History
1865–1873: Early proposals
The idea of a mass public transport system for Bombay was first put forward in 1865 by an American company, which applied for a licence to operate a horse-drawn tramway system. Although a licence was granted, the project was never realized due to the prevailing economic depression in the city due to the end of the American Civil War, during which Bombay had made vast strides in its economy by supplying cotton and textiles to the world market. On 27 November 1871, a notice in the '' Times of India'' newspaper found to be too expensive and the tender was promptly abandoned.1873–1905: Bombay Tramway Company Limited, introduction of horse-drawn trams
The "Bombay Tramway Company Limited" was formally set up in 1873. After a contract was entered into between the Bombay Tramway Company, the municipality and Stearns and Kitteredge company, the Bombay Presidency enacted "The Bombay Tramways Act, 1874", under which the company was licensed to run a horsecar tramway service in the city. On 9 May 1874, the first horse-drawn tram made its début in the city, plying on the1905–1947: Bombay Electric Supply & Tramway Company Limited, introduction of electric trams and buses
In 1905, "Bombay Electric Supply & Tramway Company Limited" (B.E.S.T.) was formed. The B.E.S.T. Company was granted the monopoly for electric supply and the running of an electric tram service in the city. It bought the assets of the Bombay Tramway Company for . Two years later in 1907, the first electric tram debuted in the city. Later that year, a1947–1995: Bombay Electric Supply & Transport, further expansion
Pursuant to the option given to it under the deed of concession granted to the Bombay Electric Supply and Tramways Co. Ltd, the BMC acquired the assets of the combined undertaking, namely the operation of tramways and distribution of electricity in the city of Bombay as a going concern on 7 August 1947. By mutual agreement, the corporation also took over the operation of the bus services, which was run by the Bombay Electric Supply & Transport Company. Thus, "Bombay Electric Supply & Tramways Company" was renamed "Bombay Electric Supply & Transport". As the company grew, it increased its fleet from 242 to 582 buses over the next decade. In 1949, it took over the1995–present: Brihanmumbai Electric Supply & Transport, recent developments
With the renaming of the city from Bombay to Mumbai in 1995, the organization was renamed to "Brihanmumbai Electric Supply & Transport (BEST)". Following a Supreme Court directive, the company gradually phased out old buses and introduced new buses which complied with theOrganisational structure
The company is headed by a general manager, currently Lokesh Chandra. The transport department is overseen by a "Deputy General Manager (Traffic Operations)" who is assisted by the "Chief Manager (Traffic)." The 'Chief Manager (Traffic)' oversees the five BEST zones, each headed by a 'Dy. Chief Manager (traffic)'. Each zone consists of 7 to 8 depots, whose operations are overseen by an 'assistant general manager (Traffic Operation)'. A 'Depot Manager' or 'Dy. Depot Manager' heads each depot. The electricity department is headed by a "Deputy General Manager (Electric Supply)' (DGM (ES))," who is assisted by an "Assistant General Manager (Electric Supply)" (AGM (ES)), and is in charge of planning, new projects, construction, street lighting, computer applications and the generation cell. The "Chief Engineer – Electric Supply" (CEES) is in-charge of material testing and the Standards, Meters and Relays and the Review departments. Two "Chief Engineer – Distribution" (CED) officials manage the two administrative zones. BEST enjoys a high degree of autonomy under the BMC; the latter approves its yearly budget and permits increases in bus fares when required. A body of 17 municipal corporate officials from the ruling party in the BMC form the BEST committee. The committee, headed by a chairman, keeps a tab on the undertaking's daily operations. The committee has a staggered two-year term.Transport department
Rolling stock and Depot
BEST uses primarily CNG and a handful of conventional diesel buses. As of January 2021, the BEST has a fleet of approximately 3800 buses. The fleet comprises 200 single-decker diesel buses, 2400 CNG buses, 25 AC hybrid buses, 1000 AC Mini & Midi buses, 100 electric ac & non ac buses and 120 double-decker buses. Please note due to 15 year old scrap policy and continuous new purchases of buses the numbers are varying. The diesel buses are being scrapped and being replaced by new CNG and electric buses. BEST also have goods carrier buses, break-down vans, blue coloured sightseeing and party buses, tree cutting double decker buses and driving school buses which are used to train drivers. All buses are tagged with a route number and its corresponding destination. They are displayed in the front inBus routes
BEST bus routes are spread citywide and to neighboring cities. BEST operates inter-city services to three areas beyond the municipal limits of Mumbai City; i.e., into the limits of the bordering corporations of Navi Mumbai, Thane, and Mira-Bhayandar. BEST supplements suburban rails, metro rail and monorail in the Mumbai region. It is for this reason that BEST always gives priority for feeder routes over other routes. BEST uses CNG, electric and diesel-powered buses for its operation. BEST introduced Air-conditioned buses in 1998. The majority of BEST buses consist of ordinary routes. Limited bus services that skip minor stops are used on long routes, high-capacity routes, and routes that provide connectivity beyond Mumbai city. The buses have "LTD" appended to the route number. "C" routes are ultra long routes. 5xx LTD numbered buses connect Navi Mumbai with Mumbai. Some buses like A-504, 504 LTD, and C 53 Exp plies till Navi Mumbai's Raigad district, also called as South Navi Mumbai, thereby connecting the nodes of Kharghar and Kalamboli with Mumbai. Buses numbered 4xx mostly like 496 LTD and 497 LTD serve Mulund and Thane and provide the connection to greater Mumbai and buses numbered 6xx LTD and 7xx LTD serves Mira-Bhayander region like 706 LTD and 720 LTD. Buses number 3xx most likely cater to eastern suburbs. Buses numbered 2xx mostly serve western suburbs. Buses numbered 1xx mostly serve central suburbs. Buses numbered from 1 to 99 mostly serve South Mumbai (SoBo). As of 2021, the BEST runs approximately 3,800 buses, ferrying 5 million passengers over 443 routes, and has a workforce strength of 38,000, which includes 22,000 bus drivers and conductors. BEST plans to induct more AC & Non AC buses on wet lease and increase total fleet to 6,000 buses by 2021. Besides buses, BEST operates a ferry service since 1981 in northern Mumbai, across the Manori Creek. The barges operate at regular intervals across the shallow creek linking Manori toMumbai Ordinary Bus Routes
The following is a list of the bus routes operated by BEST in Mumbai.Mumbai Air Condition bus routes
The following is a list of the air conditioned bus routes operated by BEST in Mumbai.Mumbai Limited Bus Routes
The following is a list of the limited bus routes operated by BEST in Mumbai.Mumbai Corridor Bus Routes
The following is a list of the corridor bus routes operated by BEST in Mumbai.Special Ring Routes (AC and Non AC)
The following is a list of the BKC special ring routes operated by BEST in Mumbai. Operated from Monday to Saturday except for Sundays and Public Holidays. These routes connect railway to business area of BKC.Mumbai Airport bus routes
The following is a list of the airport bus routes operated by BEST in Mumbai. On September 9, 2022 BEST announced an advance ticket reservation system for its airport bus service through the Chalo AppMumbai HOHO bus routes
The following is a list of the hop in hop off (HOHO) bus route operated by BEST in Mumbai.Types of bus services
The routes operated by BEST can be broadly classified in the following categories. * Feeder Routes: These routes feed the railway stations and metro stations either from the residential complexes or business districts. * East-west connectors: These are the routes, which run east/west, where railways have no role to play and connect the western suburb with the eastern suburb. * Trunk routes: These routes run south–north through the city and are almost parallel to the railways. * Loop routes: Normally BEST routes are point to point, but there are some routes in the city which are one way loops. Sometimes there are ladies special buses which are deployed during peak hours. Boards are fixed on windows of bus reading 'Ladies Special'. Since 2019, BEST runs special Tejaswini livery buses which are in yellow and pink colour specially for women passenger. AC standard routes: These are air-conditioned routes across the city. * AC express routes: These route runs on western and eastern express highways, to provide faster services to the commuters. * AC standard routes: These are air-conditioned ordinary routes across the city. * AC feeder routes: These routes feed the railway stations and metro stations either from the residential complexes or business districts. Since 2019, BEST has introduced conductor-less AC & non-AC buses where passengers have to buy the ticket before boarding the bus or on bus stops. However this is a test project and many passengers as well as staff are not satisfied with this new test project. Since 2021, BEST has partnered with Chalo app, providing Chalo smart cards and app based ticket booking. The aforementioned routes are further classified into types depending on the number of stops the bus takes and the type of bus used.Fare
BEST has several options to pay bus fares. * Single journey (paper ticket issued by the bus conductor) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ticket_punch * Chalo App (Digital Ticket) * Chalo Card * Daily pass on Chalo App The fares vary depending on the type. Paper tickets are valid only for single journey. Commuters have the option to buy a daily pass, distance-wise bus pass values and zonal pass. Students are eligible for discounts on monthly and quarterly passes and senior citizens for discounts on weekly, fortnightly, monthly and quarterly passes. ; Single Journey Fares Single Journey Fares are valid only for a single trip between any two points. They are issued on paper tickets by the bus conductor. All fare payments can be made in cash and through UPI since 2020. The fare depends on the distance of the destination. Single Journey fare is not valid for transfers. Ordinary and limited bus service have the same fare. ; Distance-wise Bus Pass Distance bus value passes are valid only between two destinations (on a distance basis) on ordinary and limited bus service. Unlimited rides and transfers are available between opted destinations except for single rides. The bus passes are valid for travel between any two destinations up to a distance of a maximum of 20 km. These are issued on an RFID Smart Cards and verified by conductors using a machine. Passes are issued and renewed at all bus depots and also online through the website of BEST undertaking. ; Daily Pass Passengers can avail unlimited bus travel for a day for 50 on non-AC buses of any route and for 60 on AC as well as non-AC of any route. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ticket_punch Student Pass Student pass is available for students who study in Class 1-12th, studying for Diploma or in Universities. This pass can only be utilised on a route between the student's residence and the educational institution. ; Zonal Pass Zonal passes can be purchased according to the service type. These can be used on any bus routes (no AC and AC defined).BEST Transport Museum
The BEST Transport Museum is at Anik Bus depot at Wadala. The museum was founded by P D Paranjape, the BEST officer who religiously collected bus tickets, engines, ticket-issuing machines from depots across the city. The museum was set up in 1984 at BEST's Kurla depot and was shifted to Anik depot in 1993. The museum traces the evolution of BEST. It houses mini models of charming old BEST buses and ancient trams. Hand-written placards in Marathi and photographs are on display for the public. Entry to the museum is free.Electric department
Since 1926, the BEST has been sourcing its power from Tata Power, part of the Tata Group conglomerate. The power cables are laid underground, which reduces pilferage and other losses that plague most other parts of India. The nominal rating of power supplied by BEST is 3-phase, 50 Hz, 220/110 kV. Unlike the transport company, the electricity department services only the Mumbai City area, and not the suburbs. It provides power to 5 million residential and commercial establishmentsThe BEST is the best option for Mumbai - Mumbai - DNAIssues
In the financial year 2004–05, the company earned 15142.2 million from its electricity department, and 839.18 crore from its transport department. Profits from its electricity department totalled 152.82 crore (US$35m), and losses in its transport department totalled 212.86 crore ($48.8m), giving the company a net loss of 62.04 crore ($14.2m). For the financial year 2005–06, BEST is expected to earn 15401.3 million ($352.92m) with a profit of 1408 million ($32.3m) from the electricity department alone. However, its transport department is expected to earn 9486.8 million ($217.39m), with a loss of 1403.0 million ($32.26m). This gives it an estimated net loss of 5 million ($114,575). Newer management techniques, such as retrenching of excess staff (494 till date), and the closure of less patronised routes, have reduced the losses in recent years, from a high of 1.75 billion ($40.1m) in 2001. Daily earnings from its transport system is 20 million ($458,450). It collects 7 million ($160,450) worth of five rupee coins daily, 4.8 million ($110,000) worth of ten and twenty rupee notes, and 6 million ($137,535) worth of fifty rupee notes, through its fare collection system. This has led a unique situation wherein it has accumulated a surplus of short change. In July 2005, the company floated tender inquiries to 54 banks to exchange the loose change, which totalled 46.7 million ($1.07m). However, none of the banks sent in a single bid, some citing that their vaults are full, and others saying it would be unprofitable for low denominations, given security considerations. Though the BEST is a government-owned company, it does not receive any financial assistance from the BMC, or the state government. BEST also earns revenues by way of advertisements on its buses and bus-stops, and through rent from offices on owned properties. The BEST, being a public utility company, cannot increase electricity and bus fares to maximise its profits. An increase, when effected, is usually carried out to curb losses due to inflation. BMC approval is needed before such an increase goes into effect. Prior 2003 the BEST Understanding was a case Peter paying for Paul means the Electricity Division was in profit and Transport loss, so profit of Electricity was diverted to Transport so break even .The Company down stream started after the inception of Electricity Act 2003, in that act it is stated that the profit of Electricity supply cannot be diverted but to be used for same entity. After taking the issue with Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission the company was running by adjusting the profit but after Supreme Court order, it could not adjusted the profit to transport now running in loss.Culture and awards
BEST has been a quintessential part of life in Mumbai. The red double-decker buses, modelled on the AEC Routemaster buses of London, are one of the defining characteristics of the city. When BEST decided to do away with the double-deckers for operational reasons recently, public protests and sentiment forced it to continue with the service. A move to colour all its buses saffron from red in 1997 also drew in criticism, resulting in the red colour being retained. Bus drivers and conductors have come in for praise in the media for their service during theFuture
Among its future plans is the "digitisation project", wherein all underground cables, sub-stations, street lights and bus-stops would be tracked digitally through the geographical information system. It also plans to connect all its electricity meters through a network, so that the readings can be taken remotely, and in realtime, thus obviating the need for monthly manual door-to-door inspection.See also
* Mumbai Suburban Railway * Mumbai Metro * Public transport in Mumbai * Water transport in Mumbai *References
Notes
* ''May the Best Man Win''; Manu Joseph; '' Times of India'', Mumbai; p. 3; 21 August 2005 * ''BEST will have to wait to become smart''; Ashley D'Mello/ Times News Network; p. 3;''Times of India''; 2 July 2005. * ''Short of funds, BEST looks to solar power''; Olav Albuquerque; ''Times of India''; p. 3; 8 July 2005. * ''Exit clause introduced in BEST-TPC pact''; Times News Network; p. 4; ''Times of India''; 7 July 2005. * ''BEST to hire buses from private operators''; Olav Albuquerque; ''Times of India''; p. 7; 4 June 2005. * ''You could now approach BEST for some loose change''; Olav Albuquerque/TNN; ''Times of India''; p. 3; 2005-07-06.External links
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