I had traveled through Raj National Express in 2006 from Mumbai to Bangalore and it was an excellent experience except of the fact the helper and driver were engaged in shouting.
We let it go because it was a new service then. So, when my son had to go to Bangalore on 1st September, 2007, I chose Raj National for him and booked the ticket from their Vashi Franchisee and I reconfirmed that it was a Volvo bus throughout. The boarding was from Chembur and the bus reached acceptably late (15 mins). However, it was a Tata bus and not Volvo. We were told that he needed to change the bus at Pune and Volvo would be provided from Pune. So, we agreed. However, another Tata bus was there for Pune to Kolhapur. The passengers got angry and took refund for Mumbai-Pune after heated arguments. The passengers were promised Volvo from Kolhapur and it was given. However, the Volvo which started from Kolhapur was **OUT OF DIESEL** while it was still 180 kms away from Bangalore! It’s just **unbelievable**! The bus could manage few litres to reach a petrol pump and it reached Bangalore **6 HOURS LATE!** My son had an interview on Monday and I thank God that I didn’t send him through RNE on Sunday. What I want to say through this post that RNE is most unreliable.
If you want to book ticket from Mumbai to Bangalore or vice-versa, get it written on the ticket that (1) Volvo would be provided or else **full money refund** without cancelling the travel and (2) that you do not need to change buses in different stoppages. I recommend **KSRTC** Volvo buses for travelling from Mumbai to Bangalore instead.