The Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited (PMPML) has set aside 200 buses to ferry around 10,000 people to the Balewadi Stadium on October 12 and October 18, for the opening and the closing days of the Commonwealth Youth Games (CYG). This will include the 110 buses earmarked for routes leading to Balewadi during the CYG week.

The downside of this is that there will be 200 buses less to ply on the regular routes on these two days. There are around 1,100 buses plying in the city on a given day.

“The stadium can accommodate around 18,000 people. We expect 10,000 people to use public buses, as only around 8,000 will be able to arrive in their own vehicles,” said PMPML chairman and managing director S B Patil, during a press conference on Wednesday night to announce the bus utility’s plans for the CYG week.

PMPML runs buses in over 220 routes. “Each route will have to give up a bus or two to accommodate the schedules for the CYG,” said an officer from the transport department.

Ten zones in the city have been earmarked as parking slots for private vehicles. They are Golibar Maidan in Pune Cantonment Board, Government Engineering College at Shivajinagar, ILS Law College grounds, B J Medical Grounds, Khadki Post Office, Agriculture College, Wadia College, Madanlal Dingra College, Hindustan Antibiotics, Annasaheb Magar Stadium. “We expect people to park their vehicles at these slots and take the bus to Balewadi and back,” said Patil.

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