Nashik: The Nashik Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Ltd (NMPML) of the Nashik Municipal Corporation (NMC) has decided to add ten more city buses to its fleet as the city bus service is getting a good response. Considering the demand, more buses will be added from next Thursday (Aug 12). These buses will run on the Tapovan to Nashik Road route and Pawannagar and Uttamnagar area.
The NMC launched its city bus service in the city a month ago. Though it has to bear the loss due to the Covid-19 restrictions, the bus service had to be started to Kasbe-Sukene and sinnar areas to reduce the loss. Presently, city bus service is getting good response on Nashik Road to Tapovan route. Six new buses will be started on this route. Besides, bus service will also be started on Pawannagar and Uttamnagar routes.
The new buses will start running from next Thursday, said Milind Band, general manager, NMPML. Due to Covid-19 restrictions, buses have not yet been started on many routes. However, the bus service will be started on new routes considering the demand of the citizens. If schools and colleges are started, the city bus service will benefit from it. He also said that although the Corporation is currently incurring losses, efforts are underway to find a way to reduce the losses.
The city bus service started by Nashik Municipal Corporation has received a good response from Nashikites since its start Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) was not interested in running the city bus service considering the revenue losses, NMC has launched its bus service.
At present 52 buses are running on 13 different routes under Nashik Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Company. About seven hundred and fifty rounds of these buses are being completed in a day. The city bus service is getting good response from the passengers. About eight and a half thousand passengers travel regularly during the day. In fact, Mahamandal is planning to release buses on 63 routes connecting the city and the suburbs.
Meanwhile, as the city bus service in the suburbs is closed, passengers have to pipe one and a half to two kilometres to reach the main road. The commuters are demanding that like the MSRTC, the NMC should increase the number of city bus trips in the suburbs.
