CAG Audits Highlight Declining BMTC Ridership and Metro Feeder Losses

Recent Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) audit reports have revealed severe operational gaps across Bengaluru's public transit network, including a steep drop in bus ridership and heavy financial losses in Metro feeder operations.

Highlighting the findings, Karnataka State Travel Operators Association President K Radhakrishna Holla stated that transport integration is urgently required to tackle the city's worsening traffic congestion.

According to the CAG audit on the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC), daily ridership dropped from 44.37 lakh passengers in 2017-18 to 33.10 lakh in 2019-20. Holla noted that when public transport becomes unreliable or fails to meet demand, commuters naturally turn to private vehicles, directly worsening road congestion.

The audits also revealed that by March 2022, 170 Metro feeder services had accumulated losses of approximately ₹70.22 crore, operating at a load factor of just 53.33 per cent. Holla stressed that metro stations cannot function in isolation and commuters require dependable connectivity between their homes, stations, and workplaces.

In addition, a January 2026 Smart City audit by the CAG noted that Bengaluru dropped a planned ₹459.35-crore smart mobility project.

Holla called for BMTC, Metro, suburban rail, traffic police, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), and the Transport Department to operate as a single metropolitan mobility system. He also advocated for transparent regulation of shared transport and carpooling models, urging authorities to resolve audit-identified gaps before introducing new mobility restrictions.