The Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation on Tuesday announced the addition of 300 new buses to its fleet, including a luxury multi-axle range sourced from Mercedes Benz and Volvo and other models from Ashok Leyland.

This addition is part of the corporation's long-term plan to add about 6,000 buses to its existing fleet of about 22,000 over three years. The Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, Mr N. Kiran Kumar Reddy, had recently approved a proposal to part-fund the acquisition of the new fleet, wherein the State Government would pitch in with 20 per cent of the overall cost.

The outlay for the plan is about Rs 1,000 crore, with the State Government providing up to Rs 200 crore.

The new buses were formally flagged off on Tuesday in the presence of the State Minister for Finance, Mr Anam Ramnarayana Reddy; the Transport Minister, Mr Botsa Satyanarayana; and others.

For the first time, the corporation has gone in for ultra-luxury multi-axle buses for long-distance travel, Mr Prasada Rao, Managing Director of the corporation, said, adding that before the end of the current financial year, they would get 21 such buses each from Volvo and Mercedes Benz. Each bus in the Garuda Plus range costs Rs 1 crore.

The corporation has also begun to operate buses run on CNG for the first time in the State capital. This was possible with a dedicated CNG station set up by Bhagyangar Gas Corporation Ltd.

The State-owned corporation has resolved to take measures to help recoup the losses of about Rs 200 crore due to a recent strike by employees in support of statehood for Telangana.

Related Topics
comment COMMENT NOW