Mumbai: First AC double-decker e-bus to hit city roads next week

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Mumbaikars' wait to travel in the AC double-decker e-bus will end soon as the much-awaited first e-bus will be operational soon. The bus will operate on Kurla-Santacruz route.

The first AC double-decker e-bus will arrive in Mumbai in the next couple of days and by next week five buses will be operational in the city.

In an exclusive chat with mid-day, Lokesh Chandra, the general manager of Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) said that they are processing the paperwork for the new transport system before the buses are operational on roads.

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Initially, BEST is expecting to make five e-buses operational. By the end of March 2024, Chandra said, "We plan to introduce 200 AC double-decker e-buses on various routes across the city."

The AC double-decker e-bus has a capacity of carrying 78 commuters and unlike the normal double-deckers, will have doors on both sides.

Chandra said the first bus will run on Kurla-Santacruz route, however, similar buses will be deployed on other city routes that have a high footfall during peak hours.

BEST has identified routes on which these e-buses will ply: Colaba depot, Majas depot, and Kurla depot, to name a few. "As we get the buses batch-wise, we will start operating them on traditional double-decker routes," Chandra said.

For the buses to be operational on maximum routes, BEST is in a process of installing charging points at bus depots before making the AC double-decker e-buses operational. "We are in the process of getting the charging points installed for the e-buses. By the time the buses arrive, we will have the charging stations ready in the bus depot located in Colaba, Majas, and Kurla," he said.

In the financial year 2023-24, BEST is planning to introduce around 4,000 e-buses in the city. While presently, five of the bus depots have e-charging facilities, soon the e-charging infrastructure will be ready at 27 bus depots across Mumbai.

Pertinently, the e-bus service was inaugurated by union minister Nitin Gadkari last year.

Presently, BEST has 410 e-buses operational in Mumbai, including the BEST premium buses. Last week, the civic body in its BMC budget also mentioned of introducing 3,000 new e-buses across the city.