Despite a fare hike, condition of buses goes from bad to worse.
Metal sheets replacing broken glass windows, shattered headlights, and buses with holes. These are the features of BEST buses.
Once touted as the best public transport undertaking in the country, the quality of BEST buses is deteriorating day by day despite a recent fare hike.
In fact, many buses are now becoming a safety hazard with the recent overturning of a double-decker and a series of collisions being the pointer.
A BEST committee member said it was not just the quality of driving, but the poor maintenance of important fitments like brakes and other technical equipment was leading to increasing number of accidents, making it unsafe for commuters.
“The condition of BEST buses in the city has deteriorated beyond repair. In fact, such is the neglect that a few buses are running without headlights and with broken fitments. In fact, two of the air-conditioned Kinglong buses from Magathane depot have replaced broken windows with metal sheets. This is not done, especially when the BEST has hiked AC bus fares by a large percentage,’’ Akshay Marathe, an IT engineer and a commuter, who has sent several mails to the BEST authorities, said.
BEST chairman Ashok Patil said they were working on improving the maintenance schedules at garages. “We are trying to improve on the percentage factor of repairs and you shall soon see buses in proper condition,’’ he assured DNA.
Marathe said the buses at Magathane depot are worse. “The bus rattles, which makes the travel a nightmare. Frames of window panes are broken due to which it is not possible to open/close the windows,’’ he said.
“Front steps of all buses are loose. While stepping on the steps one always fears whether it will break down due to the person’s weight. BEST buses were never like this and they are going from bad to worse now,” he said.
BEST officials said Magathane depot had been facing acute shortage of manpower and short supply of spare parts. An official said that the BEST is following a two-tier system.
The major overhauling of buses is carried out at workshop and minor repairs are carried out at depots. However, after complaints from Akshay, the headlights of some buses have been restored.
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