TN to increase electric buses to 30% of transport corpns fleet by 2030

CHENNAI: The state government proposed to increase the share of electric buses to 30 per cent of the fleet operated by State Transport Undertakings by 2030, as per the new Electric Vehicles Policy - 2023.

According to the policy, the state shall develop a roadmap to electrify public and institutional fleets operating in the state in a phased manner.

"The State Transport Undertaking (STUs) operated buses constitute a substantial percentage of the public transport in the state. The government will electrify these fleets through a phased augmentation and replacement plan. The state shall endeavour to increase the share of electric buses to 30 percent of the fleet by 2030," it said.

It added that the STUs should be encouraged to electrify their fleets through loan programmes from multi-lateral agencies.

"Vehicular fleets of educational institutions such as schools and colleges and private bus fleets in the state shall be encouraged to transition to EVs in a gradual manner. Staff bus operators for industrial establishments and service sector enterprises shall also be encouraged to transition to an EV fleet given the advantage in the total cost of ownership. Aggregators shall be encouraged to partner with e-mobility providers and EV manufacturers to phase out ICE vehicles from their fleet, " the policy said.

It noted that the Tamil Nadu Industrial Policy 2021 encourages the usage of EVs in the transportation of passengers and goods within the manufacturing units and the use of EV buses for the transportation of personnel working in these facilities by providing a 25 per cent subsidy on the cost of procuring such EVs up to Rs 1 crore.

As per the data, more than 1.15 lakh EVs have been registered in the State out of which 93% are non-commercial vehicles as on April 30, 2022. "Since the two-wheeler segment has relatively lower battery capacity requirements, which enables faster charging through standard charging infrastructure. The Government of Tamil Nadu shall encourage the conversion of private and commercial vehicles to EVs through waivers and exemptions, the creation of charging networks, and by enabling registration of commercial EVs, " it said.