[malq]

I am in the 1401 Dadar-Pune Station Shivneri Volvo, bus number 9213, very comfortable and about half full. Only one short stop on the Expressway, at the last foodcourt, and then suddenly a sharp turn off the Expressway towards Dehu Road. Right now getting guided tour of Dehu Road, Nigdi, Chinchwad, Pimpri . . . so I guess different timings have different routes?

By the way, the bus left at sharp 1401, we got a bottle of water (200ml - cap open . . .) and a Mid-Day free. Ticket price 320/- rupees. Power points not working. 5pm, and at Chinchwad Railway Station . . .

Note from the Team-BHP Support Team: Please take the time to use proper punctuation as per Team-BHP rules. Avoid...typing...like...this. Thanks.

[amitwlele]

Originally Posted by malq

I am in the 1401 Dadar-Pune Station Shivneri Volvo, bus number 9213, very comfortable and about half full. Only one short stop on the Expressway, at the last foodcourt, and then suddenly a sharp turn off the Expressway towards Dehu Road. Right now getting guided tour of Dehu Road, Nigdi, Chinchwad, Pimpri . . . so I guess different timings have different routes?

Yes 2 different routes. One from Chinchwad and other from Wakad if you have boarded the bus from Dadar. For buses originating from Borivali or Thane additional route via Chandni Chowk.

If you booked your tickets online it mentions the route that is going to be followed.

[silverado]

My house in mumbai is in dadar , while i work in Hinjewadi and stay @ jagtap dairy.

Hence Shivneri is a godsend bus service for me.
The first time i travelled in it was in 2004 and it was my first Volvo ride.

Neeta is ok to travel when you are not in rush, but the lonavla stop for refuelling sucks.

Neeta charges 250 on weekdays and 350 on weekends from Jagtap dairy to dadar.

Dadar is the best place to get in shivneri.
Average teravelling time has been 3 hours on most occasions.

My colleague who stays in borivali, Banks on shivneri for his Quota of 4-5 hour sleep before he reaches office for night shift.

[d_himan]

I've been doing the Mumbai-Pune route at least twice a week for 5 months now. I stay in Kandivali.

My $0.02

1. The ride quality in the Volvo is far better than my Accord as long as the driver doesn't attempt to go off-shoulder (the Volvo then sways). Just make sure you sit in the front/middle. The last few rows are not as good.

2. Usually, online booking is ~ 400 bucks while physical ticket booking is 320. Not sure why such a steep disparity.

3. The 5:30 AM Borivali route is outstanding - you're usually at Pune station by 8:50-9:10 AM. But one needs to book online on Mondays since tickets get sold out by Saturday.

4. Pune to Mumbai return (Evening) - catch the service from Pune railway station or Parihar Chowk. Most of the time, departures are delayed by 15-30 minutes. Buses post 8:15 PM reach Sion in 3-3.5 hrs flat. Friday early evenings are crowded.

5. The max GPS speed I've seen so far is 108 kmph. (Both B9 and B7)

6. The torque in the ghat sections is superb. Very,very few cars manage to keep pace and I'm sure none of them feel as unstressed.

[coriollis]

Originally Posted by d_himan

I've been doing the Mumbai-Pune route at least twice a week for 5 months now. I stay in Kandivali.

2. Usually, online booking is ~ 400 bucks while physical ticket booking is 320. Not sure why such a steep disparity.
5. The max GPS speed I've seen so far is 108 kmph. (Both B9 and B7)

Online booking is Rs 390/-. The physical ticket is issued by a conductor and fare depends upon your boarding point for Borivali Shivneri unlike Dadar-Pune-Dadar Shivneri Which doesn't have a conductor to issue tickets have a flate rate of Rs 320/-. In any case I find the fare very Steep.
The buses with reg no starting as MH 11 are MSRTC owned buses.The Borivali route has buses sourced from private operators based in Mumbai, Pune and Nashik.
IMO the privately owned buses are very poorly maintained and are driven in a rash manner.These days I find the option of taking a train from Pune and then a local from Dadar to Borivali more economical/ Time saving. If I am not traveling alone I always take my own car.... Diesel !
Cheers

[d_himan]

Originally Posted by coriollis

Online booking is Rs 390/-. The physical ticket is issued by a conductor and fare depends upon your boarding point for Borivali Shivneri unlike Dadar-Pune-Dadar Shivneri Which doesn't have a conductor to issue tickets have a flate rate of Rs 320/-. In any case I find the fare very Steep.
The buses with reg no starting as MH 11 are MSRTC owned buses.The Borivali route has buses sourced from private operators based in Mumbai, Pune and Nashik.
IMO the privately owned buses are very poorly maintained and are driven in a rash manner.These days I find the option of taking a train from Pune and then a local from Dadar to Borivali more economical/ Time saving. If I am not traveling alone I always take my own car.... Diesel !
Cheers

Online booking is 398.97, they might as well make this 400! Interesting stuff on private operator buses. However, I find the Borivali morning service to be excellent - not different at all from the Dadar service experience. Took the Neeta once and it took an hour more to reach Pune.

I hate taking the Dadar to Borivali local, especially with luggage. So, no train for me. I get down from the Volvo at Sion post 9:30 PM and take a cab. One reason why I avoid the train.

My travel is reimbursable, hence find the fare OK! Especially when a Meru cab from Kandivali to Belapur costs close to 900 bucks!

[TKMCE]

I used to love the Shivneris predcessor, the ASIADs way back in the late 80s/early 90s where my travel was betweeen Deccan Gymkhana and Churchgate. When I shifted back to Mumbai recently after 20 odd years and had to do the trip regularly again, looking at this thread I had almost made up my mind to try Shivneri. However the presence of a Neeta office nearby made me try Neeta for the first time and after that I have stuck to them. The main reason being that my trips were from Andheri to Hinjewadi. For people like me Neeta is a better bet because a, The frequency from Western Suburbs (Borivali , Andheri, Parle ) is far far better for Neeta than Shivneri and b , Since I get down at Hinjewadi, the question of Poona Darshan does not arise for me. At both places, Andheri and Hinjewadi, I could walk into the local office and get a bus within 20-30 min most times.Booking online is a waste with Neeta except may be ultra peak times since the local offices/agents do not encourage etickets and have put notices asking not to bother them with queries on etickets.
But the frequency is good, nowadays quite a few new buses like Mercs and Multi Axle vovlos are also put on the route and I have reached as quickly as in 2 1/2 hours in the early morning departures from Andheri to Hinjewadi. To sum up if your travel is between the western suburbs of Mumbai and Wakad or Hinjewadi or Aundh in Pune, then Neeta is a far better bet anytime compared to MSRTC. And they also do free market pricing - which means that while I had to pay as much as 500 Rs during festival times, many times even on Friday evenings I paid as less as 300 Rs on Neeta while Shivneri was charging 370 if I remember correctly.

[scopriobharath]

I am planning to travel to Pune this weekend and want to take the Shivneri to Pune from Mumbai.

I would like to reach as early as possible and want to go by Shivneri only. No trains and Neetas et all Please.

By logic the 5:30 am Dadar Pune should reach faster than 5:30am borivali Pune bus but still wanted to know which one to take. I am located at Malad and travelling to Dadar is not a problem. I will use a Meru in the worst case to reach Dadar.

Any other pointers and tips please.

[coriollis]

Originally Posted by scopriobharath

I am planning to travel to Pune
Any other pointers and tips please.

There are two routes of dadar pune Shivneri. One via Hinjewadi and Aundh. Another via Pimpri-chinchwad. In the mornings the later one would take longer time. In the online reservation page, the one with timings having the one minute component go via Pimpri-chinchwad, Take the bus according to your needs. Have a safe journey.
Cheers.

[amitwlele]

Originally Posted by coriollis

In the online reservation page, the one with timings having the one minute component go via Pimpri-chinchwad, Take the bus according to your needs. Have a safe journey.
Cheers.

@coriollis - The above in bold is a good observation. Was never aware of that. I would always check the stops to find out whether it is via Pimpri - Chinchwad.

[scopriobharath]

I have booked a 6:30am Borivali - Pune Shivneri Bus. What time would be Bus reach Pune Station?

Similarly, I have booked a 5:30pm Pune Departure. What time would the Bus reach Borivali?

Any other tips / pointers that are good to know?

I Might have to get down an Aundh, even though i have booked till Pune Station. Is there a problem with that or is it allowed?

[coriollis]

Originally Posted by scopriobharath

I have booked a 6:30am Borivali - Pune Shivneri Bus. What time would be Bus reach Pune Station?
Similarly, I have booked a 5:30pm Pune Departure. What time would the Bus reach Borivali?
Any other tips / pointers that are good to know?
I Might have to get down an Aundh, even though i have booked till Pune Station. Is there a problem with that or is it allowed?

You should be able to reach Pune station by 10 am. Please enquire about the route of Shivneri. Most of the Borivali Shivneri's go via Chandani chowk and not via Aundh.
The bus will stop at food mall for breakfast. You should only have tea, as every other thing is tasteless and atrociously costly.
Regarding the return journey:
You would exit pune early but will most probably face rush hour traffic beyond Chembur and should take almost 5 hours for the journey.
One more important thing:
Never ever part with your baggage and never accept anything/ food from Co-passengers.
This might seem childish, but thugs are on prowl these days.
Have a safe trip.
Cheers
Abhijeet

[fiesta]

Buses started from Swargate, mostly go via Chandni Chowk. There are a few which takes Aundh - Wakad route.

@Coriollis - Much needed advice, now'er days

[scopriobharath]

Slightly Off Topic - Covering Shivneri Borivali - Pune - Borivali. I dont think it warrants a new thread as the difference between Dadar & Borvali is minimal. Both follow the same route from / upto Sion.

A Personal Thank you to Coriollis for all the inputs.

Positives:

• Onward bus was clean. It was swept before departure
• Bus was new
• Left on dot at 6:30 am a.k.a. USA / UK.
• Was clocking 100-120kmph (onward)
• People flock to this bus (No one cares even if a Neeta/Purple Arrives
• AC was a chiller
• Conductor sets expectations that ONLY last row seats are available, eventhough people can "see" vacant seats. Vacant seats are reserved by passegenrs boarding at forthcoming stops (Neeta does not honour reservation).
• No 'A','B','C','D' seat numbers. A Logical 1-45 type.

Negatives:

• Once the bus leaves Borivali East Nancy Colony bus station, ALL buses go to Borivali West, a waste of time
• 15 mins halt at Borivali bus station (Driver went to bus office)
• 15 mins halt at Chembur Maitri Park(Driver went to bus office)
• Claimed halt for 10 mins at the Sajgaon plaza but in reality took 35 mins
• Breakfast halt comes too soon after Vashi. demotivating for Vashi passengers
• Return bus was too slow for a volvo(70-80 kmph)
• Was supposed to come to Aundh @ 5:45 pm but came at 7:05 pm

Overall - I would rate the experience as excellent. Best way to commute is to drive, but if one wants to take a Bus, Shivneri is recommended anyday over Private Players

[scopriobharath]

I thought I will pen down some DOs and Donts to make the travel easier and smarter. All this is as per my personal experience.

Do's:

• Always Pre-Book through Internet or at the counter so that your choice of seat is assured. MSRTC is in Demand
• Mentally prepare yourself for one hour delay at the very least
• Its smarter & better to carry a packet of buscuits / dry eatables & a bottle of water & Juice. The breakfast joint is dirty, overpriced & tasteless. MRP items are heavily overpriced. 15 Rs water bottle costed 25/- . Credit to coriollis here.
• Belt-up if you are in the first row of seat. People may laugh at you, but its worth it. (the person seated next to me laughed when i wore seat belt).

Donts:

• Please Do Not argue with the conductor / Driver as to why its being requested to occupy rear most seat when seats in front are empty. Empty seats in Borivali probably would be reserved by a person boarding from Say Bandra.
• "One stop per area" concept is followed at MSRTC. Please do not request to alight at the most convenient point. Driver and conductor get wild at this. example The stop at Goregaon is only at Goregaon petrol pump. There is no stop at bimbisar nagar / Hub Mall / aarey colony or Oberoi Mall.
• Bromen chowk / Brahman chowk is the point for passengers from Aundh. The Parihar chowk stop is cancelled as it causes traffic snarls. A senior citizen argued & asked the same thing again and again and finally settled down when the conductor and driver shouted back. This is an MSRTC decision and the driver & conductor are powerless w.r.t this. Parihar chowk to Bromen chowk is walkable or Rs 20/- by auto-rickshaw.
• The Luggage compartment is "self-Service" and not driver operated (unlike KSRTC Karnataka).
• Please carry an ID proof and keep it handy for e-ticket checking.
• Mega-highway is nothing but the expressway.