In response to the ongoing strike by wet lease bus drivers, BEST undertook proactive measures to ensure smooth operations on Friday. BEST called upon previously declared excess bus drivers, deploying them to drive the wet lease buses affected by the strike.
About 360 wet lease buses were able to operate on Friday. Moreover, to compensate for the canceled services, BEST requested support from the Maharashtra State Transport Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC). The MSRTC provided 150 buses, allocating 25 to each of the six BEST depots.
Salman Ansari
BEST deploys 74 buses
Seventy four of these buses were deployed immediately, with 19 serving in Deonar bus depot, 12 in Shivaji Nagar, seven in Ghatkopar, 15 in Mulund, 11 in Gorai, and 10 in Magothane bus depot.
The remaining MSRTC buses joined the fleet during the night.Despite these efforts, some commuters expressed their frustrations about the bus service. Rajesh Jain, a frequent commuter, shared his 40-minute wait for a bus to Sion, Kurla, and Chembur from Worli Naka bus stop.
Another passenger, Bajirao Shinde of Pratiksha Nagar, had to endure an overcrowded bus on his commute from GPO to Pratiksha Nagar after waiting for a long time. BEST assures passengers that they are working diligently to address the situation and provide improved service until the strike concludes.
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