LG Sandhu, CM Rekha flag off 200 EV buses
Lieutenant Governor Taranjit Singh Sandhu and Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Wednesday flagged off 200 electric buses, taking the total Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) bus fleet to nearly 6,800. Of the 200 buses, 56 are Ladies Special buses, which will cater to university areas and other high-demand routes for women.
The Delhi-Karnal interstate e-bus service was also launched on the occasion. A public EV charging station at DTC’s Rajghat Depot-1 was inaugurated on the occasion.
“Among all the initiatives being launched today, ladies special buses are the most important for me personally and the government. During my student days, I remember using university special buses to travel to college and home, but for the last 28 years, these buses were not available,” the chief minister said, addressing a gathering.
With the latest addition, Delhi’s overall bus fleet will comprise 4,938 electric buses and 1,750 CNG buses, she said, adding that the city has the highest number of electric buses in the country.
Sandhu said the Ladies Special buses were not just a mode of transportation but also a safe means of mobility. He said ‘Gati Shakti’ was an important pillar of this vision, under which better mobility, stronger connectivity and a green economy needed to be promoted.
The launch of 200 new electric buses in Delhi and the public EV charging station at Rajghat Depot were important steps in this direction.
Under the plan, the DTC will introduce 30 Ladies Special trips on 15 high-demand routes and 26 University Ladies Special (U-SPL) trips on 13 routes. These bus services will improve connectivity to major employment, educational and institutional centres such as Nehru Place, AIIMS, South Extension, R.K. Puram, Connaught Place, ITO, Delhi Secretariat, Karol Bagh, Kashmere Gate and Shivaji Stadium. The University Ladies Special services will strengthen connectivity for female students to several prominent Delhi University institutions, including Hindu College, Ramjas College, Daulat Ram College, Shri Ram College, LSR, Gargi College, ARSD and Hansraj College.
The chief minister described the Ladies Special bus service as an important step towards ensuring safe, dignified and convenient travel for women and female students. The Chief Minister said security arrangements had been ensured on these dedicated services along with women conductors.
The new fleet of 200 electric buses comprises 88 12-metre EV buses and 112 DEVI 9-metre EV buses. With their induction, Delhi’s electric bus fleet has crossed 5,000.
The launch of the Delhi-Karnal interstate e-bus service is an important step towards connecting Delhi with major cities in Haryana through clean and convenient public transport. Five electric, air-conditioned buses will operate on the route, with a total of 10 trips scheduled daily in each direction. The fare from Kashmere Gate to Karnal has been fixed at around `212.
As part of efforts to strengthen the city’s electric mobility ecosystem, the chief minister also launched a public EV charging station at Rajghat Depot-I.
“We are not only making EV charging infrastructure but also offering subsidies under EV policy,” she said.
The Government also launched five fully electric, air-conditioned inter-state buses on the Delhi-Karnal route. The service will operate 10 daily trips in each direction on the approximately 133-km one-way corridor.
