With Metro delayed, MSRTC buses to pave way for public transport in Thane

The state transport minister on Monday inaugurated a set of 17 new buses to be operated in Thane; plan is to procure 300 buses every month

With the Metro lines delayed, the MSRTC may pave the way for public transport in the Thane region. Only for Thane, the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) will get 150 new buses for its urban and rural areas in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) by the end of January to boost public transport, said Maharashtra transport minister Pratap Sarnaik, who met with the bus operatives on Monday in Thane.

“The idea is to procure 2,640 new self-owned buses for the MSRTC in the year 2025. Of these, about 150 will be only for the Thane region by the end of January,” Sarnaik said on the sidelines of a ‘Road Safety Week’ function in Thane.

“After this, the overall plan is to procure a set of 300 buses every month, which will be given to every bus depot in Maharashtra. The master plan is ready, and the buses shall start arriving soon,” he said.

“We are also making a master plan to change the picture of the overall public transport service in the state by giving importance to cleanliness and safe travel. The modernisation of MSRTC will also be started in a phased manner, and this time we will also take employees onboard. From their uniforms to restrooms and toilets, every facility they get will be upgraded. Once an employee is satisfied, only then can we provide better facilities to passengers,” said the minister, inaugurating a set of 17 new buses at the Thane depot on Monday.

Sarnaik also said that a 100-bedded modern hospital will be set up at Borivli for MSRTC employees and their families, where a system will be created to provide them with all the facilities of the health department of the state government.  

Spread over 6,328 sq km, the MMR consists of nine municipal corporations—Greater Mumbai, Thane, Kalyan-Dombivali, Navi Mumbai, Ulhasnagar, Bhiwandi-Nizampur, Vasai-Virar, Mira-Bhayandar, and Panvel; nine municipal councils—Ambarnath, Kulgaon-Badalapur, Matheran, Karjat, Khopoli, Pen, Uran, Alibaug, and Palghar; along with more than 1,000 villages in Thane, Raigad, and Palghar districts.

150
No. of new buses for Thane region

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