MTC to soon add 352 low-floor buses to its fleet

CHENNAI: Commuters in the city, especially those with disabilities and the elderly, would soon have a much easier ride, with the Metropolitan Transport Corporation set to get 352 low-floor, disabled-friendly buses in the coming months.

These vehicles are part of the 552 such buses to be procured under the German Development Bank (KfW) funding. Apart from MTC, the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) Coimbatore and TNSTC Madurai will get 100 low-floor buses each.

According to a senior Transport Department official, the process to procure the fully built 552 low-floor buses is in the final stage, with the KfW expected to give its nod in a week.

Initially, the department had floated bids to procure 442 low-floor buses. Following the Madras High Court order on procurement of low-floor buses for differently abled passengers, it then decided to increase the number of low-floor buses by 25 per cent to 552 making use of the tender conditions and to avoid floating fresh tender separately.

The court had directed the department to limit the number of standard floor buses to 950 out of the total 1,107 buses and to procure 157 low-floor buses through a separate tender. The standard-floor buses were part of another tender to procure 1,771 BS6 diesel buses under KfW funding.

The number of standard-floor buses to be procured now stands at 1,614, including 245 buses for MTC. Among the rest, TNSTC Villupuram will get 347 buses, Salem and Kumbakonam corporations will get 303 each, TNSTC Madurai and Coimbatore will get 251 and 115 buses, respectively, and TNSTC Tirunelveli will get 50 buses.

The tender for the procurement of these 1,614 fully built buses is likely to be opened on October 30. The official said there were some amendments to the tender specifications that caused a delay in opening the bids.