Exactly seven months after they arrived in Hyderabad, Sunil Sharma - VC&MD, TSRTC launched first batch of 40 electric buses on 05th march 2019. Made by China based BYD's Indian partner Olectra greentech, these buses can travel up to 300 kilometers in single charge. This launch takes the total number of BYD buses in India to 108. This is also the biggest fleet of electric buses any city has launched till date.
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| Posing with the star, our team member Rakshit Pullluri Rakshit reported live from this historic event. |
Some of you might have noticed, these buses don't have the iconic alphabet Z in their registration numbers. Why ? you might ask. Well, TSRTC does not own these buses. Given the paucity of funds and lack of experience in operating electric buses, the corporation decided to get the first lot of buses on Gross Cost Model.
This is not the first time the corporation is doing something like this. Many rural buses and some 600 city buses in Hyderabad are operated under the "hire" scheme. In this model, an agreement is signed between TSRTC and buses operators who make the bus available for an assured number of kilometers. The operator owns and maintains the bus at their own cost. They also recruit the driver and pay them. The corporation then pays the operator a fixed sum per kilometer.
All 40 buses are expected to serve Airport routes. With most routes starting from JBS, TSRTC has decided to house 20 buses in Cantonment depot. Remaining 20 will serving IT corridor and west of the city will be operated out of Miyapur 2 depot. Adequate charging infrastructure has been provided at both depots to recharge the buses while not in service. Special parking sheds have also been built to protect the charging stations from sun and rain. As said before, these buses take not more than 4 hours reach full charge and can run up to 300 km on a single charge.
Extensive trials have been carried out before launch. Don't worry, these buses will make your journey only better. Here are some pictures of the buses and their drivers :)
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| Waiting for the big moment |
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| Chilling in the sun before launch |
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| Posing for pictures :) |
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| Charging station |
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| Heading out after the launch |
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Crew and representatives from Olectra BYD posing for a group picture |
That is it from us.
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Pictures : Rakshit Pulluri
Text : Ratnam
