucking race!. And we have the balls to call ourselves educated!!. Bookish knowledge and perhaps we can ace any written or oral exam on the fucking planet, but educated - we are not!!. No fucking way!!!.

And women - I have a lot of respect for you. But why is it that when you are behind a steering-wheel or hold a handlebar, become insane? Do you lose your head when you see so many men around you or is it so much traffic?. I agree, there are so many men who are lousy drivers out there but to the percentage of women who ride/drive, a large percentage are lousy drivers and make dumb-ass mistakes on the roads. Why do you suddenly (and this applies to the male population too) take turns without looking at the rear-view mirrors? What the fuck is a rear-view mirror for?? I don't remember it ever being put on a vehicle for cosmetic purposes. Damn, how much fucking long is it going to take to just flick your eyes to the rear-view mirror and get it back on the road?? Is it that hard to judge what to do based on that?

And why the hell do we use the horn so much? Is it some god-or-whatever-being-given weapon that we can use without any concern for human-kind? It so fucking pisses me off when people use it on the road with so much aplomb. Traffic is jammed up. Its not moving. Its gonna take some time. Or the signal is red. There is no way anyone can move until it turns green - or in most cases, yellow. But still you want to use the horn. I ask - what the fuck for? And another piss-off. Why the fuck do you want to move before the signal counts down to zero? I mean, are we getting there faster if we move out before that? Do we reach earlier?

And why use the cell-phone while driving? Its a fucking crime to use it when driving a car. But I have seen some jokers on bikes use them!!. I mean, do you write a fucking will and final settlement every time you leave the home in the morning. Fucking hell, atleast do that before you leave. I am sure your wife and kids will be happy about that!. They'll have a future once you lose yours!.

Like rear-view mirrors, I also think that signal-lights are not put on vehicles for cosmetic purposes. They have a fucking use. When you want to turn right, you flip on the right indicator. When you want to turn left, you turn on the left indicator. Its kinda simple. All it takes on a bike is a flick of the thumb and on a car - go figure!. Notice that I said "when you want to turn". Cause I see so many people use the indicators, but only just before turning. Voids the need for fucking indicators I think. Damn, we should have been blessed with fucking ESP.

Damn, driving in traffic sure pisses me off and in fact, I do give a piece of my mind to every fucker who fucks up on the road. So the next time you hear someone scream and call you names on the road, it might just be me!! Fucking educated fools!!.

On a happier note, was very happy to come across this site called Bangalore Transport Information System through Metroblogging Bangalore. It aims to make it easier for the common man to locate directions to parts of Bangalore and even provides information on the auto rates for that distance. Good effort I must say and they are looking for feedback, so please do give it to them.