KSRTC mulls rolling out 100 e-buses in Kochi

KSRTC is introducing 100 e-buses in Greater Kochi area to address inadequate public transport and increasing demand. Routes and fares are being finalized and funds sourced from KSRTC, KIIFB and CSML.

The KSRTC is considering introducing 100 city buses in the Greater Kochi area, considering the inadequate public transport buses and the increasing demand for such buses from many residential and commercial areas, informed sources have said.

The buses will in all probability be e-buses, like the ones that were introduced in Thiruvananthapuram earlier this year. But they need not necessarily operate along circular routes. The inadequate bus connectivity in several areas and the impending expiry of permit of many private buses were factored in while deciding to introduce a fleet of KSRTC buses in Kochi, it is learnt.

This comes over a decade since a fleet of Thirukochi buses that had been introduced here around 15 years ago were withdrawn from the city and allotted to depots in suburban towns.

A tentative list of routes where the city buses will operate has been readied, and it is awaiting vetting at various levels following which an announcement is expected later this month, prior to Onam. The ticket fares will be very reasonable and will most likely be priced less than ₹20. A decision is awaited on the external colour pattern of the buses. The funds to procure the buses will in all probability be sourced from the KSRTC, apart from bodies such as the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board and Cochin Smart Mission Limited, it is learnt.

There was considerable drop in the number of private buses in the Kochi-Aluva corridor after the Kochi metro’s commissioning in 2017. This in turn resulted in commuters from lateral corridors having to depend on private vehicles, worsening traffic snarls and parking issues in the city. Making matters worse, the number of e-buses that operated from metro stations to the suburbs fell from eight to three, reportedly due to differences of opinion between Kochi Metro Rail Limited and the bus operator.

Traffic planners and experts from the now-defunct Kochi Metropolitan Transport Authority had cited the need to rationalise bus routes and augment the number of city and mofussil buses to lessen traffic chaos and act as feeder services for the metro.