[AkMar]

Yesterday I had the misfortune of travelling in yet another Cerita AC bus whose performance had gone to the dogs I had a GPS app running throughout the journey. On flat roads the bus was struggling to reach even 30 km/h. Gradients were a pain to negotiate. Real fun started on JVLR which has numerous gradients to climb. Even with the AC switched off, the bus was moving at single digit speeds on few stretches. A video speaks more than a 1000 words, so here is a video capturing struggles of the bus:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63hE9AEX6FY

You can see all other vehicles overtaking my bus, including a garbage collection truck & 3 non AC buses of BEST.

@OSH: BEST has 6 Volvos, all homed at Oshiwara depot. They run between Oshiwara & Backbay depot.

[amtak]

Akmar, why would you want to inflict pain on self? Knowing bad their condition is, I would not travel in a BEST, even if the ride is free!

[AkMar]

Originally Posted by amtak

Akmar, why would you want to inflict pain on self? Knowing bad their condition is, I would not travel in a BEST, even if the ride is free!

Same here, amtak. But yesterday I was a bit unwell so I didn't want to travel as a standee in an NMMT Volvo. Hence took BEST which has empty seats at any time of the day.

[djpeesh]

I just saw this dethroned King Long converted to non ac in Mahim. It was empty but still, I suppose Mr UK is laughing all the way to the bank.





The bus was struggling to keep up with its regular non ac brethren but wasnt as noisy as it was in its AC avatar. And the paint job does make those eyesores less shabby

[TaurusAl]

BEST on ‘privatization’ route: Tenders floated to lease 150 buses with drivers

Somit Sen | TNN | Jun 8, 2016, 12.59 AM IST

City transport undertaking BEST, catering to 30 lakh commuters daily, is finally inching towards 'privatization', something the TOI had hinted at a few weeks ago.
BEST has floated tenders to source 150 buses, including 50 Mini AC buses, from private contractors. The undertaking will pay rent to the contractor, who will provide a new bus, pay for fuel and also provide an experienced driver to ply the vehicle on busy routes. This means the liability of offences committed by the driver would be the responsibility of the contractor and not BEST, as per tender conditions.

Full Report -

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/c...w/52643958.cms


I personally think this is a good move. The operators will have to maintain the busses as they will be answerable to the BEST authorities and the BEST can do away with the worry of maintaining the fleet, coping with arrogant staff, focus on route network and traffic management.

[ghodlur]

Originally Posted by TaurusAl

The undertaking will pay rent to the contractor. This means the liability of offences committed by the driver would be the responsibility of the contractor and not BEST, as per tender conditions.

Now this is where things can go wrong. This will definitely give rise to contractor-BEST nexus where complacency can set it. Also in case of any driver offences, BEST will put their hands up when it comes to liability. Also will BEST be able to ensure that the vehicles use by the contractor are well maintained when they themselves could not ensure their own fleet of badly maintained vehicles. There are already too many private buses hogging the roads on Mumbai making things difficult and now add this.

Somehow I am getting a bad feeling about this. Are there any timelines mentioned by when would this be effected?

[Dieseltuned]

Originally Posted by TaurusAl

BEST on ‘privatization’ route: Tenders floated to lease 150 buses with drivers

Somit Sen | TNN | Jun 8, 2016, 12.59 AM IST

City transport undertaking BEST, catering to 30 lakh commuters daily, is finally inching towards 'privatization', something the TOI had hinted at a few weeks ago.
BEST has floated tenders to source 150 buses, including 50 Mini AC buses, from private contractors. The undertaking will pay rent to the contractor, who will provide a new bus, pay for fuel and also provide an experienced driver to ply the vehicle on busy routes. This means the liability of offences committed by the driver would be the responsibility of the contractor and not BEST, as per tender conditions.

Full Report -

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/c...w/52643958.cms


I personally think this is a good move. The operators will have to maintain the busses as they will be answerable to the BEST authorities and the BEST can do away with the worry of maintaining the fleet, coping with arrogant staff, focus on route network and traffic management.

I think this is a wrong move, if BEST could not ensure quality of maintainance by its own staff, how will it ensure that a person who is on a contractor's payroll, does his job correctly.

Privatization of BEST was a long due one and I hope some good private organization puts its hand into it and not some run of the mill contractors who shepherd people in office hours. Though going by the ways BEST is run, i doubt any good company will want to get themselves into it.

Sad days for BEST and a big loss to the city of Mumbai about to loose one of its prime modes of transport.

Regards
Dieseltuned

[ghodlur]

I remember a casual discussion with one of the conductors when I was travelling in BEST a couple of year back. I had asked him the reason for the down slide of the organization. According to him it is not due to employees but basically two fold - one the buses getting old are not being maintained as the BEST does not want to spend a fortune on the repairs forcing the buses to be locked in the depos and secondly because of the continuous political interference which stalls the development strategies of the employees as well as the entity. Unless these two issues are addressed on priority, the reputation of the city's premier transportation is at stake.

[vivek95]

I am not sure if I am allowed to talk about NMMT ( Navi Mumbai Muncipal Transport) in this thread. I didn't find a dedicated and an active thread on NMMT, so sharing a video of the same here since both BEST and NMMT belong to Mumbai megapolis. Moderators can move this post to appropriate section if they feel so.

Check out this video of NMMT Volvo E-Hybrid. Uploader talks about how these buses save fuel at low speeds. Watch from 1.56 onwards. He has commented on his fb page that RPM remains at zero at low speeds because of electric motor driving the vehicle. ( I personally have zero knowledge on all this)
Video credits - tandelbaba

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHxVnWBT3Mg

[silversteed]

Originally Posted by vivek95

RPM remains at zero at low speeds because of electric motor driving the vehicle. ( I personally have zero knowledge on all this)

This a parallel hybrid, as the diesel engine and the electric motor can both drive the wheels. The electric motor has the advantage of providing the full rated torque right from starting off from a halt, as against the internal combustion engine that has a band of RPM where it has the highest efficiency. So, the engine can be used when the bus is cruising at constant speed while the motor can be used to accelerate. Regenerative braking will help charge the batteries, in addition to the engine.

[vivek95]

Volvos continue to galore in Bombay !

This time its Mira Bhayander Muncipal Transport (MBMT) to receive new set of Volvo 8400 LE buses

Pic courtesy - Kunal Jadhav

[trek]

In order to boost sales, B.E.S.T. have slashed fares by almost 50%. Their AC buses now are beginning to attract passengers which were otherwise traveling by NMMT's Volvo buses. The reduced fare works out slightly cheaper than the Volvo prices and this might help B.E.S.T. regain a part of the lost market share.

Few of the AC buses have been refurbished with new seat upholstery however most of them have rain water leaking in during heavy showers.

Nonetheless this is a good move which can help B.E.S.T. sustain themselves in the long run. They can only make it better for passengers by upgrading the buses.

[amtak]

Originally Posted by trek

Few of the AC buses have been refurbished with new seat upholstery however most of them have rain water leaking in during heavy showers.

Nonetheless this is a good move which can help B.E.S.T. sustain themselves in the long run. They can only make it better for passengers by upgrading the buses.

I still believe, they need to scarp those Cerita buses. Only if they would have bought "marcopolos/Janbuses" from day 1

[djpeesh]

Not BEST but lately I've seen a ton (at least 30-40) white BharatBenz low floor ac buses plying on the western Express Highway. Any idea what's the deal with them? Are they a new service/app based service/company service?

[AkMar]

Buoyed by increase in ridership of AC buses after the hefty fare cut wef 1st July, BEST has decided to start 2 more routes from 1st August. They are:

1. AS-525: Dindoshi Depot to Millennium Business park Mahape
2. AS-514: Mulund Check Naka to Mindspace Airoli

In addition, operation of a few routes will be re-instated on Saturdays/Sundays/Holidays.

Details at this press release (in Marathi)

My comments:

1. AS 525 is an old route being re introduced. However instead of taking Eastern express highway, it will now take LBS Road from Gandhinagar. This will increase its running time by minimum 10-15 minutes. When there is heavy traffic, difference will be even more. A bad move in my opinion. Travel times are already rising due to heavy traffic, and the last thing I would want is my bus taking a slower route.
2. AS-514 is interesting. For the first time an AC route has been introduced by any transport undertaking to Mindspace Airoli. However, Mulund - Airoli is a short route with less catchment areas for passengers. I doubt its success.