GMDA has planned a bus depot in Sector 48 for the purpose and has floated a tender for the power substation to be set up at the depot.
Estimated to cost the metropolitan authority INR 2.5 crore, the substation is likely to be come up in six months. According to officials, GMDA will soon issue bids for construction of the bus depot, for which 7.5 acres of land has been earmarked to accommodate 100 buses at a time.
The depot’s construction is estimated to cost INR 18 crore and will take an year to complete after the bids are issued. The detailed project report has been finalised and administrative approval has been obtained. Besides the parking, the depot will have repair and maintenance workshops, washing areas and office complex.
Moreover, the Sector 10 depot will also be converted into an e-depot. “We are expecting the first batch of e-buses by the end of this year. While the conversion of the bus depot in Sector 10 into an e-depot is currently underway, we have also started working on providing similar supporting electrical infrastructure in Sector 48 depot. A tender for the power substation has already been floated and one for the construction of the depot will soon be floated,” RD Singhal, chief general manager of GMDA (mobility), said.
The substation work at the Sector 10 depot will likely be finished by the end of this month.
Officials said while the substation and depot construction can be worked on simultaneously, their immediate focus is on completing the electrical infrastructure for the charging facility. Other components such as the administrative block and resting area can be constructed subsequently.
Last year, the central govt had approved 100 e-buses for the city under the PM e-sewa scheme and in March this year, the union ministry of housing and urban affairs had approved the GMDA’s request for additional 100 e-buses.
At present, the city has two bus depots in sectors 10 and 52, catering to the needs of GMCBL’s existing fleet of 200 buses. The mobility plan recommends the establishment of nine city bus depots. Currently, 150 GMCBL buses are plying on 25 routes in the city, with a total ridership of around 90,000 daily.
Another 50 buses are being operated in Faridabad on 12 routes.
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