PUNE: The Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited (PMPML) will need an additional 240 buses to effectively run the feeder bus service once Pune Metro becomes operational from next year, said officials.
A senior PMPML official said that a request for the additional buses has been sent to Maha Metro authorities. “Pune Metro services are expected to start on certain routes from next year. If one talks about both metro routes, covering 30 stations in all, PMPML will need additional buses. The feeder bus service, all mid-sized, will come in handy,” PMPML chairman and managing director Rajendra Jagtap told TOI.
With a fleet of around 1,500 to 1,600 buses at the moment, the current number wouldn’t be enough to run feeder services, another official said.
“Right now, we are running around 50% of the total fleet and, of around 22,000 trips per day, less than 13,000 trips take place. Once full-fledged services start, the current fleet will not be enough to run metro feeder services. Feeder buses will provide last mile connectivity from stations. Additional buses will be needed. Therefore, planning and finalization needs to be done from now on,” the official pointed out.
The authorities said since the transport body resumed services across Pimpri Chinchwad and Pune from early September, income from fare revenue had touched Rs50 lakh.
“This is one third of our daily revenue but it is a good sign considering we are running just over 1,000 buses at present at half the capacity. In pre-Covid times, when all buses were operational, PMPML’s daily revenue was around Rs1.5 crore. PMPML will need all its buses to run at full capacity on all routes to get to its earlier form. In order to get more revenue, we are presently looking at different forms of non-fare revenue too. This includes the recent agreement with oil companies to start fuel stations,” the official said.
Jagtap said that until educational institutions reopened, revenue would be affected.
Alert conductor catches thief in bus
A PMPML conductor caught a thief in the bus on November 10. The accused had snatched a gold bracelet from a passenger worth Rs1.30 lakh and was trying to get off the bus.
“The bus was on its way towards Talegaon at around 4pm. Laxman Gaikwad, a passenger, screamed after a man snatched his bracelet and ran towards the door to get out of the bus. However, the conductor Madhukar Gaikwad ran and caught the thief in the bus. The thief was later handed over to the police. The conductor will be rewarded,” a PMPML official said.