CHENNAI: There is an increase in t proportion of overaged government buses in the state, now at 52.73%, as the procurement of new buses did not happen for two years due to the Covid-19 lockdown-induced fund crunch, said the transport department on Friday.
In the light of recent incidents involving parts of buses such as footboards and seats getting detached from the vehicle, causing accidents and injuries, the transport department said measures are being taken to introduce 7,030 new buses to replace the ageing ones.
The department stated that the average age of buses is nine years. The fleet strength of Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC), State Express Transport Corporation (SETC), and six other undertakings of the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) is 20,260, of which 18,728 are put into operation every day.
According to an official note, a total of 10,582 buses in the state are overaged. “Following intensive repair and maintenance works in the last three years, the average breakdown of buses for every 10,000 km had fallen from 10% to 1% and 2%,” noted the statement.
Despite facing huge financial constraints, the department has taken efforts to purchase 1,000 new buses for each of the financial years 2022-23 and 2023-24, as well as 3,000 new buses for 2024-25. Moreover, 16 new buses are slated for procurement under the Special Area Development Programme (SADP), and 2,666 buses planned for purchase with funding from the KfW, a German-based bank, added the statement.
It further indicated that out of the planned 7,282 buses, 652 have already been put into operation, and the remaining are scheduled to be rolled out by April 2025. Consequently, 7,030 worn-out buses will be removed.
The statement also mentioned plans to introduce 1,000 electric buses on a Gross Cost Contract (GCC) model in Chennai. During the first phase, 500 eco-friendly buses will be launched. Additionally, about 1,500 bus chassis have been earmarked for the reconstruction of vehicles. Currently, 839 refurbished buses have been deployed and the remaining are set to be launched soon, the statement noted.
Government buses carry 1.76 crore commuters a day, including 51.47 lakh women and others who avail free travel in 7,179 ordinary buses.