The TGSRTC has allocated 70 electric super luxury buses to the Karimnagar region, of which 33 buses have already reached Karimnagar. Though the regional authorities had requested for 100 buses, the corporation authorities have allocated 70 buses.
Officials said they would operate 39 buses on the Karimnagar-JBS route, nine on Karimnagar-Godavarikhani route, four on Karimnagar-Manthani route, six on the Karimnagar-Kamareddy route, six in Karimnagar-Jagtial and six in Karimnagar-Sircilla routes. In the first phase, 33 buses would be operated between Karimnagar-Hyderabad very soon on a gross-cost contract (GCS) system. Supervision and operation of buses would be done by the RTC, Regional Manager N Sucharitha said.
Informing that electric works and other basic facilities were being developed, she said the operations would begin soon by completing the pending works. RTC sources said a private firm JBM would operate all these electric buses from Karimnagar-2 depot, which was going to be handed to the private
operator. In this regard, both the private firm and the RTC had already made an agreement.
A total of 14 charging points were being developed in the depot. Besides laying an 11 kv power supply line, installation of 12 charging points has been completed. Out of three electric transformers, two were already installed.
Authorities are planning to operate buses after August 15 by completing the charging stations, transformer and other basic facilities. A total of 360 employees are working in the depot. 53 RTC buses and 52 hired buses are being operated on different routes. Except conductors, all the employees would be shifted to different depots. As part of the State government’s decision to operate electric buses under private management, a few depots including Karimnagar-2, Nizamabad, Warangal, Nalgonda, Suryapet and Hyderabad-2 depots have been handed over to private operators.
In the first phase, a private firm is going to start operations in Karimnagar and Nizamabad depots.