The Brihanmumbai Electric Supply & Transport (BEST) has placed an order for 2,100 new electric buses with Olectra Greentech. The deal worth Rs 3,675 crore will see BEST acquire the buses over a 12-month period with Olectra handling the maintenance. The BEST issued the Letter of Award to EVEY, a subsidiary of Olectra, for the procurement of the new electric buses either directly or through its special purpose vehicle. As per reports, the buses will have a range of up to 200km per charge with the BEST saying that the vehicles would have a lifespan of 12 years. Olectra already operates a fleet of 40 electric buses from the BEST's existing fleet. The company manufacturers e-busses in India in a joint venture with BYD.
The new 12 metre buses will have a capacity to carry up to 59 passengers with seating arrangements for 35. The buses will also offer wheelchair access, air suspension and panic buttons along with GPS tracking.
Olectra already operates 40 electric buses for the BEST.
The new acquisitions will see the BEST take a step closer towards its goals of electrification of its buss fleet. The public transport company is eyeing shifting 50 per cent of its fleet to electric the end of 2023 and operating a 100 per cent electric fleet by 2027. Presently the company operates 386 electric buses out of its total strength of 3,337.
The company has also set to procure new all-electric double-decker buses – an icon of Mumbai's public transport system. The BEST has approved the acquisition of 900 new electric double-deckers with reports saying that the new buses could be put to use from August. The new buses will bolster the declining number of double-deckers in the city with a large part of the city's diesel double-decker fleet having been scrapped over the past few years owing to multiple factors including age and rising maintenance costs.
