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Time of India
21-05-2025
- Automotive
- Time of India
Two days of heavy rain lead to breakdown of 150 PMPML buses
Pune: In the last two days, 150 PMPML buses broke down causing inconvenience and hassling commuters in what was the second-highest number of daily bus breakdowns since July, last year, said officials of the transport utility. "There were 61 breakdowns on May 19 and 89 on May 20. However, it is less compared to breakdowns on July 24 and 25, last year. The reasons are rain and its after-effects," public relations officer of the transport body Kishore Chauhan told TOI. "I was travelling in a bus from Pune Municipal Corporation building towards the Raja Bahadur Mills Road around 6pm. The bus stopped suddenly and the driver said it wouldn't go further because a tyre had a puncture. All passengers struggled till another PMPML bus arrived. Many who got off were drenched while they looked for other means of transport," said Parag Seere, a daily commuter. On Wednesday morning, PMPML CMD Deepa Mudhol Munde was in a PMPML bus which broke down at Pulgate. Munde was travelling from Shevalwadi to Kothrud on a new CNG bus belonging to a private contractor in a bid to interact with passengers. She had to switch to her car. Meanwhile, in the two days of July, last year, PMPML had recorded 233 breakdowns. On July 24, the number stood at 105 and 128 on July 25. On any regular day, daily breakdowns are between 48 and 50, officials said. "On Tuesday, we tried to control the breakdowns, but it was raining very heavily. Water entered the electrical circuits of many buses, while others faced the problem of punctured tyres. Vehicles operated by private contractors witnessed far more faults than those owned by PMPML. Only 19 PMPML-owned buses suffered breakdowns on May 20 and 17 on May 19. Rental buses, including e-buses, were stuck in major traffic jams on practically all roads in the evenings. We are talking to contractors and directing them to do all maintenance required for buses to operate without problems," a senior PMPML official said.
Time of India
18-05-2025
- Time of India
PMPML buses to have AI-enabled cams by July
Pune: The Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited (PMPML) has planned to install artificial intelligence (AI) enabled CCTV cameras in all its buses, senior officials told TOI. With this step, PMPML becomes one among the first public transport bodies in the country to have AI cameras on its fleet. "A study to check the feasibility about the project was on and the results have been positive. Now we will float tenders. Within a month, we expect all the buses to have four such cameras each. The buses will include PMPML-owned and the ones operated by the private contractors," Nitin Narvekar, the joint managing director with the transport body, told TOI. The official said the purpose of installing these cameras was to ensure safety and to enhance the services. "One of the cameras will be placed in the driver's cabin and will focus mainly on the driver, his activities and his way of driving. There are complaints off and on about the casual attitude of drivers when on the job. The camera will record the same and relay pictures and videos to us at the control room," Narvekar said. Two other cameras will come up above the BRT doors of the buses on either side while the last camera will be at the back of the bus. "The AI cameras will do a head count of passengers at every stage during the trip. By this, we can calculate the total earning from that trip and find out if the numbers are matching or not. There have been instances of ticketless passengers in the bus and because of which the conductor cannot keep a tab always," the official pointed out. "Presently we have a rough idea on the number of females and males each bus carries. The ratio is 60:40 (males vs females). However, with these cameras, the PMPML would know the exact ratio on the routes. It would help us plan better, especially where the female passengers are high," the official added further. Commuters said basics needed to be catered to first. "I have no problem with the cameras, but when will the PMPML first control the breakdowns and ensure that buses ply on the right time? For commuters, these two issues are the most important," Siddharth Walkar, a Shivaji Road resident and frequent commuter said. FOR ROBUST SAFETY WHILE TRAVEL The PMPML plans to deploy artificial intelligence-enabled cameras on all the buses under it Each bus will have 4 such cameras to ensure secure travel experience The cameras will record the driver's behavior, any misbehave ticketless passengers and count the passengers It will help the transport utility in matching daily earning, route optimization and planning A study to check the feasibility about the project was on and the results have been positive. Now we will float tenders. Within a month, we expect all the buses to have four such cameras each. The buses will include PMPML-owned and the ones operated by the private contractors Nitin Narvekar | joint managing director of PMPML
Time of India
02-05-2025
- Time of India
Three assault PMPML driver, damage his cellphone & vandalise windscreen
Pune: Three men abused and attacked a PMPML bus driver with a belt, damaged his cellphone and vandalised the windscreen of the bus following a quarrel over the bus racing past their bike on Saswad-Hadapsar Road around 4:50pm on May 1. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Nitik Khadke (35), the bus driver and a resident of Moshi, lodged a complaint with the Hadapsar police. Assistant inspector Dipika Jounjal of the Hadapsar police on Friday said the victim was driving PMPML's gas testing bus towards Narveer Tanajiwadi bus terminus at Shivajinagar from Hadapsar. Three men on a bike came in front of the bus and the biker started riding the bike in a zigzag manner, said Dipika, adding that the bus driver raced past the bike. The biker made numerous attempts to overtake the bus, but in vain. The police officer said one of the two pillion riders got onto the moving bus from the rear and started quarreling with Khadke. The man pulled out his trouser belt and attacked Khadke. At this point, Khadke had to stop the bus, she said. When the bus stopped, another pillion rider also entered the bus and snatched driver's phone, damaged it. He also vandalised the front windscreen with a blunt object. The biker opened the driver's door and abused Khadke. After abusing and beating the driver, the trio sped away, she said. Khadke, in his complaint, has given the registration number of the bike to the police. A police team is working on certain clues to trace the biker and his accomplices, she added. The PMPML-owned bus belonged to the Narveer Tanaji terminus. It didn't have any passengers. It had gone to a facility at Handewadi for annual servicing and checking of its CNG tank. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The bus was on its way back when this incident occurred. In PMPML, drivers go through a counselling session each day conducted by the depot manager. They are asked about their mental status and health. If something like this happens, they receive proper attention and medical aid. Drivers are told not to initiate anything that results in road rage and be polite. "The incident is unfortunate and we are looking into the same," Kishore Chauhan, the public relations officer of the PMPML, told TOI. (With inputs from Joy Sengupta)
