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Ludhiana depot to get 45 new buses in fleet expansion drive
The development is expected to ease pressure on depot officials, who have been operating with a depleted fleet for several months
The Punjab transport department has initiated the procurement of 45 new ordinary Punjab Roadways buses for the Ludhiana depot with the proposal reaching the financial bidding stage. Officials said the buses are expected to be inducted within the next one-and-a-half months after completion of the tender process, bringing much-needed relief to commuters after months of disruptions caused by an ageing fleet, grounded buses and a shortage of spare parts.
The development is expected to ease pressure on depot officials, who have been operating with a depleted fleet for several months.
Earlier this year, HT had reported that several Punjab Roadways buses remained parked in workshops because of the non-availability of essential spare parts, leading to cancellation of trips, reduced service frequency and inconvenience to passengers.
Depot officials had also highlighted the need for additional buses to meet growing passenger demand.
The procurement is part of the Punjab government’s larger plan to strengthen the state-run transport fleet. It also complements the ongoing kilometre scheme, under which buses owned by private operators are operated by Punjab Roadways and PUNBUS on designated government routes. Under the scheme, the government pays private operators based on the kilometres covered, while route operations, ticketing and conductors remain under the transport department. The initiative was introduced to augment the public transport fleet without requiring the government to purchase every bus directly.
As part of the KM scheme, the Ludhiana depot has recently received two new buses, both of which have been deployed exclusively on the Ludhiana-Delhi route, one of the depot’s busiest inter-state corridors.
General manager, Punjab Roadways, Ludhiana, Navraj Batish, said the procurement process was progressing as scheduled. “The proposal for procurement of 45 new Punjab Roadways buses is presently at the financial bidding stage. The entire process is expected to take around one-and-a-half months, following which the buses will be allotted to various depots, including Ludhiana. These buses will strengthen our fleet and improve passenger services,” Batish said.
While welcoming the move, employee representatives said the induction of new buses should be accompanied by improved maintenance of the existing fleet.
Punjab Roadways, Punbus and PRTC Contract Workers’ Union general secretary Shamsher Singh Dhillon said many buses continue to remain off the road because workshops are not receiving adequate spare parts.
“The induction of new buses is certainly a positive step, but the government must also ensure regular availability of tyres and spare parts for the existing fleet. Even today, several buses are lying idle in workshops because essential components are unavailable. Unless maintenance issues are resolved alongside fleet expansion, commuters will continue to face inconvenience,” Dhillon said.
Transport officials said the additional buses would help improve operational efficiency and reduce pressure on the ageing fleet, particularly on high-demand routes. Once inducted, the buses will be distributed among Punjab Roadways depots according to operational requirements, with Ludhiana expected to receive a share of the new fleet.
The proposed addition comes as Punjab Roadways continues its fleet modernisation drive after years of shortages, with the state government having earlier announced the induction of more than 1,200 buses through a combination of direct procurement and the Kilometre Scheme to improve public transport services across Punjab.
