Looking at the growing population’s future transport needs and the Commonwealth Games coming to town, the Ahmedabad Municipal Transport Service (AMTS), along with the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) is planning a phased roll-out of around 3,000 electric buses by 2030. But, like citizens of Ahmedabad, it too seems to be in a tight spot when it comes to parking — there are no plots available to park these new buses. Sources said that 25 years ago, AMC stopped reserving plots for bus terminals in its town planning schemes, hence the squeeze.The decision on the 3,000-strong addition was arrived at after considering the city’s population growth from 2025-26 to 2030-31, the Commonwealth Games and the likelihood of Ahmedabad also hosting the 2036 Olympics. A current proposal to operationalize 300 electric buses (each 12m long) for a start is pending approval. If AMTS is struggling to find parking for this fleet itself, imagine the challenge of accommodating 3,000, the sources added. “Three companies submitted proposals before the standing committee to operate these 300 buses at a rate of Rs 91.08 a kilometre. The proposal is on hold due to the election code of conduct,” said an AMC official requesting anonymity.He added, “Land thrice of what is currently available with AMC will be needed to park the new buses. We have requested plots from the estate department. As AMC does not have plots reserved for bus terminals, temporary arrangements are being planned on plots reserved for other public purposes. Another option will be to change the purpose of these plots.”An AMTS official said, “Plans are in place to introduce 3,000 new electric buses before the 2030 Commonwealth Games. Currently, parking is available only for buses operated by AMTS. From 2027-28 to 2030-31, more than 1,582 buses are planned to be operationalized and these will need parking depots. As the first step, a list of reserved plots in town planning schemes on SP Ring Road has been obtained from AMC’s estate department. Plots from this list will be chosen for depots. There are plans to obtain a state govt grant for new routes and depots on the outer side of the Ring Road.”
