Delhi:
Metro commuters have a reason to smile. Soon, Delhi Metro's much awaited air-conditioned feeder buses will ply on 20 routes, promising a comfortable ride this summer.
The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) is yet to finalise the contractor, though routes have already been charted out.
"We are in the final stages of selecting the operator. It's difficult to set a time frame as of now, but we are expecting to flag off the operation pretty soon," said Anuj Dayal, spokesperson, DMRC.
For the project, an Indo-Asian auto giant, Swaraj Mazda is building as many as 300 buses. A 26-seater bus will cost around Rs 19.8 lakh and will have features like pneumatic air suspension for more comfort, wide doors between 800 to 1,000 mm for better traffic movement and semi-low floor design.
"We had started a trial bus service on Shastri Park- Vasundhra Enclave route for a few months. The successful trial run helped us chalk out the bus routes and other operational modalities," an operation's department official said.
He also added that it will be mandatory for the bus operator to run buses on the schedule prepared by the Delhi Metro and also to maintain a log of the operations between 8 am to 8 pm. "However, the operator will decide the number of buses to be plied by checking the viability option on his own for a period of two hours in the morning between 6 am to 8 am and in the evening from 8 pm to 10 pm, ," the official said
The buses will be monitored through GPS system and a dedicated Metro officials' team will oversee the operation. "A few buses have already arrived and we will ensure that the bus system does not go the Blueline way. There will be checks and balances in the system," said the official. "To start with, there will be two clusters comprising 20 routes. The area where Delhi Metro has already reached will get the priority," said an official.