Does Sarathi support BMTC buses?
Yes. Sarathi is designed to plan Bengaluru journeys with BMTC buses and compare them with Metro and walking options. It is an independent product of AUMLayer Cloud Labs LLP, not an official BMTC application.
1. What BMTC data does Sarathi use?
The current public dataset contains 4,381 BMTC route patterns. The static GTFS snapshot provides route numbers, stop order, headsigns and scheduled times. The provenance and community snapshot are documented on the Data sources page.
This is timetable data. It does not prove where a bus is physically located right now.
2. Route number alone is not enough
A Bengaluru route number can have direction and variant details that matter when you are standing at a stop. Sarathi is built to show the route, direction, headsign, stop sequence and boarding-side context so the traveller can distinguish the correct service.
3. Why does Sarathi keep a Direct bus card?
A planner that optimises only for the fastest arrival can hide a one-seat bus behind a slightly faster transfer. Sarathi keeps Direct bus as one of five planner views alongside Fastest, Shortest route, Likely cheapest and Fewest changes.
That does not mean direct is always best. It means the trade-off remains visible so you can decide whether avoiding a transfer is worth the extra time.
4. Are BMTC arrival times live?
Not unless the time is explicitly labelled Live. Sarathi currently describes timetable values as Scheduled and frequency-style information as Typical. Cached and Unavailable are separate states. Read the data freshness methodology for the full rule.
5. Example: Koramangala toward the MG Road side
The public Sarathi site uses a dataset-backed Sony World 80ft Road, Koramangala → Mayohall example. It keeps the 141-K direct option visible and also explains a G-2 option via Trinity. The example is a way to show route trade-offs, not a promise that a specific trip will run unchanged on the day you travel.
See the broader bus + Metro + walking comparison for how transfers and access walks fit around a bus leg.
6. What Sarathi does not claim
- It is not affiliated with, endorsed by or operated for BMTC.
- It does not sell BMTC tickets or display fare amounts.
- A Scheduled time is not a GPS prediction.
- Route and timetable data can change; operator notices take precedence.