To support the ‘Shakti’ scheme, the North-Western Karnataka Raod Transport Corporation (NWKRTC) is about to close a tender of 350 e-buses that will run between Belagavi and Hubballi-Dharwad.
The current spending of NWKRTC is 48 per km for the buses and according to it, if they get better quotes of less than 48/km, they will definitely consider this.
The ‘Shakti’ scheme provides free bus service to women and to enhance the experience and give a luxurious feel to the passengers, the NWKRTC wants to gift 350 e-buses that will run on the roads of Belagavi and Hubballi. Due to the ‘Shakti’ scheme, the demand for more buses is increasing day by day.
How Many e-Buses for Belagavi
As per the plan of NWKRTC, 50 buses will be for the city of Belagavi while 100 will be for the Hubballi-Dharwad. The remaining 200 buses will run in the rural and outskirt areas connecting various regions of Belagavi and Hubballi.
What is the GCC Model under which the Buses will be Launched
The NWKRTC wants to float the bus tender under the GCC model. Under the Gross Cost Contract (GCC) model there are basically two parties, the operator and the service provider.
The operator will be responsible for the development of the charging facilities for the e-buses under the space provided by the NWKRTC and hiring the drivers. The service providers will be responsible for maintaining, operating, and procuring the non-ac buses.
The NWKRTC will pay a fixed price to the companies per kilometer. The contract will be for a period of 10 years. The conductors will be provided by NWKRTC.
What’s the Need for e-Buses in Belagavi
There are a few reasons why the NWKRTC is excited to launch the e-buses in Belagavi, The very first reason is to meet the increasing demand for buses due to the “Shakti’ scheme.
The second reason is this project will be financially beneficial for the government and NWKRTC as the cost of operation and maintenance is lower than the traditional diesel buses.
Also, this will help to reduce the air pollution caused by the old diesel buses which is currently a very big problem. The NWKRTC wants to start the e-bus service as soon as possible after seeing the response of the e-buses already running in Bengaluru.
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