State transport corporation passenger service has been streamlined. But the air-conditioned tourist buses for the world-famous Ajanta, Ellora Caves are still parked in the central bus stand. These buses have been standing idle for the last 7 months.
For the past several years, tourists from Aurangabad city had to rely on ST buses or private transportation to visit Ellora, Ajanta Caves. Tourists from big cities, including foreign tourists, often find it inconvenient to travel by ST bus. The district collector office took the initiative to provide better services to the tourists coming to the city. Later, the district planning committee provided Rs 1.80 crore for the purchase of two air-conditioned buses for tourism development. The two tourist buses started service from October 15, 2015 to Ellora and Ajanta. Both these buses were getting good response, but due to Covid-19 these buses have been standing at the bus stand for the past seven months. Divisional controller Arun Sia said, "As tourist places are closed, tourist buses are now being planned to run on the Pune route. Emphasis is being placed on earning revenue from passenger transport instead of keeping buses standing.