Vadodara: Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) inducted 30 more buses into its PM-eBus Sewa scheme, taking the operational fleet to 80 and paving the way for wider public transport coverage across city zones.VMC Commissioner Arun Mahesh Babu said the latest addition marks the third batch under the first phase of the project, which envisages a fleet of 130 buses. The civic body had received 20 buses in the first batch and 30 in the second before inducting 30 more buses on Wednesday.The expansion is expected to improve access to public transport for students, women commuters and persons with disabilities. The civic body has also been receiving requests from MLAs, elected representatives and citizens to extend bus connectivity to rural areas, particularly university campuses.“We are working towards improving both upward and downward mobility and strengthening rural-urban connectivity in phases as the fleet expands,” Babu said.VMC expects the fleet to reach 130 buses by the end of this year or Jan next year. Once the network achieves adequate coverage, the civic body plans to explore dedicated services connecting the airport, railway station and the upcoming Bullet train station.Alongside fleet expansion, VMC is strengthening the ticketing and revenue-collection infrastructure of the bus service. The civic body’s standing committee recently approved a five-year contract worth Rs 26.55 crore covering ticketing systems, electronic ticketing machines (ETMs), software and fare collection for an initial fleet of 100 buses.The contract has been awarded at a negotiated rate of Rs 1,475 per bus per day, which is 9.49% higher than the civic body’s estimated rate. The system is expected to facilitate digital payments and introduce a pass facility for commuters.According to VMC sources, around 10,000 commuters currently use the PM-eBus Sewa every day.
