Mumbai gets 21-seater BEST mini buses today, to ply on city feeder routes

The buses will be operated on diesel and are likely to ply from the Colaba bus depot. The buses have been acquired on wet lease for a period of seven years.

Five BrihanMumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) mini buses that will be operated in the city were handed over to the administration by Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Monday afternoon.

The mini buses will be introduced in Mumbai city after registration. (HT PHOTO.)

The mini buses have a seating capacity of 21 passengers and an additional seven passengers will be able to stand and travel. The buses will ply on feeder routes in the city.

The buses will be operated on diesel and are likely to ply from the Colaba bus depot. The buses have been acquired on wet lease for a period of seven years.

However, the buses will be introduced in the city after registration.

Meanwhile, Thackeray, at the hand over function endorsing Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s comment over the impact of app-based cab companies Ola-Uber on the country’s economy, said that BEST bus services had also been hit by the new age taxi services.

“As finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman had mentioned about that Ola-Uber impact on the economy, the same has occurred with the BEST buses as well. However, after the fare of the buses was brought down, the passengers have now increased and it is a proven statistic,’’ Thackeray said.

“Even though the buses have been introduced on wet lease, no one will lose their jobs,’’ he added. The BEST union had earlier opposed wet leasing of buses due to apprehensions that it will cut existing jobs.

“3000 BEST buses will be introduced under the wet lease model. The services for BEST passengers should be provided equivalent to Mercedes in five to ten rupees,” Praveen Pardeshi, from the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation(BMC), said.