Greater Noida to run e-buses to address transport woes

The Greater Noida authority will be launching an e-bus service to address the public transport issues in the industrial town. Initially, 10 e-buses will be deployed, with more added later depending on demand. The service is expected to start within the next two to three months. The authority aims to provide a safe and pollution-free city bus service, covering main routes and government offices. The decision comes after previous plans to run a city bus service in Greater Noida did not materialize. Residents have been demanding a reliable city bus service for some time.

The Greater Noida authority has decided to run e-buses to address the public transport woes in the industrial town spread over 38,000 hectares. To begin with, the authority will run 10 e-buses and later the number of buses would be added depending on demand.

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The authority has not finalised any date for when the service will be started but it is expected to start in the next two three months, said officials.

“We have decided to provide a safe and pollution-free city bus service to citizens. Initially the bus service will cover main routes of the city, including arterial roads, markets and government offices. Initially, there will be 10 e-buses and later the number will be increased if the service gets a good response from users,” said Ravikumar NG, chief executive officer, Greater Noida authority.

The authority and the Noida Metro Rail Corporation, in March 2023, had decided to run a city bus service in Greater Noida but the plan could not take off.

“We need to run the city bus service because the general public needs it for travelling from their homes to their workplaces. We will soon finalise the working model and start the service without further delay,” said Ravikumar NG.

Residents said the authority must start the city bus service without delay as they were facing a lot of issues to travel within the city as most parts of the city did not have Metro connectivity.

“Aqua Line provides Metro connectivity to the eastern part of the city, but in Greater Noida West, there is neither Metro nor any other public transport facility. As a result, we have to depend on private vehicles or taxies, which are expensive to use for short distances.We have been demanding a city bus service for a long time but nothing has happened. It is high time that the authority provides a reliable city bus service to citizens,” said Rani Mahajan, a resident of Panchsheel housing society in Greater Noida West.