BEST to add more buses on short 'point-to-point' routes

In an attempt to provide Mumbaikars with last mile connectivity and better accessibility to public transport, the Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking will be adding more buses in its short feeder routes as the local trains are set to resume operation for the general public from Monday. Most of these short routes originate from railway and metro stations and buses operating in these routes run point-to-point without any stoppages in between. Earlier on Friday, during the inauguration ceremony of BEST control room, state CM Uddhav Thackeray had said, that BEST should plan its routes in a way that is able to complement the train and metro services and should be able to provide last mile connectivity to Mumbaikars. "Now that railways are resuming, many new feeder routes will be introduced and more buses will be pressed into service in these routes," a senior BEST official told FPJ.

Furthermore, officials also pointed out that Mumbaikars usually rely on trains when it comes to long distance travelling within city limits, which is why they want to better the services in shorter routes now.

Before the pandemic outbreak, BEST had been regularly introducing new feeder routes in different parts of the city, where the red coloured mini AC buses were pressed into service. Following the lockdown, many of these short routes got temporarily suspended as BEST emerged to become the only public transport service in the city.