BEST procures 32 electric buses on wet lease in Mumbai, to be operational soon

The Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) has procured 32 electric buses on wet lease, and it will soon begin operating in the city.

The Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) has procured 32 electric buses on wet lease, and it will soon begin operating in the city.

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Under the wet lease model, BEST does not own the buses, but gets the buses from contractors who provide them for a fixed per-kilometre rate.

These buses will be operated on all routes, particularly on the long-distance ones. They have been procured under the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric vehicles (FAME) II scheme that promotes the use of electric vehicles in the country.

“The buses have been procured and will begin operations in the city soon. More electric buses will also be procured soon.” said a senior BEST official. A total of 340 electric buses will be procured by BEST.

Of the 340 electric buses, 160 are midi air-conditioned (AC) buses, 40 buses are non-AC midi buses and 140 are single-deck AC buses.

The organisation currently has six electric buses operating in the city. These buses have a capacity of 31 passengers and can travel up to 200km in a single charge.

The first set of 10 electric buses in the city was rolled out by BEST in September 2019. Six of the buses were AC and four were non-AC.

The BEST has also recently received 76 buses from Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) and started its operation on five routes in the city.

The organisation has witnessed an increase in passengers due to the suspension of local train services in the city, owing to the spread of Covid-19.

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