KSRTC's first CNG bus rolls out

The first CNG bus of the KSRTC was launched by Transport Minister A K Saseendran at a function here on Thursday.
A K Saseendran (File| T P Sooraj)
A K Saseendran (File| T P Sooraj)

KOCHI:The first CNG bus of the KSRTC was launched by Transport Minister A K Saseendran at a function here on Thursday."The first CNG bus is being launched on a test basis. However, the KSRTC will introduce more such buses soon. As far as KSRTC is concerned, 50 per cent of its daily revenue is spent on fuel. By introducing CNG, the KSRTC can reduce its expenditure considerably," he said.

He said a meeting of the KSRTC board will be held on Saturday in which a proposal will be put forward for buying 900 new buses. "Among these 900 buses, we will include CNG buses as well. There has been a proposal to buy 1,000 CNG buses in the state budget. But, even after a year, the buses could not be bought as there were no fuelling stations in Kerala then. Once more fuelling stations are opened, we will introduce more buses," he said.

A new beginning

A K Saseendran travelled in the new CNG bus parked on the SCMS College campus. The bus (registration number KL 15A 2173) will start services from Friday. Painted in white with green and yellow strips, it will start from Vyttila at 6.10 am and will end the trip at Aluva around 5.30 pm daily. The bus will ply on Vyttila-Vyttila circular route and will be parked at the KSRTC Aluva workshop.

Made by Ashok Leyland, the bus can seat 48 persons. With six cylinders to store 75 kg of CNG, it can operate for 200 km after filling fuel. The engine of the bus produces 145 BHP power and it can operate at the speed similar to buses run on diesel on city roads.

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