LOVE of Z: Minis, this time from JnNURM

Earlier this month, Love of Z was at Rajahmundry to experience and observe the biggest special bus operation in APSRTC's recent history . We had no plans and were expecting surprises . Taking at least one ride in the new SLF and JanBus were there in our bucket list . Before we could tick them off , we were taken aback by the some thing very small but Special !
Here you go people ! we present you Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation's newest member . A small but wonderful addition to the fleet is funded by State and Central Government through JnNURM - ACA (also known as JnNURM-2/UBS-2) . This bus will soon start serving city/moffusil routes in small cities of the state .

The Corporation Logo on the Bus.

The JnNURM Logo on the Bus.

The SML(Swaraj Mazda Limited) Badge.

The Model Code & Emergency Exit Door.

The Rear.

Combining all the above pics, here is the Complete view...

A.P.S.R.T.C JnNURM SML S7 Mini Bus.

The first Swaraj Mazadas bought by the corporation after being divided have all the features required for UBS-2 class bus. This one has LED destination boards, Vehicle tracking system, Passenger information system, CCTV cameras and a rear view camera . All of these controlled by the driver through a touch screen on dashboard.

All of the above might seem awesome but we really pray these do not end up as saptagiri buses doing shuttle services to tirumala or any other places . We hope to see these bring some light to small cities and towns falling apart with out any real mode of formal public transport. While we say that, These buses have already carried more people than any new bus would usually do , even before being registered and allotted to depots these buses have been working non stop on luthergiri-rtc complex route in Rajahmundry as free bus for godavari mahapushkaralu .

The heavy rush at Rajahmundry for Pushkaralu has also brought out a few problems this bus is bound to face if run on proper city routes. Remember the Charminar minis of Hyderabad ? well even they had pneumatic doors and deluxe like seats . Corporation(undivided) then had to make a series of modifications to the buses to make them suitable to run on city routes. First the buses were stripped off the doors then painted in red as all the other city ordinaries. This obviously did not help as the doors were still narrow. APSRTC then ended up cutting the doors, also they realized it was better to have smaller seats so that people could stand . Traditionally mini buses on city roads have helped as feeder services . We also love the idea of mini buses for smaller cities but, what kind of buses we choose is the question . Have we not learnt from our mistakes . Now that we have these buses , we wish these run only on exclusive city routes and the narrow doors/different livery do not overwhelm people . We also wish these will be of some help to the smaller cities which are in desperate need of formal public transport.