E-Paper
Electric city bus service begins in Panchkula, Karnal
The electric city bus service will soon commence in Ambala, Sonepat, Rewari, Rohtak, and Hisar, the chief minister said while virtually addressing the programme. Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Friday launched electric city bus service in Panchkula and Karnal and announced that passengers will be allowed to use this bus service free of cost in the first seven days.
Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Friday launched electric city bus service in Panchkula and Karnal and announced that passengers will be allowed to use this bus service free of cost in the first seven days.
The electric city bus service will soon commence in Ambala, Sonepat, Rewari, Rohtak, and Hisar, the chief minister said while virtually addressing the programme.
A similar city bus service facility has already been introduced in Panipat and Yamunanagar. The newly launched electric bus service introduces zero-emission vehicles that are projected to save approximately 4,20,000 liters of diesel over a span of 10 years.
Currently, five buses each have been incorporated into the electric city bus service in Panchkula and Karnal. More buses are likely to be added to the fleet soon, the chief minister said.
The fare of these 45-seater electric buses is ₹10 for the first 5km and it will increase by ₹5 for every 3 km thereafter. The route of the city bus service will be tailored to accommodate the demands and needs of the city residents.
The bus service will be gradually expanded to neighbouring towns in a phased manner.
So far Haryana has bought 375 buses.
In his budget proposals for 2023-2024, the chief minister announced to launch city bus services in nine municipal corporations of the state and Rewari city. Khattar said that the roadways fleet has expanded from 3,083 to 4,651 buses, with an additional 562 buses operating under the kilometre scheme.
He said while ensuring easy transportation this initiative will contribute to mitigating environmental pollution. These buses are powered by fast-charging lithium-ion batteries and come equipped with a real-time Passenger information system (PIS), panic buttons for emergencies, vehicle location and tracking systems, CCTV cameras, public address systems, stop request buttons, fire detection systems, and alarms, among other modern features.
On this occasion, Haryana Vidhan Sabha speaker Gian Chand Gupta in Panchkula and Lok Sabha MP Sanjay Bhatia and MLA Ram Kumar Kashyap from Karnal participated through a virtual medium.
Meanwhile, during the inauguration ceremony at old bus stand in Karnal, MP Sanjay Bhatia said earlier rejected buses on long route were used for city operations and would often stop working in between, but now time has changed, all thanks to the thoughtful administration of the chief minister.
The five buses will ply between the old bus stand and Kunjpura village via NDRI, Gandhi Chowk, KCGMC, Civil Hospital, Mini Secretariat, Nirmal Kutia Chowk, ITI Chowk and Sainik School with several other stops in between.
