Mumbai: The Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) on Friday placed an order for procurement of 5,150 air-conditioned (AC) electric buses on gross cost contract basis, which includes supply, operation and maintenance cost of vehicles up to 12 years. “The contract is valued at approx. Rs 10,000 crore signifies a major milestone in the state's commitment towards sustainable transport,” said an MSRTC official.
The contract has been awarded to a consortium, comprising Olectra Greentech Limited and EVEY. It will also be responsible for the electrical and civil infrastructure required for the fleet for a period of 12 years. EVEY will procure the electric buses from Olectra Greentech Limited, with deliveries scheduled over the course of 24 months, the official added.
2,800 12-metre-long AC buses
“The new fleet will consist of 2,800 12-metre-long AC buses, which are designed for heavy traffic routes and 2,350 nine-metre-long buses suitable for routes with lighter traffic. They will have seating capacities of 43 and 30 passengers, respectively,” he said.
Currently, the MSRTC operates 14,000 buses with an average daily ridership of 55 lakh.Just 60 buses are electric-powered, 50 of them run on CNG while the rest are diesel vehicles. “By July 2025, the MSRTC aims to convert over 33 per cent of its fleet into pollution-free electric buses,” said the official.
The first batch of 150 buses is expected to be delivered by March 2024.
Pointers :
No. of buses in existing fleet
14,000
No. of AC buses
1,000
No. of electric buses
60
No. of buses running on CNG
50
Daily average ridership
55lakh
No. of new buses in first batch
150
Expected delivery
March 2024
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