Officials from Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport i.e., BEST, said that the first electric double-decker bus will be made available to the public in Mumbai starting in September.
They added that the prototype electric double-decker bus is available with all permissions and will be delivered to BEST (which currently has over 400 single-decker electric buses) anytime soon.
BEST, a civic-run company, has awarded a contract in phases for the supply of 900 electric buses to a private firm. 50% of these buses will be delivered by March 2023.
After delivery, the first electric double-decker bus will be subject to some testing. It will then be available for public use starting in September. On Friday, the concerned private manufacturer company planned to display the bus in Mumbai. It had nothing to do with the BEST. An official stated that the event was cancelled for “some reasons”.
Interestingly, the anniversary of the city’s premier road transport company will be celebrated on August 7.
Since 1990, the Undertaking owned 900 double-decker buses. However, the number of these buses has steadily declined over the years to now 50.
He said that five vehicles are used on open-deck heritage tours while the rest ply on different routes. BEST transports more than 30 lakh passengers on a daily basis with its fleet of 3,700 buses.