HYDERABAD: The Transport Department has received a report about the road facilities, flyovers and infrastructure in the city to consider if the iconic double-decker buses, which were used during the Nizam’s generation, can be brought back on Hyderabad roads.
Speaking to Express, Sunil Sharma, principal secretary of transport, said: “Depending on the report, we will be taking a decision very soon. If the decision is positive, we will first start off by promoting it as a tourist facility and then slowly move on to the commercial aspects as TSRTC requires profit too.”
The buses were discontinued as a result of several reasons, including high maintenance costs, supply of the buses and its parts, and bad vehicular security. But many people feel that a handful of these buses can be reintroduced as tourist buses, to keep the Nizam city’s history alive. According to official sources, Hyderabad had double-decker buses plying in its streets even before the Independence. “The double-decker buses used to be the last mile services that connected Secunderabad and Kacheguda railway stations during the Nizam’s era. These buses then went on to be commercial buses, and continued plying till 2004,” an official told Express.
The discussions began after TRS working president and MAUD Minister KT Rama Rao took a trip down his memory lane recently and tweeted a picture of Hyderabad’s iconic green double-decker buses and recalled how he took these buses to school. He further requested Transport Minister P Ajay Kumar to look into the possibility of resuming these services. Puvvada responded positively and said he would look into the revival of the buses, last seen in 2004.
Why it was discontinued
The buses were discontinued as a result of several reasons, including high maintenance costs, supply of the buses and its parts, and bad vehicular security. But many people feel that a handful of these buses can be reintroduced as tourist buses, to keep the Nizam city’s history alive