Green Kolkata: CNG buses to run in city alongside 150 electric buses by March 2020

Kolkata: The state Transport department is all set to introduce CNG buses in Kolkata before March 2020. The infrastructure for refilling is being developed at Kasba bus depot.

"At present there is no refilling infrastructure in the city. We have signed an agreement with GAIL, which will carry CNG gas in tankers and then it will be refilled in the buses at Kasba depot. We will start with 10 buses to begin with," said state Transport minister Suvendu Adhikari at the state Assembly during discussion on motion for consideration of the report of the transport standing committee on Friday.

The CNG buses are environment-friendly and help to curb the level of pollution in the state. The state government had earlier introduced CNG buses in Asansol and Durgapur.

Some CNG buses also ply from Esplanade and Karunamoyee bus stand in Salt Lake to Asansol and Durgapur. But this will be the first time when CNG buses will run within the city.

The minister added that his department will also have 150 electric buses running in the city before March 2020. 80 such buses are already operational and soon, 70 more will be launched. There are already 55 charging stations that have been set up in Kolkata and its adjoining areas.

The minister said that his department has earned a revenue of Rs 2,500 crore from state buses in the last financial year. This figure was Rs 1,700 crore in 2016 and Rs 900 crore in 2011, before the Mamata Banerjee government assumed office for the first time.

"We have set a revenue target of Rs 3,000 crore in the ongoing financial year," Adhikari said.

At present, six to eight lakh passengers travel daily in buses under the West Bengal Transport Corporation that run in Kolkata, Howrah, South 24-Parganas and North 24-Parganas till Ranaghat in Nadia.

"In 2011, this figure was less than 2 lakh, which shows clearly that people's trust on state-run buses has increased manifold," Adhikari said.

The minister also spoke about various steps taken by the Mamata Banerjee government to boost water transport and the safety and security of passengers availing ferry service facilities.

"We have sanctioned a project under which the World Bank will allocate Rs 3,300 crore for a period of three years, which will be utilised for boosting the water transport system. Some alternative routes will be developed that will contribute to swift commute from Haldia to Guptipara in Hooghly and then from Guptipara to Suti in Murshidabad. We are working on developing world-class infrastructure for hassle-free journey to religious destinations like Mayapur, Nabadwip etc. via waterways," he maintained.