Maharashtra government on Friday allowed BEST (Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport) buses to operate with full capacity.
The state government has asked the BEST (Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport) to strictly follow COVID-19 protocols while running buses with full capacity. The state government has also urged commuters to wear face masks and use hand sanitisers while travelling.
Meanwhile, the BEST officials are planning to add more buses to certain routes during morning and evening peak hours. The decision came after Railways allowed female passengers to board local trains from Wednesday. Female commuters are allowed to commute by locals during non-peak hours (11 am to 3 pm and after 7 pm).
BEST has its own fleet of 3,500 plus buses. Alongside this, it is operating 1,000 buses of the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) daily.
The BEST (Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport) resumed its regular operations from June 8. Till June 8, only people engaged in essential services, including those working at government and municipal offices, and hospital staff were allowed to take the buses.
Maharashtra is slowly crawling back to normal, with the new guidelines of "Unlock 5.0". The Maharashtra government has announced new guidelines under its mission "Begin Again" to provide further relaxation.
As per the state government's new unlock guidelines, the Mumbai Metro services were allowed to resume. While, institutions such as schools, colleges, and religious places of worship will remain closed.
In addition, the state government has allowed the opening of all government and private libraries with COVID-19 protocols like social distancing, wearing face masks or shields, and washing hands with soap.
