TN to procure only AC electric buses, examine BRTS rollout, says CM Vijay

CHENNAI: Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay on Wednesday directed the Transport Department to procure only air-conditioned electric buses for future fleet additions and initiate follow-up action on implementing a Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) with dedicated bus lanes as part of a long-term strategy to modernise public transport across Tamil Nadu.

He also reviewed proposals for extending free bus travel for women across the State, one of the poll promises of his party.

Chairing a review meeting on the department's functioning and upcoming projects, the Chief Minister also called for the introduction of a smart card-based cashless ticketing system and emphasised large-scale adoption of environment-friendly electric buses.

Officials informed Vijay that the eight State Transport Corporations (STCs) currently operate 21,527 buses carrying around 2.05 crore passengers daily. Of these, about 64 per cent travel free of cost under various welfare schemes. Government bus services have been extended to 98.4 per cent of villages with a population exceeding 1,000 people.

He also reviewed the operations of the eight State Transport Undertakings, the State Road Transport Institute, the Tamil Nadu Passenger and Goods Transport Corporation, and the Directorate of Motor Vehicle Maintenance.

Vijay held detailed discussions on one-year, three-year, and five-year action plans aimed at improving the performance and financial sustainability of the transport corporations.

Officials also presented plans to establish 24x7 information and control centres at major bus terminals using GPS-enabled tracking systems to monitor bus departures, arrivals and stopping points. These centres will be linked to the headquarters of all transport corporations and an integrated command centre proposed in Chennai.

Transport Minister A Vijay Tamizhan Parthiban, Chief Secretary M Sai Kumar, Additional Chief Secretary (Finance) MA Siddique, Transport Secretary M Vallalar, Special Secretary R Lilly, Metropolitan Transport Corporation Managing Director T Prabhushankar and senior officials attended the meeting.