BEST mode of travel from Thane, Kharghar to BKC

The transport company will run a shuttle service from Bandra or Kurla station to BKC during non-peak hours

Mumbai: Travelling from Thane and Kharghar to Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) will become easy, once the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) rolls out its fleet of premium buses from mid-September. Office-goers from these suburbs to BKC can now sit back and travel comfortably at affordable prices during peak hours.

BEST mode of travel from Thane, Kharghar to BKC

The transport company will run a shuttle service from Bandra or Kurla station to BKC during non-peak hours.

Commuters can pre-book tickets on Chalo app, which will also have details of bus timings; enjoy the comfort of reclining seats and charge their gadgets at personal charging points.

There will be no conductors, and the digitised service will have commuters use the tap-in tap-out facility. “This is an alternative for self-driven cars. A bus has a much larger capacity, which can help reduce the number of vehicles on the road. We plan to start the services from September 15 or 20 onwards,” said Lokesh Chandra, general manager, BEST. “It is cost efficient as the fares will be between ₹4 or 5 per kilometer on average. This will be cheaper than similar existing modes of transport available in the city.”

BEST will start with 10 buses on these routes, with a promise of an increase in services based on demand. There will be few stops, although based on popularity, more may be added. A study was conducted, following which the routes were mapped.

“Commuters will not have to break their journeys by changing modes of transport before they reach their final destination. They can recline in their seats in comfort from home to work. The buses will have around three different pick-up points and drive straight to BKC and vice versa,” said a senior officer from BEST.

Private bus services with pre-booking facilities charge around ₹200 for a one-way ticket from Thane to BKC and around ₹209 from Khaghar to BKC. BEST’s present service will only set a commuter back by approximately ₹120 to ₹150.

A hundred premium buses will be added by the end of November and 200 by the end of January.

“Private buses currently take around 1.5 hours to reach BKC from Thane. If I can get a cheaper or quicker mode of transport with similar comfort, I will surely switch to that. However, BEST will have to maintain the service throughout,” said Melvin D’souza, 35, a regular commuter from Thane to BKC.

The app will also have a ‘home reach’ feature, where passengers can provide details like a home address along with an emergency contact and enable the live location. The BEST control room will track passengers’ movement after they alight and if they do not reach their home location within a stipulated time, the control room will call the passengers to check on their whereabouts.