No bus has earned North Star yet: BusPlease is in preview, so there are no real trips to measure. Demo trips on Bengaluru to Chennai, Mumbai to Goa and Kolkata to Bhubaneswar carry the badge, marked "example", so you can see how it looks.
What a service needs to earn North Star
All six, over the last 90 days.
Rated highly by travellers
An average of 4.3 or more from at least 25 passengers who took the trip.
Leaves on time
90% of departures within 10 minutes of the timetable, measured by the bus's own tracker.
Always on the live link
95% of trips or more can be followed live by the people waiting for you.
Runs when it says it will
The operator cancels no more than 2% of trips.
Driven with care
Unsafe driving is reported in no more than 2 in 100 ratings.
The essentials on board
A charging point and a water bottle, and a blanket on a sleeper, included in the fare.
How North Star stays honest
- Measured, not claimed
- Every check uses the service's own last 90 days: its tracker, its passengers' ratings and its cancellations.
- Kept up to date
- North Star is recalculated through the day. A service that slips below the standard loses the badge until it is back above it.
- Never for sale
- An operator cannot buy North Star or pay to keep it. Fees, offers and campaigns make no difference to it.
- Paused when something goes wrong
- If passengers report a serious problem, BusPlease can pause the badge while it looks into it.
Questions about North Star
Is a North Star ticket more expensive?
No. North Star says how a service has run, not what it costs. The fare is set by the operator, the same as any bus on BusPlease.
Why has a service I like not earned North Star?
It may be new, with fewer than 20 tracked trips or 25 ratings in the last 90 days, or it may miss one of the six checks. Every check has to be met.
Is it the bus or the operator that earns North Star?
The service: one departure on one route, like the 9 pm to Goa. Two services of the same operator can be different.
How do I rate my trip?
After you arrive, open your ticket with its PNR and phone number and rate the trip there. Only passengers who took the trip can rate it.
Run buses? Earn North Star.
Operators see a checklist for every service in BusPlease insights: which of the six it meets, the number behind each one and what is missing.