New Delhi, Jun 29 (PTI) The Delhi government will procure 1,950 buses and issue fresh tenders for 4,880 more, taking the fleet to about 12,000 on city roads by December 2024, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Wednesday.
The Delhi Cabinet gave its nod to the project on Wednesday, said an official statement, adding that the new buses will start coming from August-September this year.
By September 2023, all the buses, including 1,500 electric and 450 CNG AC buses, will be inducted to the fleet, it added.
“Earlier the biggest problem in Delhi was lack of buses as they were not procured for many years. Presently, there are more than 7,200 buses in the public fleet of Delhi, the highest ever,” Kejriwal said during a digital media briefing.
While observing that Delhi needs about 11,000 to 12,000 buses, Kejriwal said the AAP dispensation will achieve this target by December 2024.
Delhi Government will soon issue tenders to buy 4,880 more buses and by December 2024, 11,910 buses will be running on Delhi roads, he said.
“Delhi’s transport sector will be developed as per international standards by integrating all modes of transport,” the CM said.
Kejriwal asserted that the government is now placing a high priority on public transport in order to give people of the city modern, pleasant transportation options.
“The major issue in Delhi was the lack of new bus purchases over a long period. A large-scale procurement of the buses has begun in the past few years, which is evidence that we have repaired this system. With the comfort of people and Delhi’s weather in mind, we are concentrating on buying air-conditioned electric buses,” he added.
Kejriwal said that the procurement for these buses will end in September of the following year, although deliveries will begin in August of the current year.
“Additionally, 4,800 bus tenders will be released soon, as some of the buses will need to be replaced because they will no longer be functional in a few years. According to our calculations, Delhi’s roads will be served by 11,910 buses by the end of 2024. This meets the needs of Delhi residents, and we will reach the goal in the next two-and-a-half years,” he said.
He also shared that the government needs to combine and modernise the various modes of transportation, which include the metro and taxis.
Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot tweeted, “Huge congrats to Delhi! Delhi Cabinet has given its nod for 1,950 Low Floor AC state-of-the-art buses. Delhi’s bus fleet is growing more than ever & in less than 2 years we’ll have highest electric bus fleet ever.” According to government officials, Delhi, by the end of 2024, will become the state with the highest number of electric buses in its fleet across India. The upcoming bus depots are going to be fully electrified, they said, adding that two multi-level bus depots with 300-plus capacity each will be built by 2023.
Of the 1,950 buses to be procured, 450 will be low-floor AC CNG buses fully BS VI compliant. As many as 113 of them will arrive between August 2022 and January 2023 and 337 will arrive between February 2023 and March 2023.
The 450 CNG buses are in lieu of the cluster buses which will retire by October 10 this year, the officials said.
Of 7,200 buses currently plying on city roads, DTC runs 3,900 buses and the cluster runs 3,300 buses. There are 150 electric buses of DTC that will be added by next month to its fleet. At the same time, 2,600 buses are going to be retired in the next two years.
Depots allotted for these buses are in Kanjhawala, Sunehri Pulla and Banda Bahadur Marg. Twelve depots have been taken as priority to house 1,500 electric buses and will complete electrification by June 2023. These include Rohini I (100), Rohini II (100), Mayapuri (100), Hasanpur (160), Subhash Place (175), Sukhdev Vihar (125), Wazirpur (130), Banda Bahadur Marg (70), Nehru Place (70), Kalkaji (150), Naraina (120) and Sawda Ghevra (200).
Five depots — Rohini II, Mayapuri, Nehru Place, Subhash Place, and Banda Bahadur Marg — will be electrified by 2022. The remaining depots will be completely electrified in 2023. PTI SLB KVK KVK
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