India’s intercity bus market continues to be one of the most important pillars of mass mobility, and Mr. Rohit Sharma, COO, Abhibus, believes that the sector will become far more organised, data-led and customer-first by 2030.
From the OTA – online travel agency standpoint, one major trend, according to Mr. Sharma, will be the deeper digitisation of the bus ecosystem. More operators will move towards online inventory, digital payments, live tracking and data-backed route planning. For customers, this will mean better discoverability, transparent pricing, reliable reviews and greater confidence.
The second important trend will be safety and travel assurance. Today’s travellers want more than the cheapest seat — they expect reliability, live tracking, 24×7 support, women-focused safety, assured refunds, and emergency assistance throughout their journey. “At AbhiBus, our recently launched Roadside Assistance initiative is a step in this direction, helping arrange alternate cab support within 45 minutes for passengers in the event of a mid-journey bus breakdown. This reflects how the role of a bus OTA is expanding beyond booking into end-to-end journey assurance,” he said.
The third trend will be AI-led intelligence for both consumers and operators. AI will help travellers make smarter decisions through personalised recommendations, better route discovery, and features like new bus filters, 360-degree photos, and ratings. For operators, it will drive demand forecasting, occupancy insights, and route analytics — improving both customer experience and profitability.
Finally, “we expect strong growth from Tier-2 and Tier-3 markets, where bus travel remains the preferred mode of intercity transport. Better highway infrastructure, increasing smartphone penetration and digital adoption will continue to accelerate online bus bookings across India.
Mission 2030
“Our mission for 2030 is to make bus travel in India smarter, safer, more transparent and more dependable, while helping operators build more efficient and profitable businesses. We are investing in technology, trust, transparency and operator enablement. Initiatives such as Roadside Assistance, Abhi Assured, Pink Seat, live bus tracking and 24×7 customer support are part of this larger vision to deliver a worry-free travel experience,” he mentioned.
By 2030, “we envision AbhiBus evolving beyond a bus ticketing platform into a trusted mobility ecosystem that connects travellers and operators through innovation, trust, transparency and intelligent technology, making every journey more reliable and every business more successful,” Mr. Sharma concluded.
“Our focus is to build a platform where travellers can compare buses with complete confidence through reliable information, authentic bus photos, verified ratings, clear pricing and rich bus details, while also benefiting from live tracking, seamless support and proactive journey assistance.”