State Transport Minister M R Vijayabaskar has said that battery-operated buses will soon be operated in Chennai and Coimbatore. While speaking to reporters in Karur, the Minister said that in the first phase 80 buses will be operated from Chennai and 20 from Coimbatore. Vijayabaskar was in Karur to participate in an event conducted at the Kumaran Municipality High School.
The Minister had recently visited London along with Transport Secretary PWC Davidar to understand how electric buses were being operated. The foreign visit was based on an invitation extended by delegates of the C-40 transport group that visited Chennai last month.
He said that he held discussions with the Transport For London (TFL), a local government body responsible for the transport system in Greater London, about challenges involved in operation of electric buses in the state and establishment of charging points.
“The C-40 delegation will soon visit Tamil Nadu to study and locate places where charging centres can be ideally established in Chennai and Coimbatore,” he added.
“Since the pollution levels in Chennai is alarming, it has been decided to operate these battery run buses in the capital. Each bus costs Rs 2 crore. To operate the buses, the process of charging is an important factor. So, a delegation from the C-40 would visit Tamil Nadu to identify charging points,” he added.
