Page 2 - Buses

PM-eBus Sewa: Cabinet approves Rs 57,613 cr for 10k e-buses across cities

10,000 e-buses will be deployed on a public-private partnership model across 169 cities

Most employees of BEST's private bus operators rejoin post strike in Mumbai

Most employees of private operators of BEST, Mumbai's civic transport body, re-joined duty by Wednesday evening, a day after their weeklong strike was called off, a senior official said. Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) spokesperson Sunil Vaidya told PTI that 100 per cent wet leased buses were operated with the drivers of private bus operators in the evening. In the morning, however, many contractual staffers were yet to return to duty, he said. At 10 am, the public transporter operated 97.5 per cent of the 3,040 buses in its fleet including the wet-leased ones and BEST-owned buses, Vaidya said. "However, 100 percent wet leased buses were operated with the drivers of private bus operators on Wednesday evening," he said. A BEST official said that some employees of the private bus operators did not re-join duty in the morning due to some confusion over fulfilment of their demands, but most of them rejoined duty in the evening session. So this is the first time sin

Strong growth expected in bus segment this year, says Wheels India official

Wheels India, manufacturer of wheels for trucks, tractors, passenger vehicles and construction equipment, expects the bus segment to post a strong growth during the current financial year, a top official said on Wednesday. The company also expects 'some growth' in the goods segment of the commercial vehicle industry, Wheels India Ltd chairman S Ram said here. The demand for commercial vehicles was driven by the government's infrastructure drive, higher utilisation of fleets and replacement demand in FY23, he said while addressing the shareholders virtually, during the 64th annual general meeting. "This year, there is expected to be some growth in the goods segment of the CV industry and strong growth in the bus segment driven by modernisation drive (undertaken) by the STUs (state transport undertakings) and strong demand for buses for the school/office segment. This should benefit demand for Wheels India wheels and air suspension systems," he said. On the cast aluminium wheels

School bus overturns in Jaisalmer, 30 children injured, staffer dead

A person died and around 30 schoolchildren were injured when their bus overturned in Rajasthan's Jaisalmer district on Wednesday, police said. The bus was ferrying the students to their school when the accident occurred near Pokhran town, they said. "The driver lost control of the vehicle and it overturned," Assistant Sub Inspector of Sankra police station (Jaisalmer) Kailash Chand said. He said many of the injured students were rushed to a hospital in Jaipur while some were admitted to a local medical facility. Chand further said that the parents of some other children took them to private hospitals. The ASI said the students were in the age group of 10-15 years. The bus driver was also injured in the accident, he added. Jodhpur Collector Himanshu Gupta said 11 schoolchildren were brought to Jodhpur for treatment from Jaisalmer and all were stated to be out of danger, but a staffer, identified as Vikram Singh, succumbed to injuries.

RTO drive finds 30% of over 14,000 buses flouting rules in Maharashtra

Nearly 30 per cent of more than 14,000 private buses checked by regional transport offices (RTOs) in Maharashtra during a special drive were found to be flouting rules, the transport department has said. According to a release by the department on Tuesday, RTOs checked 14,161 private buses as part of the special drive conducted between May 15 and June 30. Of these vehicles, 4,277, or nearly 30 per cent, were found to be violating rules and regulations and offences were registered against some of them, it said. The very next day after the drive ended on July 1 25 passengers travelling on a private sleeper coach were charred to death when the vehicle caught fire after hitting a road divider on the Samruddhi Expressway in Buldhana district. Of those buses caught flouting rules during the special drive, 1,702 were found violating norms about reflectors, indicators and tail lights, followed by 890 buses plying without permits or not following permit conditions. According to the relea

Buses missing as contractual employees of Punjab Roadways go on strike

Contractual employees of the Punjab Roadways and the Pepsu Road Transportation Corporation went on strike on Tuesday to press for their demands, including an increase in salaries. The strike left many passengers stranded at bus stands, including in Sangrur, Ludhiana and Patiala. Gurvinder Singh, secretary of the Punjab Roadways, Punbus, PRTC Contract Workers' Union, said they are staging demonstrations at all 27 bus stands in the state. The contractual employees are seeking from the state government, among others, a five per cent hike in their annual salaries. Singh said the hike was promised by the state government but not implemented. Waving black flags, the protesting employees raised slogans against the government and threatened to intensify their protest if their demands are not met. The strike inconvenienced many passengers, several of whom were unaware of the strike call. A passenger at the Sangrur stand said he waited for a state-owned bus for 25 minutes but "not even a s

Women now behind the wheel of MSRTC buses for first time in 75 years

The women drivers who possessed the heavy vehicle licence underwent rigorous training of three months, while those who did not have this licence underwent training for a full year, the report said

Women to travel free of cost in state-run buses soon: Karnataka minister

Reddy held a meeting with the Managing Directors of four divisions of the Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC), following which he informed the reporters about the latest development

Mumbai crackdown against BEST buses concealing reflective tapes under ads

The Regional Transport Offices (RTOs) here have taken action against more than 100 buses of the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport Undertaking (BEST) for violating rules about reflective tapes, an official said on Tuesday. A drive has been launched against BEST buses for concealing reflective tapes under wraparound advertisements, including those about state government schemes, he said. The RTO at Tardeo has taken action against 89 buses of the public transport body since the crackdown began last week, Bharat Kalaskar, RTO officer of Tardeo, which has jurisdiction of the entire city, told PTI. Ashok Pawar, who is the deputy RTO officer at Borivali and holds additional charge of Andheri RTO in western suburbs, said at least 25 BEST buses were found violating the rule in his jurisdiction. A BEST spokesperson, meanwhile, said a firm called Signpost India Private Limited had been given the contract from June 11, 2022 to June 10, 2027 for advertising on 3,115 buses at a cost of

19 passengers injured as Uttarakhand Roadways bus falls into gorge

Nineteen passengers were injured on Sunday when an Uttarakhand Roadways bus fell into a gorge while travelling from Mussoorie to Dehradun, police said. According to police, the accident occurred near the ITBP camp. The injured were pulled out of the 70-metre deep gorge and rushed to a hospital where the condition of three is said to be serious. The accident took place apparently after the brakes of the bus failed, police said. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami expressed grief at the accident and asked officials to make all arrangements for the treatment of the injured.

New bus queue shelters in Delhi to be vandal-proof: Kailash Gahlot

Delhi Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot has said the new bus queue shelters with digital screens to display bus routes will be theft-proof and vandal-proof. Presenting the Delhi Budget 2023-24 in the assembly on Wednesday, the minister had announced the AAP government's plans to construct 1,400 new and modern bus queue shelters (BQS) across the national capital. "Besides providing a comfortable waiting area for bus commuters, these bus shelters will also have a static display of bus routes and digital screens displaying the arrival time of buses. In view of the G20 summit in Delhi, we will complete this work in a phased manner," he had said. Talking to PTI on Thursday, Gahlot noted that these shelters will be made vandal-proof among concerns over the safety of digital screens. "Those who need to steal will steal any which ways. But we will try and make it theft-proof and vandal-proof. Our buses have CCTV cameras and video recording systems, but they come in such a kind of casing t

Tata team arrives for inspection after BEST took 400 CNG buses off road

Mumbai's civic transport body BEST on Thursday said the nearly 400 CNG-run buses which were taken off roads after three recent incidents of fire will be back in service only after a written assurance of safety is received from manufacturer Tata Motors. A team of TATA Motors Engineering arrived in the city from Lucknow on Thursday and is re-examining all these buses for compliance of safety standards, BEST said in a statement. Once they complete examination of safety parameters and give necessary clearance and written commitment and assurance of safety norms compliance, these buses will be put to service, it said, adding that the exercise is likely to be completed in six or seven days. On Wednesday evening, BEST undertaking announced taking 400 leased buses of M/S Mateshwari Limited off roads after a third incident of a CNG bus catching fire within one month. The 400 leased CNG buses of Mateshwari operate on around 40 routes, BEST sources said. Commuters faced a lot of inconvenien

Olectra Greentech unveils Hydrogen bus in partnership with Reliance

Olectra Greentech in technical partnership with Reliance on Thursday unveiled a Hydrogen Bus, which is a carbon-free alternative to traditional public transportation. Olectra Greentech Ltd (OGL), a subsidiary of Megha Engineering and Infrastructures Ltd (MEIL), is set to offer the next-generation transport system to the Indian market, a statement stated. In the wake of the depletion of natural resources and the negative impacts of air pollution and emissions, Olectra has taken the initiative to accelerate the development of Hydrogen-powered buses. This initiative will help out the Indian government to achieve carbon-free hydrogen ambitions. Olectra aims to contribute to the nation's environmentally sustainable energy security through its Hydrogen buses, the statement said. The 12-metre low-floor bus has a customisable seating capacity of 32 to 49 seats for passengers and one driver seat, it informed. A single hydrogen fill allows the bus to travel up to 400 km. Hydrogen fill for

Electric bus tender discovers 29% lower price than diesel buses: CESL

State-owned Convergence Energy Services Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Energy Efficiency Services Ltd (EESL), on Tuesday said the prices discovered for the 6,465 electric bus tender were 29 per cent lower than what it costs to operate diesel buses. This unified tender constitutes demand for electric buses from six Indian states & UTs Delhi, Telangana, Haryana, Surat (Gujarat), Kerala & Arunachal Pradesh, a statement said. This is the first tender under the National Electric Bus Programme (NEBP). The lowest price discovered for a 12-meter bus (intra-city) was Rs 54.3/km, & 12-meter bus (intercity) was Rs 39.8/km. For a 9-meter bus, the price discovered was Rs 54.46/km and a 7-meter bus was Rs 61.92/km. The prices do not include a subsidy and are 29 per cent lower than what it costs to operate diesel buses, it stated. "This is a remarkable step in helping to transform our state transport authorities and build out a new market for electric mobility in India," Mahua ...

UP govt planning to buy 6,000 buses for Rs 200 crore before Maha Kumbh 2025

The government spokesman said that by March next year, as many as 800 ordinary buses will be added to the existing fleet of 11,500 buses plying in the state

50 new super luxury buses purchased by TSRTC flagged off in Telangana

The corporation has plans to add a total 1,016 more buses worth Rs 392 crore to its fleet in the current financial year

Volvo-Eicher looks to make most of post-pandemic recovery in bus market

Aims to disrupt intercity segment with fully-built luxury coaches

Maharashtra govt approves 6% dearness allowance hike for MSRTC employees

The Maharashtra government has approved a six per cent hike in dearness allowance for the employees of the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC), a top official said on Wednesday. Shekhar Channe, vice chairman and managing director of MSRTC, told PTI that the government has given the nod for increasing DA to 34 per cent from the existing 28 per cent. The hike will put a financial burden of Rs 15 crore per month on the state-owned public transport body. Shrirang Barge, a union leader, said they were happy with the decision though it was pending for four months. "MSRTC employees should also get dearness allowance arrears as in the past the state government has not paid it," Barge said. The corporation has a workforce of more than 80,000 employees. Last year, MSRTC employees had gone on a strike for more than five months for various demands including merger of the corporation with the state government. MSRTC is one of the biggest state-owned public transport ...

Google Cloud to build intelligent tracking system for Pune's public buses

Once published on Google Maps, the live transit update service will allow commuters to track buses real-time on Google Maps

CCTV cams, panic buttons: Features of newly inducted cluster buses in Delhi

Pink seats for women, CCTV cameras and panic buttons with hooters -- these are some of the features in the 50 new cluster buses flagged off by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal here on Tuesday. The buses, flagged off from the Rajghat depot here, are Bharat Stage VI emission standard compliant and are equipped with Intelligent Transportation system (ITS), CCTV cameras and panic buttons with hooter for safety of women passengers. The low-floor buses have pink seats for women and the live feed from the vehicles will be streamed to the Central Command and Control Centre (CCC), officials said. The buses are equipped with GPS and have Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) System along with Fire Detection and Suppression system. These buses will operate from the newly constructed bus depot at Bawana's Sector-5 and is aimed at improving rural connectivity. As on date, cluster buses operate on 360 routes. These buses will operate on six additional routes. The new routes include Baw