Remember the Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking’s Volvo fleet? That’s right, those six diesel-powered, single-door Volvo buses that were always covered in advertisements, mostly seen on AS-4 or Fort Pheri?
A little backstory here. In 2010, BEST had signed a deal with a firm named Asian Concierge, who would purchase 50 Volvo B7RLE buses and provide them to BEST in lieu of advertising rights on the body of the buses for 10 years. The first two buses were inducted November 2010, four more joined shortly after and that was that. The remaining 44 buses, which were to join BEST’s fleet by March 2011 never arrived.
The six buses were all housed at the Oshiwara Depot and mostly operated on AS-4 between Oshiwara Depot and Backbay Depot. Sometimes they operated on A-74Express from Oshiwara Depot to NSCI Worli (Nehru Planetarium/Lotus). Instead of idling at Backbay depot, they were often deployed on Fort Pheri-1 AC that ran in a circle in and around Fort.
BEST’s Volvo operating on Fort Pheri – 1 AC (Photo: Superfast1111 via Wikimedia Commons)
BEST’s fleet strength at that time was near 4,700 buses, which included the 272 (in)famous Cerita fleet. According to Sanjay Potnis, then chairman of the BEST committee, BEST did not purchase any Volvo buses as they did not have the budget for it.
Since 2017, these buses were just lying at Oshiwara Depot. A photo of them in a dilapidated condition appeared on some busfanning groups in 2021 but I was unable to secure permission to use them publicly.
All photographs and even Google Earth footage showed only four buses parked at the Oshiwara Depot. On a side note, Google Earth is now limited historical imagery of India to 2017-2018 while imagery of the years before that is available for other countries.
In March 2023 (two months ago), it emerged that at least two of the six buses had been junked. Fellow busfan Swapnil Patil posted two photographs of 2705/OSH and 2703/OSH at a scrap yard in Taloja. You can see the images below:
BEST Volvo 2703/OSH at the Taloja scrapyard (Photo: Swapnil Patil, all rights reserved, used with permission)BEST Volvo 2705/OSH at the Taloja scrapyard (Photo: Swapnil Patil, all rights reserved, used with permission)
These two photographs really break my heart. These buses were barely 13 years old and could have run for their full fifteen years. The disastrous double fare hike of 2015 made AC buses more expensive that auto-rickshaws in the city and the 2016 rollback, while successful was too little, too late. Asian Concierge seems to have gone under liquidation, and I can’t seem to find the original firm on Tofler, although there is an Asian Concierge Transport that was incorporated in 2016.
That’s all from me for now. Let’s hope common sense hits BEST soo and they increase their now drastically dwindling fleet of buses as quickly as possible.
Featured Image: BEST AS-4 at Mahim (Photo: Srikanth Ramakrishnan/BESTpedia)
While I admit upfront that this has nothing to do with buses or public transport, it does have something to do with one of every bus fans’ favourite brands. This news, while reported in 2016 has been doing the rounds lately on the interwebz and I thought I’d write on it.
Let’s take a walk down memory lane to the 1970s when something interesting took place. The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), also known as North Korea was establishing diplomatic contacts with western nations and among them was the Kingdom of Sweden. The DPRK ordered 1,000 Volvo 144 cars from the Volvo Car Corporation (then part of Volvo AB), which were delivered in 1974.
The Volvo 144 was the first in the 140 series of saloons (or sedans) and made its first appearance in 1966. The nomenclature indicated that it was the first series and was a four-door saloon with a four-cylinder engine.
While the North Koreans took delivery of the cars, they never paid for them. The Swedes meanwhile have not clarified what all was included as part of the trade deal. The sale was insured through the Swedish Export Credit Agency (EKN) which stepped in and ensured that Volvo Cars did not go bankrupt. However, the debt on the sale, along with interest had accumulated to US $328 million in 2016. That’s roughly ₹2,680 crores, based on the current (2023) exchange rates! The Swedish Export Credits Guarantee Board sends a reminder to the DPRK government every six months.
It is unknown whether the original deal included spare parts but Volvo Heritage believes that due to the bulk purchase by North Korea, the 144 was common across the world and thus getting spares from elsewhere would be easier. However, the cars are rare these days, and when seen, usually act as taxicabs.
In 2016, the Swedish Embassy in Pyongyang tweeted out a picture of a Volvo 144, captioned Still going strong. One of the Volvo’s from yr 1974 still unpaid for by DPRK. Running as taxi in Chongjin w almost half million km on odo!
Still going strong. One of the Volvo’s from yr 1974 still unpaid for by DPRK. Running as taxi in Chongjin w almost half million km on odo! (Caption as tweeted by the Swedish Embassy in Pyongyang)
The lack of payment for these 1,000 cars prompted Soviet diplomats to label it as the “largest car theft in human history.” Imagine being a Communist nation in the 1970s and mucking up so bad that the Soviet Union mocks you. I know.
Founded in 1927 as the automobile division of SKF, the Volvo Cars Corporation or Volvo Cars remained a part of the Volvo Group or Volvo AB until 1999 when it was spun off as an independent company, with both of them sharing the Volvo trademark. Volvo Cars was acquired by the Ford Motor Company as part of its Premier Automotive Group that included Aston Martin, Jaguar, Land Rover and Volvo. With the sale of Aston Martin to a group of American investors and Jaguar and Land Rover to Tata Motors of India, Ford divested Volvo Cars to China’s Zhejiang Geely, better known as Geely. Volvo Cars’ history is very similar to American telecommunications manufacturer Motorola that split in 2011 to form Motorola Solutions and Motorola Mobility, the latter of which was acquired by Google and then eventually Chinese red-chip firm (listed in Hong Kong) Lenovo.
Geely also owns several other prominent European automobile brands, such as Polestar, Lynk and the iconic British brand Lotus, along with the London EV Company (formerly the London Taxi Corporation), which is known to manufacture the iconic black cabs seen in London.
Well, that’s all from me this time.
If you’re interested in another international incident that was funny, look no further from North Korea’s backyard, Russia. In 2018, a group of Russians in Vladivostok donned a cardboard cut-out shaped like a bus to cross a bridge that was off-limits to pedestrians. You can read about it here:
Several buses operated by the Thane Municipal Transport (TMT) undertaking have been fitted with thermal scanners for passengers to check their body temperature on entry into the bus. The scanner – essentially an infrared thermometer, much like the handheld ones that have become common recently – is located near the driver’s cockpit in the untertaking’s Volvo fleet where passengers generally enter from the front.
A note on the exterior of the bus states that the bus is equipped with a “temperature checking device in Marathi. Detailed instructions on how to use them are provided inside the bus next to the scanner.
Here is a picture of the scanner, clicked by fellow bus-fan Pankaj on Instagram.
TMT bus with thermal scanner. Picture via Pankaj’s Instagram.
I’m not sure if other TMT buses or buses operated by any other transport body in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region are equipped with scanners yet.
AC buses operated by BEST are mostly on lease from private operators so including a scanner might be problematic. Further, given BEST’s minimum fare of ₹6 on AC buses, they remain crowded (especially in the absence of trains) and this may not work out well.
This measure, although welcome, should have been implemented at the start of the pandemic.
BEST is launching newer AC buses with each week. Here is a list of all the AC buses that they operate.
Regular Routes: Mini/Midi buses using Force Motors/ Tata Marcopolo CNG/BYD Olectra buses
A-4 Andheri Station (West) to Oshiwara Depot/Goregaon Depot A-3 Vijay Vallabh Chowk (Pydhonie) to Jijamata Udyan via Johar Chowk, Mazgaon, Byculla Station (East) A-32 Goregaon Bus Station (West) to Aai Tuljabhavai Chowk/Lokhandwala Complex Junction/Infiniti Mall A-33 Seven Bunglows Bus Station/Saat Bangla to Oshiwara/Goregaon Depot A-42 Sandhurst Road Station to Pandit Paluskar Chowk (Opera House) via S.V.P Road A-63 Byculla Station (West) to Breach Candy Hospital A-77 Byculla Station (West) to Breach Candy Hospital via Mahalaksmi Station, Haji Ali A-101 Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) to Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Chowk/Museum A-102 Grant Road Station (East) to Vijay Vallabh Chowk (Pydhonie) A-104 Grant Road Station to J Mehta Marg A-105 Grant Road Station (West) to Kamala Nehru Park A-110 Wadala Station (West) to Sangam Nagar (Vidyalankar) A-111 Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) to Dr Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Chowk/Museum A-112 Churchgate Station/Ahilyabai Holkar Chowk to Gateway of India A-122 Churchgate Station/Ahilyabai Holkar Chowk to Ballard Pier A-153 Bycull Station (West) to Vasantrao Naik Chowk (Tardeo) via Saat Rasta, Mumbai Central A-155 Grant Road Station (West) Ring Route via Tardeo, Haji Ali, Jaslok Hospital Cumbala Hill Post Office, August Kranti Maidan, Nana Chowk A-157 Grant Road Station (West) to Cumbala Hill Post Office via August Kranti Maidan A-163 Parel Station (East) to Prabodhankar Thackeray Udyan Bus Station (Sewree) A-167 Prabhadevi Station (West) to Comrade P. K. Kurne Chowk/Worli Doordarshan A-170 Prabhadevi Station (West) to Lower Parel Railway Station (West) A-174 Wadala Station (East) to Bharani Naka A-180 Oshiwara Depot/Goegaon Depot to Jogeshwari Bus Station A-203 Andheri Station (West) to Juhu Bus Station A-210 Versova Yari Road Bus Station to Monginis A-211 Bandra Station (West) to Chuim Village A-214 Bandra Station (West) to Mount Mary Steps A-217 Dadar Station (East) Ring Route via KEM Hospital A-217 Dadar Station (East) to KEM Hospital A-219 Bandra Station (West) to Bandra Reclamation Bus Station A-220 Bandra Station (West) to Sherly Village A-221 Andehri Station (West) to Natasha Towers A-234 Jogeshwari Bus Station to Shree Swami Samarth Nagar A-235 Andheri Station (West) to Monginis A-248 Andheri Station (West) to Ramesh Nagar A-249 Andheri Station (West) to Seven Bunglows Bus Station A-251 Seven Bunglows Bus Station to Versova Yari Road Bus Station A-252 Andheri Station (West) to Sardar Vallabhai Patel Nagar (Mhada Layout) A-254 Andheri Station (West) to Veera Desai Road (Extension) A-257 Andheri Station (West) Ring Route via Juhu Vile Parle Bus Station (JVPD Bus Station) A-260 Oshiwara Depot to Indian Oil Nagar (D. N. Nagar Metro Station) A-266 Andheri Station (West) to Swami Samarth Nagar Circle A-268 Andheri Station (West) to Shree Swami Samarth Nagar A-273 Malad Station (West) to Malvani Block No 5 A-302 Rani Lakshmi Chowk (Sion) to Maharana Pratap Chowk/Mulund Check Naka A-312 Rani Lakhsmi Chowk (Sion) to Pratiksha Nagar Depot A-337 Agarkar Chowk to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport Terminal 2 A-338 Agarkar Chowk to Sahar Cargo Complex A-341 Rani Laksmi Chowk (Sion) to Antop Hill Bus Station A-352 Rani Lakshmi Chowk (Sion) to Trombay A-361 Chembur Colony to Mahul Village via Vashi Naka A-362 Deonar Depot to Kurla Station (East) A-363 Chembur Colony to SRA Colony (Mahul) A-367 Chembur Colony to Gadkari Quary A-369 Chembur Colony to MMRDA Colony/Vashi Naka A-372 Anushakti Nagar to Shivaji Nagar Junction A-441 Agarkar Chowk to Mhada Colony (Majas) A-447 Goregaon Station (East) to Santosh Nagar (Extension) A-451 Goregaon Station (East) to Adarsh Nagar (Aarey) A-452 Goregaon Station (East) to Mayur Nagar A-481 Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Udyan, Chembur to MMRDA Colony, Vashi Naka A-624 Malad Station (East) Poddar Park to Anand Nagar/Appa Pada A-646 Goregaon Station (East) to Nagari Niwara 1&2 via IT Park
BKC Routes: MMRConnect Buses using Tata Starbus Hybrid buses
BKC-10 BKC Telephone Exchange to Borivali Railway Station (East)
BKC-11 Bandra Railway Termninus to Hiranandani Estate (Thane West)
BKC-12 Bandra Railway Terminus To Jalvayu Vihar (Kharghar)
BKC-13 Bandra Railway Terminus to Maharana Pratap Chowk/Mulund Check Naka Bus Station
BKC-16 Agarkar Chowk to SEEPZ Village
BKC-21 Bandra (East) Bus Station to Bharat Diamond Bourse
BKC-22 MMRDA Pay and Park (BKC) to Kurla Station (West)
BKC-23 Bandra (East) Bus Station to C.A Institute (BKC)
NMMT AC Buses (only those entering Mumbai city limits)
AC-103 Panvel Railway Station (West) to Hindamata Cinema (Dadar) AC-105 Bandra Railway Station (West) to CBD Belapur Bus Station AC-107 World Trade Centre to CBD Belapur Bus Station (via Eastern Freeway) AC-108 World Trade Centre to Nerul Sector 46/48 AC-110 World Trade Centre to Jalvayu Vihar (Kharghar) AC-111 World Trade Centre to CBD Belapur Bus Station (via Parel, Dadar) AC-115 World Trade Centre to Kharkopar Railway Station AC-121 World Trade Centre to Gansoli/Gharona AC-123 Borivali Railway Station (East) to Owe Gaon/CISF AC-124 Agarkar Chowk to Karave Nagar, Nerul AC-125 Borivali Railway Station (East) to Asud Depot AC-126 Borivali Railway Station (East) to Panvel Railway Station (West) AC-127 Ghatkopar Station (East) to Vashi Railway Station AC-131 Borivali Railway Station (East) to Ghansoli Depot
TMT AC Buses (only those entering Mumbai city limits)
AC-65 Borivali Railway Station (East) to Thane Station (East)/Kopri AC-125 Agarkar Chowk to Kasarvadavali Naka AC-126 Reserve Bank of India (BKC) to Hiranandani Estate (Patlipada) AC-144 Cadbury Junction to Mantralaya
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On 16 November 2019, BEST launched the first of what would be a super successful venture that was replicated across the city. It launched the first AC minibus (them postvans, aka chhotu in some circles) without a conductor, on Route A-251 from Andheri Station (West) to Seven Bungalows Bus Station.
📢NEW AC BUS SERVICE 📢 Commuters can now have an experience of BEST AC bus service from Andheri West from today. Routes A-251 has commenced operation between Andheri Station (W) and Seven Bungalows . #bestupdatespic.twitter.com/jYcgLvF2LH
The route was a big hit, prompting BEST to launch a slew of similar routes in Andheri (West) before gradually expanding to Jogeshwari (West), Goregaon (East), Wadala (West), Dadar (East), Prabhadevi (West), Churchgate, Byculla (West), Mahalaksmi, Grant Road (West) and ultimately Goregaon (West). It also antagonised auto-rickshaws at Andheri because, well, it was cheap.
Shortly after that BEST launched A-249. It was identical to A-251 in its route, and had the same single stop at Four Bungalows. I even asked BEST what the difference was on Twitter, but got no response.
Hi @myBESTBus, what is the difference between A-249 and A-251? Both seem to go from Andheri (West) to Seven Bungalows with a stop at Four Bungalows.
Also, what is the difference between A-235 and A-242, both seem to go from Andheri (West) to Monginis. @Lokhandwala_Bom
Then, on 6 December 2019, BEST announced that A-249 will have an additional stop at Dhake Colony while A-251 will only run between Seven Bungalows Bus Station [Saat Bangla] and Versova-Yari Road Bus Station [Vesave-Yari Marg].
📢 दि. ६.१.२० पासून 🚍 १) ए सी बस मार्गात बदल – ए-२५१ सात बंगला ते वेसावा या दरम्यान चालेल. २) नवीन बस मार्ग ए-२५७ अंधेरी पश्चिम ते जेवीपीडी दरम्यान जेपी रोड, कॉस्मोपॉलिटन मार्गे चालणार आहे. ३) धाके वसाहत येथे ए सी बस मार्ग ए-२४९ साठी अतिरिक्त थांबा देण्यात येतं आहे #bestupdates
This startled many. My transit group wondered why BEST couldn’t run A-251 directly from Versova-Yari Road to Andheri. I had my suspicions but they were finally confirmed today.
The distance between the two, by the direct route: Versova-Yari Road Bus Station -> Versova Village -> Seven Bungalows -> Four Bungalows -> Andheri Sports Complex -> Amboli Village -> Andheri Subway -> Andheri Station is 6.3km while in the reverse direction it is 5.8km.
Note: Despite what Google Maps says, JP Road from Navarang Cinema to SV Road has been a one-way towards the West for over two decades now. Even in 1998, I remember 251 (then a Double Decker) taking a left into Amboli.
This distance puts the route into the next stage bracket; i.e: ₹13.
Yesterday (11 February 2020), BEST announced a new route A-32 from Goregaon Station (West) to Aai Tuljabhavani Chowk/Lokhandwala Complex Junction (Infiniti Mall signal). I responded to them asking why not extend it to Monginis since that is such a big hub with four AC routes stopping there: A-210, A-235, A-260 and A-268. They responded as follows:
Presently One man operation is restricted upto 5 kms i.e fare value of Rs 5 only.
BEST needs to add an additional AC route in this region. Say, A-250. Neither 250 nor A-250 exist at this point. That gives us four AC buses at Seven Bungalows: A-249, A-251, A-210 and this new route. A-249 can continue on the existing route that it has with two stops between Andheri and Seven Bungalows. The new route can service what A-251 currently does, by plying between Seven Bungalows and Versova Yari Road.
A-251 meanwhile should mirror the regular 251 and ply non-stop between Versova-Yari Road and Andheri Station with a single fare of ₹13. That’s it. The auto-fare on this route is in the range of ₹70-80 minimum, plus time taken due to traffic. It will be a huge hit.
The second solution, is a slightly more interesting one.
BEST had gotten 6 out of 50 buses as part of a deal with a company called Asian Concierge. While nobody knows why the remaining 44 never made it to BEST nor what happened to Asian Concierge (Tofler reports its last annual general meeting or AGM in September 2018 and last balance sheet as having been prepared in March 2018), those six buses are still parked at the Oshiwara Depot, according to Google Earth. You might want to click on the tweet to see the full image. The buses are the long red-topped ones with a white box, located towards the bottom left of the depot, north of the Oshiwara river.
Asian Concierge's six Volvo Buses leased to BEST are still parked at the Oshiwara Depot. pic.twitter.com/IAwzX5bbk6
This map is from 15 October 2019. Google Earth’s timeline view shows that between 2017 and 2019, these six buses were parked at various parts of the depot.
While we are uncertain as to why BEST is not using these buses, it can perhaps ply them as a regular AC bus AS-251 with a conductor from Andheri Station to Versova-Yari Road. Their only issue: They’re all single-door buses. The Andheri Lokhandwala Oshiwara Citizen’s Association even asked BEST why they were not in use but we got no reply.
BEST and AC buses don’t exactly go hand-in-hand. Atleast not anymore. BEST should think of a way to reverse that.
One of the original Ashok Leyland AC buses that the BEST procured in 1998. Image copyright, Ojas Parab, Flickr.
BEST introduced AC buses, back in 1998. These buses were built by Ashok Leyland and had Opening Windows. Tickets were a bit on the higher side, and included a newspaper [English or Marathi] and a 300ml bottle of water. These buses operated on the following routes routes initially:
A1 – Hutatma Chowk to Andheri Station (West)
A2 – World Trade Centre to Oshiwara Depot
A4 – Hutatma Chowk to Ghatkopar Bus Station
A422 – Agarkar Chowk to Mulund Bus Station
A461 – Mulund Bus Station (West) to Borivali Station (West)
These buses ran mostly in the mornings and evenings, mainly serving the office-crowd.
In 2008, under then General Manager Uttam Khobragade, BEST procured the first set of their purple ”Kinglong” buses. It took a lot of time to figure out that these Purple Faeries weren’t actually Kinglong buses. These buses were assembled in Punjab by Jaycee Coach Builders Limited [JCBL] and sold under their ”Cerita” brand.
These buses were powered by CNG, and unlike other AC buses, didn’t have a slave engine to power the air-conditioning unit, thus resulting in slow speeds and bad pickup. In simple terms, they struggle to climb the simplest of slopes. Yet, they had comfortable seats. These Purple Faeries used to breakdown frequently and some of them caught fire, thus leading to deteriorating quality of BEST AC services.
Somewhere around this time, BEST received a CNG version of the Volvo 8400 on the B7RLE chassis for trial runs. After a few weeks of trial runs from the Oshiwara depot, the bus was transferred to the Wadala Depot, after wihch it was returned to Volvo. Unfortunately, BEST never purchased the bus. It had a separate Slave Engine to power the AC, thus overcoming all the shortfalls of the Cerita buses.
Post this, BEST inked a deal with an advertising firm called Asian Concierge who were ready to supply BEST with 50 Diesel-powered Volvo 8400s in exchange for full body advertisements on them for 15 years. The deal was quite revolutionary and would have changed the transport scene, however, only 6 buses were procured. All of them belong to the Oshiwara Depot and ply on AS-4 between Oshiwara Depot and Backbay Depot.
Now, the deal is that BEST, which was among the first Transcos in India to get AC buses is slowly phasing them out because of competition from the TMT, NMMT and MSRTC. For starters, BEST used to run a bus AS-505 from Santacruz Depot to CBD Belapur. They curtailed it because NMMT flooded the roads with AC-105 which ran from Bandra Bus Station to CBD Belapur. When I requested BEST to restart AS-505, they replied stating that it was a loss making route, and hence would not be possible. However, BEST’s 505Ltd is among the most profitable routes in the sector. Subsequently, NMMT has launched AC-106 which goes to CBD Belapur via Nerul (West). AC-105 remains their most profitable route.
Similarly, BEST’s AS-700 is doing miserably these days between Borivali Station (East) and Thane Station (East) because of competition from both TMT’s AC-65, AC-125, and NMMT’s AC-131. Now I can understand. Borivali comes under the jurisdiction of the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai and Thane under the Thane Municipal Corporation, both pass through the jurisdiction of the Mira-Bhayandar Municipal Corporation as well, but NMMT? AC-131 starts from Borivali Station (East), takes the same route via Ghodbunder Road to reach Kopri [Thane Station], from where it proceeds to Airoli Sector 5, via the Mulund-Airoli Bridge, thus running a total of 9km within its own jurisdiction. What is the need to enter Thane Station? NMMT plies two more AC routes to Borivali, AC-123 and AC-125, from Borivali to Ova Camp in Kharghar. Both take Jogeshwari Vikhroli Link Road, where one takes LBS Marg, and the other the Eastern Express Highway, to reach the Mulund Airoli Bridge and then continue along Thane-Belapur Road. Where is the logic in this? The irony is that if you calculate the number of stops between Dindoshi Junction and the Mulund Airoli Bridge Toll Plaza; here is the interesting result that you get:
BEST 523 Ltd has 42 stops.
BEST 525 Ltd has 36 stops.
BEST AS-524 has 23 stops.
NMMT AC-123 has 43 stops.
NMMT AC-125 has 36 stops.
This makes BEST the fastest on this route. With fewer stops, any bus runs faster. This is the theory under which Limited Stop Services normally operate.
TMT runs a bus from Cadbury Junction to Agarkar Chowk in Andheri East. This bus enters Mumbai via the Mulund (West) Check Naka and takes the same route as AS-422 to reach Andheri. It travels a total of 3.5 km within Thane and close to 21km in Mumbai. NMMT’s Borivali to Kharghar routes overlap majorly with BEST’s AS-461.
As if all this was not enough, the MSRTC, went one level over all of this, by launching their now-discontinued Shivneri Corporate service. These buses where the regular Shivneri Volvo B7R buses running along the Kandivali-Bandra Kurla Complex [BKC] route, non-stop. BEST plies A77Express on the same route, at the same hours. The only difference was that A77Express started from Gorai, took all flyovers on the Western Express Highway and had a total of 20 odd stops while the Shivneri had none. The service was soon shelved because the fare of ₹100 one way was too high.
What BEST must do now:
BEST must start looking into the profitable routes of the competition and find ways to maximize its revenue streams there. One must remember that all TMT and NMMT AC routes enter Mumbai. None of them are entirely within their territories.
BEST must also pursue the matter with Asian Concierge for the remaining of the 50 Volvo buses so that newer routes can be planned. BEST must allocate these buses onto these routes.
Possible Routes BEST can try out are:
Restart AS-505 from Santacruz Depot to CBD Belapur. Run it every half an hour. Make sure the Bus Tracking system works for it.
Start a bus, exclusively for the Western Suburbs. It can be on the lines of AS-4 from Oshiwara, but should terminate at Bandra, and can take alternate routes like going into Seven Bunglows and taking the route taken by 56. Run it at half hour intervals. With rising auto fares, people will definitely take these buses. Start similar buses along the Central Suburbs in both West and East.
Increase the frequency of AS-6 which connects Backbay Depot to King’s Circle. Let this be a bus that connects the Central Part of South Mumbai. Similarly run a bus from Backbay to Chembur along the Eastern areas. The Western part of South Mumbai is served by AS-4, whose frequency should be increased.
Start an AC bus from Mantralaya to CBD Belapur and to Kopar Khairane. Route these buses via Tadeo, Lotus (Worli) and then go towards Navi Mumbai. Perhaps an Express service can work here, via the Sea Link, land up at Sion and go on to CBD Belapur, while avoiding Vashi Bus Station.
BEST must innovate and provide more options for commuters. BEST has an edge over the other two players, which it is sadly not making good use of. Being India’s oldest Public Transport Corporation, I hate to see BEST lose out to newer entities who are just flooding the roads with their buses, and turning BEST buses into Bus. No 8954.
In 2015, BEST brought out some drastic measures including curtailing of a few routes, reducing frequencies of AS700, cancelling AS706, and scrapping AS422 on Sundays.
