New KSRTC Ashok Leyland Speeding Up Hilly Roads

25 June 2013.
Got a chance to take a video from a 4-5 month old KSRTC Ashok Leyland 'Suvarna Saarige' Express bus. As luck would have it, I had the whole of the first row for myself, and got a nice view. Slightly rash driving, but can't help it. Maybe the driver was also enjoying the power of the new bus. He told me that TATA Motors' buses don't climb grades so effortlessly and need constant gear changes. The bus easily reached its (limited) top speed of 80kph for the most part.
This bus runs on the Chikmagalur-Belgaum route(night), and was being run on the Chikmagalur-Birur-Chikmagalur route during daytime. The mini ghat section you see here is the last part of the journey where one has to climb from the plains to the higher plateau-like landscape surrounding Chikmagalur town.