On the fourth day of the ongoing strike by private bus drivers hired by Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST), over 1,000 buses remained off the roads, leading to significant inconvenience for the commuters.
The strike's impact on Mumbai's public transportation system has been severe, and commuters are anxiously awaiting a swift resolution to alleviate the inconvenience caused by the ongoing industrial action.
The strike has resulted in long queues at bus stops across the city.
However, there is a glimmer of hope as a BEST official stated that on Saturday, 62% of the buses were operational, and they anticipate an improvement on Sunday with more than 70% expected to be back on the roads.
1077 buses remain stationed
“Out of the total 1,671 private buses operated by BEST, 1,077 remained stationed at depots, leading to disruptions in public transportation across the city,” said a union leader, adding that BEST's efforts to break the agitation have been unsuccessful on Saturday again, despite holding meetings with representatives from six bus supplier companies. The demand of BEST wet lease bus employees for salary hike and other allowances remains constant.
A BEST official said, “All wet lease bus suppliers have been clearly instructed for the immediate solution during the meeting and they have assured us of a speedy solution and hope tomorrow's situation will be better.”
Meanwhile, the state transport department has allowed to ferry passenger in the private buses, school buses, rickshaws and taxis to alleviate the situation.
In addition to that, to mitigate the impact on passengers, on Saturday BEST deployed its over 600 hundred of excess drivers who were deployed in other departments to operate 488 leased buses on Saturday, and an additional 68 wet lease buses were operated by wet lease bus contractors by newly appointed drivers.
Asked about the fine imposed on the contractor, a BEST official said Rs5,000 has been levied as a fine each day per bus on contractor for non-operation of buses. Till date, over Rs1.8 crore has been imposed.
MSRTC pitches in
As the struggle continues, commuters are facing long waiting times at bus stops, prompting the BEST initiative to seek ways to get the buses out of the garage and back on the roads. Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation has contributed 150 buses to support the initiative, out of these, over hundred were running on Saturday, but the shortage of buses remains a pressing issue for the public transportation system in Mumbai.
