Mumbai: MSRTC to increase services, run six Shivneri e-buses over Atal Setu 'due to commuter demand'
planned to run four buses over the MTHL on an experimental basis from February 20. However, the Times of India reported that the number was raised to six due to "commuter demand". ALSO READ: Atal Setu: Built With 17 Times More Steel Than Eiffel Tower! The report quoted an official as saying on Wednesday that during the inaugural run on Tuesday, as many as 150 passengers travelled by Shivneri bus between Mumbai and Pune.
This fetched revenue of over ₹1.5 lakh for the bus corporation. The buses will ply between Mantralaya and Pune station (via Dadar) at 11 am, Dadar and Swargate at 7 am and 1 pm, Pune railway station and Mantralaya at 6.30 am, and Swargate and Dadar at 7 am and 1 pm, the report added. A press release had earlier said that the move would cut the travel time between the two cities by one hour, while the fare for the "Shivneri" buses would remain unchanged, the transport body stated in a press release.
It had stated that the "Shivneri" buses on the Pune railway station-Mantralaya and Swargate-Dadar routes, departing at 6.30 am and 7 am respectively, will reach Mumbai via MTHL and will be operated the same way on the return journey as well. "The buses will be plied via Panvel, Nhava-Sheva and Sewri to access the MTHL, the longest sea bridge in the country," the release states as per PTI. The bridge originates from Sewri in Mumbai and terminates at Nhava Sheva in Uran taluka of Raigad district.
MSRTC is one of the largest public transport bodies in the country, with a fleet of around 15,000 buses. More than 60 lakh passengers travel in these buses every day. (With inputs from PTI)Milestone Alert!
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