Eager to get itself registered as one of the beneficiary cities under the second phase of the modified Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles (FAME) scheme, the public transport authority attached to the Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporation (MBMC) has asked the central government authorities to consider its demand of 100 electric buses (e-buses) for the twin-city.
Notably, nine cities including Mumbai and Pune which have a population of more than 40 lakh have been shortlisted by the Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises (Department of Heavy Industries) under the operational expenditure (OPEX) model for the rollout of e-buses. In his letter to the joint secretary of the concerned ministry, MBMC chief Dilip Dhole, apart from highlighting the twin city's proximity to Mumbai has stated that the civic body was an integral part of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), in order to justify the need for 100 e-buses (Non A/C Midi) for better connectivity and to minimize air pollution which had reached alarming levels.
The letter also contends that all policies and development plans including those related to transport, housing, water supply and environment which are envisaged for Mumbai are mostly extended to regions that fall under the jurisdiction of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA).
“Our public transport system is on an expansion mode and several routes and destinations have been designed taking into mind that workstations of a sizeable population are located in Mumbai.” said Dhole.“Currently, 62 out of the 74 buses are plying on 20 routes. While an average of 45,000 commuters travel in and out of the twin-city on a daily basis, e-buses will definitely be a better and viable option.” said deputy civic chief- Swapnil Sawant.
