Goa Govt to inaugurate 25 electric buses in December 

The Government of Goa road transport KTC (Kadamba Transport Corporation Ltd) in talks with Hyderabad-based electric bus manufacturer to finalise the electric buses for Goa. The first batch will be delivered to the State in December before 19. The KTC until then will set up charging stations across its bus stands.

Electric buses 

The KTC General Manger, Sanjay Ghate who is currently in Hyderabad said that they have informed 25 buses that will be ready soon and will start arriving in Goa in small batches by the third week of December.

This initiative comes under the part of the 100 electric buses that the union government has sanctioned under FAME (Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles in India ) India scheme.

KTC officials are test driving the first bus or prototype during their current visit to Hyderabad. However, this bus will not be operated in Goa in November as it was initially planned.

Ghate said that it is not feasible to start only one electric bus as the charging station set up and maintenance must be there. It is better to launch all-electric buses at once after the inauguration on 19th December on the Goa’s Liberation day.

The works of establishing charging stations have been already started at Panaji and Marg bus stands and will be ready by the end of November. The buses on their way to delivery will be charged every 250 km from Hyderabad to Goa for which they will make a stop at Kolhapur.

BEST to add 40 electric buses

BEST (Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport) authorities have also decided to add 40 electric buses in its fleet to curb the pollution levels in the country. Across the country, the various States have been given special grants for electric buses under the Central government’s proposed scheme.

The BEST fleet under the scheme introduced around 300 electric buses and will be distributed among BEST, ST, Navi Mumbai Transport Services across Maharashtra. Apart from that, the other cities like Rajkot, Surat and Chandigarh have also introduced 670 electric buses under this initiative to create a pollution-free environment and eco-friendly mode of transport.

BEST was in news earlier this year stating that it is all set to hire 300 electric buses under the central government’s FAME-2 scheme.BEST in its contract for wet-leasing 300 electric buses urged the operator to give preference to woman drivers.

The BEST’s fleet is strengthening its fleet by adding 300 electric buses. It agreed for the contract for wet-leasing 140 AC single-decker buses and 160 AC minibuses under FAME (Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles) scheme of the central government which will provide Rs 45 lakh for the minibuses and Rs 55 lakh for the single-decker buses.

Tata has been received Rs 1,259 crore contract to provide buses for 10 years. BEST has assured the business of 4,750 km for the single deckers and 4,200 km for the minibuses per month. In which the cost of the driver, maintenance and fuel will be taken care of by the provider whereas only the conductor will be provided by the BEST. BEST will pay an operational cost of Rs 83 per km for the single deckers and Rs 74 per km for the minibuses.

150 Electric Buses tender issued in Pune under FAME 2

Recently the Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited (PMPML) has issued a tender inviting bid for 150 electric buses. The last day for the online submission of technical and price bids is September 30, 2020. The tender falls under the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid) and Electric Vehicles-II (FAME-II) program.

As per the tender criteria, the buses should be 12-meter-long, air-conditioned, and compliant with Bus Rapid Transit. The prospective bidders must pay an RfP fee of ₹59,179 and an earnest money deposit (EMD) of ₹26.25 million.

Nitin Gadkari promotes new pilot project to run electric buses with private investment

The Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari recently promoted a pilot project to run electric buses with private investment. During the fourth UITP India Bus seminar, through video conference, while addressing the bus transport industry Nitin Gadkari has promoted the new pilot project through the public-private partnership (PPP) mode.

He said, “If anyone is ready to invest in India, we can give him a pilot project for a city, where they can run their buses on electricity. Running their buses through electricity, they will get a good margin compared to diesel. However, the ticket rate will remain the same. It is an attractive project due to saving between diesel and electricity.” He also said that the same me

“The trolly buses on electric or railbus can be started in India. We have to technically find out whether we can transport goods, trucks also on the same system. Economic viability may increase.”

He also spoke about the London model of public transport and said that he has been trying to implement it. He also said that the government was also planning to make bus ports and can be developed like an airport through Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model.