Urban development and housing department (UDHD) is set to launch the first lot of 20 semi-low floor buses in PATNA

 

UDHD minister Samrat Chaudhary will commission the buses to be deployed under the Centre-sponsored Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM). The minister said the operators would have to maintain the vehicles.

Bihar urban infrastructure development corporation (BUIDCo) managing director Anupam Kumar Suman said the buses would be parked at the Phulwarisharif and Malsalami depots belonging to Bihar State Road Transport Corporation (BSTRC). Suman said Adie Broswon, a Delhi-based firm, would look after the operation of the buses and their drivers, conductors and other support staff. It would also look after the daily cleaning of the buses once they reach the depots.

Commuters would be issued printed tickets from electronic ticketing machines (ETMs) and a strict vigil would also be kept on overloading on the buses using high-end surveillance system, including closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras and global positioning system (GPS). The provision for monthly passes is likely to be introduced in a month.

The buses will ply on two routes ? Gandhi Maidan to Saguna Mor via Bailey Road and Gandhi Maidan to Danapur via Digha-Kurji. A per the JNNURM provisions, Rs 2 will be the fare for the first two kilometres, Rs 7 for 5km, Rs 11 for 10km and Rs 15 for 15km.

The 32-seater buses will have dedicated space for one wheelchair. The GPS and CCTV cameras will be installed on them for surveillance. Light emitting diode-based electronic route display system besides an announcement system will also be installed on the buses.

Ozone Overseas Private Limited, a Delhi-based firm, has already started installing 216 swanky queue shelters at 108 locations across the city. The locations have been decided considering the existing major corridors for traffic movement in the city, including Ashok Rajpath, Patna-Digha-Danapur Road, Bailey Road, Hardinge Road and Kankarbagh road, among others. The new queue shelters are being made of stainless steel, polycarbonate sheets and prefab material at estimated cost of Rs 13.72 crore.

The central sanctioning and monitoring committee under the JNNURM at its 69th meeting on February 20 and 21, 2009, had approved Rs 135 crore for purchasing buses for Patna and Bodh Gaya under the urban transport scheme.

source TNN>TOI