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Time of India
30-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Stalin flags off first batch of 120 electric buses in Chennai
Chennai: Chennai's first batch of electric buses hit the roads on Monday, with 120 non-AC low-floor buses flagged off by chief minister M K Stalin from the newly upgraded Vyasarpadi depot. While these buses feature modern amenities like a kneeling mechanism for easier boarding by senior citizens, women, children, and persons with disabilities, they lack air-conditioning—a feature now standard in cities like Delhi and Mumbai. The kneeling function lowers the floor by another 250 mm, making the bus accessible for all. The buses, built by OHM Global Mobility (a subsidiary of Ashok Leyland) at 207.9 crore, include a 400 mm floor height, extended 700 mm aisle width for safer standing travel, and CCTV surveillance with three cameras per bus. You Can Also Check: Chennai AQI | Weather in Chennai | Bank Holidays in Chennai | Public Holidays in Chennai The fleet is operated by private staff under a gross cost contract model—marking the first MTC fleet run without its own drivers. Under this model, the private operator owns, maintains, and runs the buses, while the govt pays per kilometre of service. These e-buses will operate on key high-density routes including 2B (Kannadasan Nagar–MKB Nagar), 18A (Broadway–Kilambakkam), 37 (Vallalar Nagar–Poonamallee), 46G (MKB Nagar–Koyambedu), and 57 (Vallalar Nagar–Red Hills). by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Зачем на ночь сжигают лавровый лист? Undo Despite covering northern and western corridors, Chennai's IT corridors—OMR and ECR—were left out of the initial rollout. MTC officials confirmed that air-conditioned e-buses and services on these corridors will be introduced in subsequent batches. The second batch, consisting of 135 buses from Perumbakkam depot, will include 55 AC buses. Three other depots—Poonamallee (45 AC, 80 non-AC), Central (100 AC, 45 non-AC), and Tondiarpet (23 AC, 75 non-AC)—have already been upgraded with charging stations and maintenance yards to support the expanding electric fleet. Overall, under the Chennai City Partnership project, a total of 625 electric buses are set to be introduced in phases across five upgraded depots at 697 crore. "With Chennai's urbanisation accelerating, carbon emissions from transport tripled—from 10 million tonnes in 2005 to 27 million tonnes in 2019. Diesel buses emit roughly 755 grams of CO₂ per kilometre. The shift to electric buses aims to reduce pollution and improve air quality," said an official release.
Time of India
13-05-2025
- Automotive
- Time of India
First batch of e-buses set to roll out in June
Chennai: After a prolonged wait, Chennai is set to get its first batch of electric buses , with 120 scheduled to be operated in the first week of June. These low-floor buses, to be operated from the revamped Vyasarpadi depot, mark the city's shift towards greener public electric fleet will be run by OHM Global Mobility , a subsidiary of Ashok Leyland, under a gross cost contract (GCC) model. The initial rollout will serve routes in and around Vyasarpadi, including 46G (MKB Nagar-Koyambedu), 2A (Anna Square-Kannadasan Nagar), and 37G (Kannadasan Nagar-Iyyappanthangal). The Vyasarpadi fleet will consist of 40 non-air-conditioned second batch, comprising 135 buses from Perumbakkam depot, will include 55 air-conditioned buses, with the rest being non-A/C. The depots at Poonamallee (45 A/C, 80 non-A/C), Central (100 A/C, 45 non-A/C), and Tondiarpet (23 A/C, 75 non-A/C) have also undergone infrastructure upgrades to support electric bus operations. "Each depot now has space allocated for charging stations and maintenance yards," said T Prabhushankar, MTC managing each bus costs between 1.2 crore and 1.5 crore, MTC did not purchase them outright. Instead, under the GCC model, it signed an agreement with OHM Mobility to supply and operate the buses on routes assigned by MTC. The transport corporation will retain fare collection revenue and pay OHM a fixed rate per kilometre. All technical operations, including driving, maintenance, and repairs, will be handled by OHM's commuters in the city's suburbs, particularly along the northern and western stretches, this rollout is expected to replace old, worn-out buses. Shankaran A, a resident-activist from Maangadu, said, "Most of the new blue buses are deployed inside the city where ticket collection is high, while older buses are shifted to the outskirts."
