Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport
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The BEST or the Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport is Mumbai's public transport service and electricity provider. The government owned organisation, which was set up in 1873, operates one of India's largest bus fleets. Originally setup as a tramway company, it branched out into supplying electricity to the city in 1905, and later buses in 1926. The BEST is run by the city's municipality as an autonomous body.
The bus transport service covers almost the entire city and extends its operations outside city limits. In addition to buses it also operates a ferry service. The electricity division of the organisation is also one of the few electricity departments in India to garner an annual net profit.
Until 1995, BEST stood for Bombay Electricity Supply and Transport. After the name of the city was formally changed from Bombay to Mumbai, the organisation also reflected the name change to Brihanmumbai, which means "Greater Mumbai".
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History
The Bombay Tramway Company Limited was formally set up in 1873. After a contract was entered into between the Bombay Tramway Company and the municipality, the Government of Mumbai enacted the Bombay Tramways Act, 1874, under which the Company was licensed to run a tramway service in the city. The tram-cars were of two kinds-those drawn by one horse and those drawn by two. In 1905, a newly formed concern, The Bombay Electric Supply & Tramways Company Limited, bought the Bombay Tramway Company and the first electrically operated tram-car appeared on Mumbai's roads in 1907. The passing years aggravated the problem of rush-hour traffic and to ease the situation, double decker trams were introduced in September, 1920.
Mumbai saw its first bus run on July 15, 1926. The people of Mumbai received the bus with enthusiasm, but it took quite sometime before this means of conveyance really established itself. For several years, it was looked upon as transport for the upper middle class. Those were the days when the tram was the poor man's transport, carried one all the way from Sassoon Dock to Dadar for a mere anna and a half, that was nine paise. The bus fare for the same journey was four annas, that is 25 paise.
In response to the pleas made by the Government and the Bombay Municipal Corporation, the Company extended its services to the northern part of the city in 1934. Double deck buses were introduced in 1937 in order to cope better with the growing traffic. The first Limited Bus service in Mumbai, and probably the first in the country as well, started running in 1940 between Colaba and Mahim.
Pursuant to the option given to it under the Deed of Concession granted to the Bombay Electric Supply and Tramways Co.Ltd, the Brihan Mumbai Mahanagarpalika acquired on August 7, 1947, the assets of the combined Undertaking, namely the operation of tramways and distribution of electricity in the city of Mumbai as a going concern. By mutual agreement, the Corporation also took over the operation of the bus services, which was run by the B.E.S & T Company Ltd.
Thus, the Bombay Electric Supply and Transport Company was municipalised and came to be known as Bombay Electric Supply & Transport Undertaking.
When the Corporation took over the Company in 1947, there were 242 buses in operation on 23 routes and these buses carried 2.38 lakh passengers per day. At present, there are 3380 buses carrying 45 lakhs passengers daily on 335 routes.
On January 9, 2004, BEST announced that it will replace its "aging" fleet of 200 double-deckers with new ones.
Transport
The BEST runs a large fleet of buses covering the entire city limits as well as linking the neighbouring districts of Thane and Raigad. These ubiquitous red buses are an important part of the city’s zeitgeist and character. There are two types of buses run, the single decker and the double decker. The entire fleet of the BEST numbers 3380 and carry 4.5 million passengers daily on 335 routes. In addition to the buses, the BEST also runs ferries across creeks in the northern reaches of the city. It is also the only public service provider in India to ply air-conditioned buses.
| Distance in km | Adult (Rupees) | Concession fare |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | 4.00 | 2.00 |
| 5 | 4.50 | 2.00 |
| 7 | 5.00 | 3.00 |
| 10 | 7.00 | 3.00 |
| 15 | 9.00 | 4.00 |
| 20 | 11.00 | 5.00 |
| 25 | 13.00 | 6.00 |
| 30 | 14.00 | 7.00 |
| 35 | 15.00 | 7.00 |
Electricity
The BEST also powers up only the city district. The BEST obtains its power from the Tata Electric, a private electricity generator company. An islanding system is in place that shields the city from other national electricity grids which would have otherwise crippled the city. Despite this, however, the city does experience a blackout for about 3 hours each year. Though the electric division offers cheaper rates as compared to other electric service providers and yet manages to make a tidy profit.
Timeline
- 1873: Bombay Tramway Company Limited set up
- July 15, 1926: First bus runs in Mumbai
- 1926: 600,000 passengers use the bus service in its first year.
- 1937: Double deck bus introduced
- 1940: First limited bus service started between Colaba and Mahim
- 1947: 242 buses plying on 23 routes carrying 238,000 passengers per day
Buss.jpg
External Link
- BEST site (http://bestundertaking.com)