Mumbai’s biggest road transport service, the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply Transport (BEST) Bus service, is set to axe its fleet. They plan to cut down 170 full-sized and midi buses in May. This step will be taken under the JNNURM scheme. This will affect the road transport of Mumbai and will create a huge impact on the daily travellers, as the overall fleet may drop to under 2,700 buses. After this fleet axing is done, 80% of the full-sized buses owned by BEST will be taken off the road.
As of now, 2,800 buses are being run under the banner of BEST. Of these 2,800 buses, 750 are owned by BEST. The remaining fleet is given to private contractors on wet lease. BEST has already signed contracts to buy 2,100 electric buses and another 2,400 vehicles from private operators in order to combat the depletion. A significant change in fleet ownership and administration will result from the majority of these new additions being under private contracts. Although it is anticipated that this will increase the city's bus network's eco-friendliness, concerns about operational consistency during the changeover still exist.
The commuter rights groups are upset, and they appeal to BEST to speed up the delivery of new electric buses. They made this appeal to fill the growing gap. Citizens voiced their displeasure with the low frequency and scarcity of buses during a recent public hearing organised by the organisation Aamchi Mumbai Aamchi BEST. Many people expressed a preference for BEST-owned buses over those operated by outside companies.
Meanwhile, this depleting fleet is now not the only concern of the travellers. BEST bus ticket rates are set to double up soon. The BEST bus service's fare increase has been approved by the Mumbai Municipal Corporation. The proposal to raise bus fares has been formally approved by Commissioner and Administrator Bhushan Gagrani of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), which will affect thousands of commuters throughout the city. In Mumbai, BEST (Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport) offers essential public transport services. However, BEST's earnings were greatly diminished by the low minimum fare of Rs 5. Consequently, the BEST administration proposed a fare revision to the municipal authorities.