BEST to operate 250 more buses from June 8 in Mumbai

The Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport Undertaking (BEST) will start operating 250 more buses in Mumbai in addition to 1,800 from Monday, an official said on Sunday. Now, employees of government, private sectors as well as those who are self-employed can also travel in these buses, he said.

The state government recently allowed inter-district movement of people within the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) without any passes.

The government had earlier announced phase-wise reopening of the economy and public activities under 'Mission Begin Again' though the lockdown remains in force till June 30.

BEST PRO Manoj Varade said the frequency of buses will be increased if demand rises in the coming days. "As of now, we are running buses on 81 routes. We will add more buses from Monday. Only 30 people--25 sitting and five standing--will be allowed to travel in a bus with proper social distancing," he said.

BEST had suspended its bus services on March 25. "So far, only those people who were engaged in essential services and health workers were allowed to travel in BEST buses, but now self-employed people can also travel," Varade said.

(Photo Credit: PTI)