CHENNAI: Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay on Tuesday (August 25) flagged off 250 new buses procured at Rs 290.08 crore for the state transport undertakings, including 130 electric AC buses for the MTC.
Launched from the Secretariat, the 130 low-floor AC e-buses are among the first batch of phase two of the World Bank-supported procurement of 750 AC e-buses.
The MTC procured them for Rs 1,337 crore under the Gross Cost Contract model. Of the 130 buses, 80 will be operated from MTC’s Alandur depot and 50 from its Central depot.
As part of efforts to reduce vehicular pollution in Chennai, MTC is operating 625 low-floor electric buses, procured at a cost of Rs 697 crore, through five depots.
The new services will connect key destinations including Chennai airport, Kilambakkam bus terminus, Siruseri IT Park, OMR, Tambaram, Chengalpattu, Mamallapuram, Guindy, Anna Nagar, Pattabiram, Kundrathur and Poonamallee, and ply from Alandur and Central depots.
The 80 buses from Alandur depot will operate on 15 routes: MAA1 (Chennai Airport-Kilambakkam), MAA2 (Chennai Airport-Siruseri IT Park), MAA3 (Chennai Airport-Adyar bus stand), 113 (Red Hills-Guindy Thiru Vi Ka Estate), 76V (Koyambedu-Siruseri IT Park), D70 (Ambattur Industrial Estate-Velachery), 500P (Pallavaram-Chengalpattu), 570R (Alandur Court-Siruseri IT Park), 114R (Red Hills-Guindy Thiru Vi Ka Estate), 515P (Pallavaram-Mahabalipuram), 119 (Guindy Thiru Vi Ka Estate-Semmancheri TNUHDB), 170C (Thiru Vi Ka Nagar-Guindy Thiru Vi Ka Estate), 9M (Thyagaraya Nagar-AGS Officer’s Colony), 70V (Koyambedu-Kilambakkam) and 105 (Tambaram West-Siruseri IT Park).
The 50 buses from Central depot will operate on 10 routes: 2C (K Kannadasan Nagar-K Kannadasan Nagar), 7H (Island Ground-JJ Nagar East), PP21 (Island Ground-Kilambakkam), 29A (Perambur BT-Anna Square), 40H (Anna Square-Pattabiram), 40A (Anna Square-Pattabiram), 88Kct (Parrys Corner-Kundrathur bus stand), 221 (MGR Central-Tiruporur), 72 (T Nagar-Tiruverkadu) and 25 (Anna Square-Poonamallee).
Separately, 1,614 new buses are being procured for the six STUs at an estimated cost of Rs 756 crore. As the first phase, 120 new buses procured at a cost of Rs 55.58 crore were launched on Tuesday.
Transport Minister A Vijay Tamilan Parthiban, Chief Secretary M Saikumar, Transport Secretary L Nirmalraj, MTC managing director T Mohan and senior government officials were present at the event.