Now, indicators will tell what time BEST bus is arriving
Somit Sen | TNN | Feb 28, 2019, 04:04 IST
Photo for representative purpose onlyMUMBAI: The BEST, in a pilot run, has installed the Passenger Information System in 2,809 buses, which means these vehicles will have indicators and announcements will be made to tell commuters of the next stop. Also, Vehicle Tracking System via GPS has been installed in 2,470 buses as part of BEST’s technology upgrade under the Rs 112-crore Intelligent Transport Management System (ITMS) project. The announcement was made by general manager Surendrakumar Bagde on Wednesday. “We will instal the technology on all buses in a few months,” he said.
ITMS, a state-of-the-art technology that is expected to improve efficiency and frequency of services, is funded by BMC. Bagde said BEST also plans to wet-lease 1,000 new buses in the coming months. “The first batch, of 20 AC Midi and 20 non-AC Midi Electric buses, will be procured by next month,” he said. The BEST panel on Wednesday gave its nod for procuring electric buses on wet lease, subject to a decision by the HC. Following the recent staff strike, the issue of wet-leasing is being looked at by a court-appointed mediator.
Bagde said ITMS will help commuters plan trips on mobiles, get estimated time of arrival of every bus along with the speed at which it is travelling, tell whether it is crowded or not, and if there are alternate buses for the same route. “For example, if a commuter finds that there are three buses on the same route, he can check which bus is less crowded and wait accordingly,” he said
“Based on certain parameters such as crowd at the bus stop, available fleet at the nearest depot, the speed of bus and the distance between two buses on a route, the system will ensure that buses arrive at regular intervals at a stop,” an official said. Bus inspectors will have hand-held gadgets through which they can convey to the central command centre at Wadala the situation at stops and only then buses will be deployed where they are needed. The command centre will have a facility where movement of every bus can be seen on a screen.
ITMS, a state-of-the-art technology that is expected to improve efficiency and frequency of services, is funded by BMC. Bagde said BEST also plans to wet-lease 1,000 new buses in the coming months. “The first batch, of 20 AC Midi and 20 non-AC Midi Electric buses, will be procured by next month,” he said. The BEST panel on Wednesday gave its nod for procuring electric buses on wet lease, subject to a decision by the HC. Following the recent staff strike, the issue of wet-leasing is being looked at by a court-appointed mediator.
Bagde said ITMS will help commuters plan trips on mobiles, get estimated time of arrival of every bus along with the speed at which it is travelling, tell whether it is crowded or not, and if there are alternate buses for the same route. “For example, if a commuter finds that there are three buses on the same route, he can check which bus is less crowded and wait accordingly,” he said
“Based on certain parameters such as crowd at the bus stop, available fleet at the nearest depot, the speed of bus and the distance between two buses on a route, the system will ensure that buses arrive at regular intervals at a stop,” an official said. Bus inspectors will have hand-held gadgets through which they can convey to the central command centre at Wadala the situation at stops and only then buses will be deployed where they are needed. The command centre will have a facility where movement of every bus can be seen on a screen.
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