Thrilling Crew Cabin Ride on KSRTC's TATA Motors Rajahamsa

Finally got a chance to spend some time in the crew cabin of KSRTC's Chikmagalur-Bangalore Rajahamsa service. This footage was recorded between Belur and Hassan, which are connected by State Highway 57. Though well-maintained, frequent accidents have resulted in a lot of road humps in a bid to reduce the speed of vehicles.

This Rajahamsa is built on a TATA Motors 1618 chassis, with the Cummins-sourced vibration monster engine delivering around 180hp. It also comes equipped with a Voith retarder, though the driver mentioned that none of the Rajahamsas in Chikmagalur Depot have working retarders due to lack of maintenance. Now that's something they need to think about. Heavy vehicles always need all braking assistance that is available, and a retarder is one of the most important ones. Also note that this particular bus has the fancy, croaking 'boom boom' horn that is present mostly on trucks and private buses. Courtesy of a driver who worked the Coimbatore Express schedule and had the horn fitted on this bus as well.

It is always a nice pastime to spend a few minutes with the crew, discussing everything from the performance of the bus to life stories. A break from the monotonous driving for them, and a little knowledge transfer for me.

Also, yes, there are the usual hair-raising moments, which are part and parcel of 2-lane highways in India. Armchair critics would do well to refrain from making lame comments on stuff seen in this video. We all know already what is happening on Indian roads, and we do not need more gyaan from aforementioned armchair critics.

Feel free to like, share and do post your (constructive) thoughts. Thanks! :)