Tamil Nadu to buy 500 electric low-floor buses; MTC to get 320 AC ones

CHENNAI: The Institute of Road Transport under the Tamil Nadu government has floated bids to procure 500 electric low-floor buses including 340 AC buses with charging solutions, and carry out depot improvement works for Chennai, Coimbatore and Madurai depots under a KfW-funded project.

As part of the 'Climate Friendly Urban Mobility' programme, Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) would get 320 electric buses while Madurai and Coimbatore would get 100 and 80 electric buses respectively. Out of the 340 electric AC buses, all the 320 electric buses for MTC would be air-conditioned while Coimbatore will get 20 such buses. No AC buses figure under Madurai's sanctioned 100 electric buses.

The proposed electric buses are planned for urban city bus operations to improve accessibility for differently abled persons, elderly, children and women.

As part of the project, the MTC’s Ayanavaram, Adyar and Tambaram depots would be developed into dedicated electric bus depots. The bus depots of the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation, Coimbatore at Sungam and Ondipudur and Madurai’s Ponmeni and Tirumangalam would be developed into dedicated electric bus depots.

Under the programme funded by the KfW (Frankfurt-based development bank), the State Transport Undertakings would get around 2,200 diesel buses and 500 electric buses over two years. The KfW has also extended financial assistance for developing depot infrastructure to support the eco-friendly public transport system.

Already, the MTC has awarded a contract for the procurement of 500 low-floor electric buses including 100 AC electric buses to OHM Global Mobility Pvt Ltd, a subsidiary of Ashok Leyland and Switch Mobility, under the gross cost contract (GCC) through a World Bank-funded project. Under the GCC model, the MTC would avoid a capital expenditure of about Rs 875 crore in procuring the 500 e-buses, and as maintenance expenses and payment of salaries to drivers and technical staff. The MTC would pay Rs 77.16 per km for non-AC electric buses and Rs 80.86 per km for AC electric buses as against Rs 116 per km expenditure incurred on the operation of the diesel buses.

The supply of electric buses to the MTC under the World Bank project is expected to commence in April next year. A senior official said 500 electric buses to be procured under the German funding agency would be inducted by the end of this year.