Mumbai’s famed double-decker buses to get new life in EV avatar
In clean energy drive, city transport body BEST to procure 900 air-conditioned e-buses on wet lease; other Maharashtra cities may follow suit
Red double-decker buses, among Mumbai’s biggest icons, are staging a comeback, but in a modern, electric version.
The Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport (BEST) is procuring 900 AC electric double-decker buses for the city, announced Maharashtra Environment Minister Aditya Thackeray. He, as well as his father and Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, were keen on reviving the double-decker buses, he said.
The BEST double-decker, now electric!
CM Uddhav Thackeray and I have been personally keen on reviving Mumbai’s iconic double-decker buses. pic.twitter.com/lQkjvKlVgh
— Aaditya Thackeray (@AUThackeray) January 27, 2022
“The BEST double-decker, now electric! Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and I have been personally keen on reviving Mumbai’s iconic double-decker buses,” tweeted the junior Thackeray. He also shared a photo of the fully electric BEST double-decker bus.
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The target, said the Minister, is to acquire 10,000 buses running on electricity or clean, alternate fuels. “As we increase our BEST fleet, ultimately to 10,000 electric/clean alternate fuel buses, our aim is to have maximum double-decker buses, as this increases our capacity,” he said.
“I thank BEST chairman @AshishChemburk1 ji, GM Lokesh Chandra ji, and the committee of BEST for honouring our suggestion,” he further tweeted.
Thackeray further said he has requested municipal commissioners of other cities in Maharashtra keen to procure e-buses to go for the double-decker version on busy routes. For starters, double-decker buses will be launched in Aurangabad in a bid to make commuting cheaper as well as to boost tourism in the city.
Procurement details
The double-deckers will be procured on a wet lease, which means they will be owned by private contractors and rented out by BEST. The private contractors will also appoint the drivers and handle the vehicles’ maintenance and insurance. The e-buses will be hired for 12 years and the rate would be ₹56.60/km.
Of the 3,377 buses currently in the BEST fleet, just 48 are double-deckers, and most of these are very old. Also on the BEST fleet are 1,524 buses on wet lease as well as 386 e-buses.
