Govt clueless why low-floor buses stall

There have been nine incidents this year — seven just in the last one month — of Delhi Transport Corporation’s (DTC) low-floor buses getting stalled or catching fire. The Delhi government, however, is still to find out what’s ailing its ‘state-of-the-art’ fleet of buses, reports HT Correspondent.

There have been nine incidents this year — seven just in the last one month — of Delhi Transport Corporation’s (DTC) low-floor buses getting stalled or catching fire. The Delhi government, however, is still to find out what’s ailing its ‘state-of-the-art’ fleet of buses.

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“There are no design faults in these buses as they have been working fine here and in other cities. It is simply a case of bad maintenance,” said a senior DTC official on condition of anonymity, as he is not authorized to talk to the media.

The buses, which cost up to Rs 55 lakh now, are manufactured by Tata motors and as per its contract with the Delhi government, the automobile giant also has to look after the maintenance of these buses for 12 years. The buses have a warranty period of 3 years after purchase.

The government had asked Tata Motors to carry out a comprehensive check of its 950 buses running on the road. The check-up will include thorough inspection of electrical system, brakes, CNG kit and its pipeline and other vital components.

Another senior official of the corporation pointed out that there is a problem with the braking system of the bus. In more than one incident, the rear wheels of the buses have got jammed and smoke came out due to overheating or its brake shoes have worn off.

“These buses have air pressure breaks instead of hydraulic ones that you see in other vehicles. If optimum level of air pressure is not maintained in the braking system, the wheels get jammed,” he said.

Tata motors, on the other hand, has blamed the potholed roads of Delhi, especially in remote areas and outskirts, for breakdown of its buses. It has requested DTC to continuously monitor its routes to ensure that the buses are plied on roads that are appropriate for such ultra low-floor vehicles. In case a particular road is scraped or uneven, the buses should take a detour.

With the gap between the bus floor and the ground level just 390 mm (39 cm), DTC officials accept that the buses are not fit for uneven roads.