Indian Railways and state road authorities expand travel options between Delhi and UP-Bihar
Travellers planning journeys from Delhi to Uttar Pradesh and Bihar during the upcoming festive season are facing severe ticket shortages for trains, prompting authorities to roll out comprehensive alternative transport arrangements. Indian Railways and state road corporations are significantly stepping up operations to manage the heavy passenger rush for upcoming festivals including Raksha Bandhan, Krishna Janmashtami, Durga Puja, Diwali, and Chhath in 2026.
For the upcoming Raksha Bandhan celebrations, regional transport bodies have introduced special relief measures. The Bihar State Road Transport Corporation announced free bus travel for women and female students across all services from 6 AM on August 27 to 10 PM on August 28, 2026. This applies to AC, Non-AC, Deluxe, PM E-buses, and Public-Private Partnership models. Concurrently, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath launched free bus travel for women over 60 in UPSRTC buses starting August 26, 2026. To support these operations, Amroha Roadways has kept all buses fully operational from August 26 through September 7, 2026, covering routes to Delhi, Moradabad, and Bareilly.
Festive Bus Connectivity for Diwali and Chhath
As travel demand peaks during October and November 2026 for Diwali and Chhath, the Delhi government is preparing to operate luxury Volvo buses from Kashmiri Gate and Anand Vihar ISBTs to over 24 cities across Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. This initiative is designed to curb arbitrary fare hikes by private operators during the festive rush. Furthermore, the Delhi government will deploy 50 inter-state 12-meter air-conditioned buses to Bihar, with a draft agreement open for public feedback until September 5, 2026. Complementing this effort, the Bihar government is launching 500 Puja Special buses between October 1 and November 30, 2026, in coordination with Punjab, Delhi, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh.
Railway Capacity Expansion and Tatkal Upgrades
To ease the acute train ticket crunch, Indian Railways is actively expanding train compositions. On August 25, 2026, the Railway Board announced the permanent augmentation of 22-coach Mail and Express trains to 24 coaches, a successful trial initiated by the Northeast Railway to boost confirmed ticket availability. Additional coaches are also being attached to more than 100 popular long-distance trains, including the Pawan Express, Mithila Express, and Vaishali Express. On the technological front, IRCTC successfully upgraded its Tatkal booking system on August 24, 2026, now capable of processing over 1.5 lakh bookings per minute. Passengers seeking seamless alternative road travel can also book tickets via online platforms such as Yatra.com, MakeMyTrip, Paytm, redBus, Krishna Travels, and E Bus India.