Tata Motors, India’s largest commercial vehicle manufacturer, recently strengthened its relation with Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) with the delivery of 26 state-of-the-art electric buses. The delivery marks the commencement of the first-ever Gross Cost Contract (GCC) electric bus service to BEST. The buses are delivered as a part of the larger order of 340 electric buses from BEST under the government of India’s FAME II initiative, with the rest lined up to be delivered in a phased manner as per schedule. The 25-seater Tata Ultra Urban 9/9 electric AC buses were flagged off by the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Uddhav Thackeray in the presence of dignitaries from the Maharashtra state government, BEST and Tata Motors, at an event at Nariman Point, Mumbai. Tata Motors will be undertaking to build, deploy, maintain and operate the complete charging infrastructure along with the buses across four Mumbai depots of – Backbay, Worli, Malvani and Shivaji Nagar.
Under the unique ‘One Tata’ initiative, the company leverages the core competences of various group companies. Tata Power will be contributing by taking complete charge of upstream and downstream electrical facilities including supplies and shall also be responsible for the complete bus charging facility. Tata Auto Components will undertake collaborations, design, development, sourcing and supply of select components to Tata Motors under the initiative. The electric buses are indigenously developed by Tata Motors using the latest manufacturing technology to offer the best comfort for the passengers and low cost of operations for BEST.
Commenting on the occasion, Girish Wagh, President, Commercial Vehicle Business Unit, Tata Motors said, Tata Motors is delighted to have delivered the first 26 of the 340 electric buses for the city of Mumbai. The buses have been specially designed keeping the comfort and convenience of Mumbaikars including a “lift mechanism” for differently-abled travellers. Tata Motors’ global standards of manufacturing processes and vehicle development centres have helped in innovating and leading the electric mobility solutions from the front. We will continue to play a proactive role in the government’s electrification drive.”
The 25-seater Tata Ultra Urban AC electric buses are equipped with advanced features for the comfort of the driver and the passengers like: ‘Lift Mechanism’ that extends an automated ramp for easy ingress and egress of specially-abled passengers, along with ergonomic seats, roomy interiors, utility provisions like charging ports, WiFi hotspot for on-the-go connectivity and wide entry and exit passages. The full-electric buses come with Intelligent Transport System (ITS), telematics system, regenerative braking system, amongst other features for efficient and smooth operations. The buses have been tested and validated by Tata Motors across states including Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Assam and Maharashtra to establish performance in diverse terrains.
Tata Motors, under the FAME I initiative, has supplied 215 electric buses in 5 cities across India, which have been received well by the STU and the citizens alike. The electric buses cumulatively have clocked more than 4 million kilometres, thereby providing critical data and statistics to further innovate and upgrade Tata Motors’ electric buses product portfolio. In addition to the tenders under FAME I, Tata Motors has received orders from several state transport units in FAME phase II: 60 buses from AJL, 100 buses from Jaipur City Transport Services Limited and 300 buses by BEST in Mumbai. Apart from these, Tata Motors has also delivered 25 hybrid buses to MMRDA – India’s first specially-abled-friendly buses.