A PROJECT REPORT ON BEST AS A SERVICE SECTOR SUBMITTED BY RAHUL.S.

SINGH

FOR THE DEGREE OF THE BACHELOR OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES UNIVERSITY OF MUMBAI

UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF PROF. E.V.GIRISH SIES COLLEGE OF ARTS, SCIENCE AND COMMERCE NERUL, NAVI MUMBAI-400 706 ACADEMIC YEAR 2009-2010
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CERTIFICATE This is to certify that RAHUL.S.SINGH student of S.I.E.S College of Arts, Science and Commerce, Nerul has completed a project on BEST AS A SERVICE SECTOR in the Academic Year 2009-2010. The information submitted is true and original to the best of my knowledge.

Prof. E.V.Girish Project Guide

Prof. Smita. R

Dr. Minu Thomas Principal

BMS Coordinator

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DECLARATION
I Ms. RAHUL SINGH ying in TYBMS (Sem VI), of S.I.E.S College of Arts, Science and Commerce, Nerul hereby declare that I have completed this project on BEST AS A SERVICE SECTOR in the Academic Year 2009-2010 as per the requirements of Mumbai University as a part of Bachelor of Management studies (BMS) programme. The information submitted in the project is true to the best of my knowledge. Date: Place: Navi Mumbai

RAHUL SINGH

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I Rahul Singh would take this opportunity to thank the University for providing me an opportunity to study BEST AS A SERVICE SECTOR. This has been a huge learning experience for me. With a great pleasure I take opportunity to knowledge the people who have made this project work possible. First of all I would sincerely like to thank Prof. Gireesh for helping me gather information and guiding me for doing this project. I would also like to thank my BMS coordinator Prof. Smita and the teaching staff of my college, my colleagues and librarians and other people for providing their help as and when required to complete this project.

RAHUL SINGH
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Executive summary
The project begins with the significance of BEST AND ITS SERVICES in todays world. It signifies the increasing importance of best in Mumbai. Then it leads over to the services and working of the buses in best. It highlights the services provided by them. Then the project highlights the significanceof the best staff and commuters related to best. The project briefly covers the various areas where people fail to understandthe problems of best, services ,problems faced by the best staff and passengers and how they overcome it.

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Objective of study
1. To know the importance attached to the transport in Mumbai. 2. Strategies employed by the company to improvise on how they can provide a better service to passengers travelling by buses.

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INDEX
Sr no. 1. a. b. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17.

CONTENTS
What is best History of bestcity contunies to grow People take the buses Defination of services Best undertaking Progress of bus services Faccilities provided Bus transport profile Organisational setup New project Faqs by passengers Questionaire for best staff Questionaire for passengers Analysis of survey Terror attack Landmark Conclusion Awards Bibliography

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Best as a service sector

HISTORY OF BEST BUSES.

One of the worlds great cities, Mumbai has been the hub of the countrys economic and industrial activity. It has other distinctions too. The Indian National Congress, which spearheaded the countrys struggle for freedom, was founded in Mumbai. The city has been justly famous for being the most receptive of any in the country to new ideas and trends, particularly to those from the West. The forwardlooking and disciplined ways of its people evoke the admiration of everyone from the other parts of the country who is on his first visit to the city. And yet, about three hundred years ago, Mumbai was no more than an obscure bunch of tiny islands. They were not even proper islands. Only at high tide they were cut off from one another. Sometime at the beginning of the eighteenth century these islands were joined together to form what was to grow into the First City of India. The growth, in area and population, as well as in material prosperity, has been unabated till this day. It was in the period from 1820 to 1857 that Mumbai took its first strides towards becoming a modern city. The period witnessed many significant changes. The most important of them, probably, was the use of steamships for the voyage to England, and the opening of the Overland Route, Mumbai built its first steamer in about 1830. The ship was propelled by the paddle wheels on its sides. You went by steamer to Suez, then travelled by land to the Mediterranean Sea for taking a boat to England. This was the Overland Route. Till then you had to take a voyage round the Cape of Good Hope, and it occupied no less than five months. Now it was a matter of a mere month and a half. With England thus brought closer, the trade between India and England began to expand. Mumbai started wearing a new complexion. The entire water-front from Colaba to Mazgaon was soon lined by wharfs, docks and godowns

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THE CITY CONTINUES TO GROW About 1670, the population of Mumbai was around ten thousand. It has been growing since then. When a regular census was taken in 1864, the figure was somewhere near eight lakhs. Now it seems to have crossed a crore ! With the opening of the Suez Canal in 1870, England was only fifteen days away from Mumbai, by sea. This had much to do with the growth of Mumbai. It gave the Mumbai port an important place on the map of the worlds sea routes. Mumbai started prospering, and it has not looked back since. MEANS OF CONVEYANCE At the beginning of the nineteenth century the usual means of conveyance in the city had been what were called the shigram (horse-drawn), the rekla (bullockdrawn) and the palkhi (palanquin). Now the gharry, a horse-drawn vehicle, joined them. A modified version of it, called the Victoria, was put on the roads in 1882. There were some twenty-five or thirty stands for vehicles in the city - as at Colaba, Apollo bunder, the Municipal Offices, the Portuguese Church at Girgaum, and Lalbaug. The fares were modest : for a miles road, the horse-drawn vehicle charged one four annas (twenty-five paise, to us) and the rekla three annas. Of course the wedding season or a dislocation caused by heavy rains was then, as now, something of a heaven-sent opportunity for pitching their fares higher. Bullock carts carried all the heavier goods. There were no hand-carts yet. Tramcars started plying towards the end of the nineteenth century. However, attempts seem to have been made earlier to provide some kind of a stage-transport system. An 1819 issue of the Bombay Courier carried an announcement by a certain firm, named Architect and Coach-maker. It said that if the scheme received adequate support the firm would start a horse-coach service from the Fort to Sion, stopping at suitable places. The residents of the Byculla-Parel area were particularly assured that such a service would be a great convenience to them. The first motor car appeared on Mumbai roads in 1901. Today the city has over six lakhs vehicles, which include motor cars, buses, trucks, scooters, bicycles Mumbais roads are well nigh groaning under this wheeled traffic, but the very magnitude of the traffic is an index of the citys stupendous growth. Another year that stands out in the history of the city is 1872 : the year of the establishment of the Municipal Corporation for the city. The citizens were given local selfgovernent; the rate payers could elect their representatives on the body.

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With the city growing at such a pace, a well-organised road transport system became a necessity. Soon the Bombay Tramway Company Ltd. was set up.

n 1865, an American Company applied to the government for a licence for running a horse-drawn tramway service in the city. The licence was granted on certain conditions, but the project did not materialise just because a war ended rather abruptly. It was the American Civil War. The boom in trade brought by the war was suddenly over, and there was a financial crash. The citys economic life was badly disrupted. A large number of firms went into liquidation. The disaster snuffed out the tramway project. DOUBLE-DECKER TRAMS The passing years aggravated the problem of rush-hour traffic. The solution next thought of was the double-decker tramcar. It was accepted, and the first vehicles of the kind appeared on Mumbais roads in Spetember, 1920.

one of Mr.Dalrymples recommendations, made in 1925, was that the trolley bus should be tried out on some routes. However, the idea had occurred to Mr.Remington as early as in 1913. But with the outbreak of World War I, it had to be shelved like many other bright ideas. It was taken down from the shelf in 1919, and a trolley bus service between the Dadar Tram Terminus and Kings Circle was planned as an experimental measure. But the plan ran into difficulties, with its financial aspects causing disagreement with the Municipality. And finally, it was given up. Simultaneous consideration was given to the feasibility of a motor-bus service. The two main objections trotted out against such a service were : (1) The service would be expensive and (2) The accident rate will go up. Even in a city like London, with the orderly ways of its pedestrians and its vehicular traffic, the accident rate for buses is comparatively very high. It would be much higher in Mumbai. However, the motor bus was allowed a few points in its favour : (1) It is not tied to the rails as the tram-car is. (2) The vehicles can be quickly moved to the points where they are urgently needed.
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(3) It can operate on relatively narrow roads. The Great Debate started in 1913 : the trolley bus or the motor bus? And it went on cheerfully till 1926, with the Municipality, the B.E.S.T. Company, the Commissioner of Police and the others concerned with the problem joining the fray. Finally, 10th February 1926, the Company plumped for the motor bus. It was to run, as an experiment, on three routes. The routes were : Afghan Church to the Crawford Market, Dadar Tram Terminus to Kings Circle, via Parsi Colony, and Opera House to Lalbag via Lamington Road and Arthur Road. The approval of the Commissioner of Police and the Municipality having been obtained, the service on the first of these routes was scheduled to operate from 15th July 1926. The Times of India of 14th July carried the following announcement.

PEOPLE TAKE TO THE BUS The people of Mumbai received the bus with enthusiasim, but it took quite some time before this means of conveyance really established itself. For several years, it was looked upon as transport for the upper middle class. Those were the days when the tram was the poor mans transport. It carried you all the way from Sassoon Dock to Dadar for a mere anna and a half. The bus fare for the same journey was four annas. The organisation had to struggle to make the ends meet by drawing more and more passengers. However, they did come in growing numbers and the company kept expanding its service with confidence. In its first year - that is, by 31st December 1926 - about six lakhs passengers used the service; for 1927, the figure was about 38 lakhs. The Company started its operations with 24 buses. In 1927, the fleet had expanded to 49. In response to the pleas made by the Government and the Municipal Corporation, the Company extended its service to the northern part of the city in 1934. The first routes to be added were : (1) Byculla Bridge to Kings Circle, via Dadar and the Parsi Colony. (2) Lalbaug to Worli via Curry Road and Fergusson Road (3) Dadar to Mahim. Whatever doubts the Company had about public patronage were now set at rest. The number of passengers carried by the buses kept steadily increasing, and so did the income. The total expenditure, which had not increased at the same rate, was distributed over more vehicles. The Company was soon in a position to reduce the fares, particularly for the longer journeys. The bus routes were reorganised with a view to meeting the needs of the travelling public. An interesting experiment was the issue of a Whole Day Ticket during the Christmas
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Holidays. The ticket entitled one to travel anywhere in the city on the day - and that for just twelve annas. Started in 1935, this scheme achieved great popularity. It was withdrawn when the Second World War broke out. Double-decker buses were introduced in 1937 in order to cope better with the growing traffic. The single-deck vehicle carried 36 passengers, the double-decker could take as many as 58. This, and its sheer size and look made the double-decker popular as soon as it was put on the roads. The Second World War started in 1939. It had a sharp and immediate impact on the life in a city like Mumbai. There were the inevitable shortages. Road transport was hit by the shortage of tyres and the rationing of petrol. Owners of motor-cars found it rough going, and many of them switched over to the bus service. This created a problem for the service : too many passengers and too few buses. It was almost impossible to procure more vehicles. And the cost of running the buses, and maintaining them, kept on mounting. The Company however faced this situation resolutely.

LIMITED BUS SERVICE The first Limited Bus Service in Mumbai, and probably the first in the country as well, started running in February 1940, between Colaba and Mahim. It was specially designed to provide quick transport for those living at or near the northern end of the city. In its early days the service was restricted to the office-goers rush-hours in the mornings and evenings to discourage short-distance passengers from using the service, a minimum fare of two annas was charged. Such was the response to the Limited Buses, however, that soon their confinement to the rush hours was lifted, and they started running the whole day.

TROLLEY BUSES A trolley bus service for the city was thought up for the first time by Mr. Remington in 1913. Once again, in 1937 one Shri S.R. Prasanna proposed to the Mayor that the trams and motor-buses should be replaced by trolley buses. The Mayor forwarded the proposal to the B.E.S.T. Company for its opinion. Scrapping
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of all the trams and motor-buses and acquiring a whole fleet of trolley-buses to take their place would have landed the Company in very heavy expenditure. Apart from it, it would have been impossible for a trolley-bus service to cope with the heavy traffic in a city like Mumbai. There was also a practical difficulty : Unlike a tram car, a trolley bus cannot change its direction without actually turning round. A trolley bus service would have been financially feasible only when new rails had to be laid to replace the worn-out ones on all the routes. But with the efficient way in which the tram tracks were maintained, this was not likely to happen in the near future. As for their capacity, three trolley buses would have been required to carry the load of two tram cars. The much appreciated convenience of Transfer Tickets would have to be withdrawn. The fares would have to be increased A trolley-bus is more prone to breakdowns than is a tram car, as its electrical mechanism is more complicated than that of a tram car. If a road was under repairs the trolley bus service using it would have to be suspended. These and other objections of the kind were raised by the Company. They worked, and the trolley bus project once again came to nothing. And it all confirmed that the motor bus had come to stay and would stay for a long, long time in Mumbai. The B.E.S.T. Company launched its motor-bus service on 15th July 1926 with a modest fleet of twenty-four vehicles. On 7th August 1947, the Municipal Corporation took over the Company. During the twenty-one years in between, the fleet had swollen to 242 vehicles.

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Definition of service According to American marketing association: Services are the activites , benefits or satisfaction which are offered for sale or are provided in connection with the sale of goods Type of services : 1. Financial services:Banking, insurance, leasing 2. Shipping and disturibution:Ocean, rail, trucking, wholesealing, warehousing, distuributiion. 3. Professional and technical:-l Technical licensing and sales, engineering design services, construction, management and contracting, leagal services, accounting. 4. Other intermediate services:-

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One of the terms of the Agreement of 7th August, 1905 between the Municipality and the B.E.S.&T. Company gave the Municipality the right to buy the Company at the end of forty-two years. It was also laid down that if the right was exercised on 7th August 1947 - the Municipality would have to pay forty lakh rupees as goodwill, in addition to the agreed price of the Companys assets; and that the notice of intention to make the purchase would have to be given by the Municipality at least six months in advance. However, the Municipal Corporation started considering the matter as early as 1941. On 11th December of the year the Municipal Commissioner expressed himself against it in the report he submitted to the Corporation. The report doubted the feasibility of raising a loan to buy the B.E.S.T. Company in view of the serious financial situation in which the Corporation was, with several of its important schemes regarding water supply, drainage, education and medical aid having to be shelved for want of funds. According to the Commissioner the inordinate rise in prices, owing to the war, also argued against the purchase. By the then ruling prices, the total valuation of the B.E.S.T. Company would have been anything between six and ten crores of rupees. In these circumstances, the Commissioner thought, it would be wiser to wait for ten years, by which time he expected the prices to slide back to their old level. Finally, he suggested that consideration of the matter be postponed for two or three years. The right to buy the B.E.S.T. Company did not cover its Bus Service, which had been granted a permit by the Commissioner of Police under the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act. However, as the permit did not imply a monopoly, the Municipal Corporation could operate its own bus service. This would have been perfectly legal, as the Commissioner pointed out, but not practicable. The Municipal Corporation appointed a committee with the following persons on it to discuss the matter with the Government : the Mayor, the Chairman of the Standing Committee, the Chairman of the Law, Revenue and General Purposes Committee, Shri S.K. Patil, Shri A. P. Sabawalla, Shri Nagindas T. Master and Shri Mirza Akthar Hasan.
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This Committee discussed the matter with the Government at Pune on 14th August 1946, the letter being represented by the Home and Revenue Minister, Shri Morarji Desai, the Minister for Local Self-Government, Shri G.D. Vartak, the Minister for Public Health and Public Works, Dr. M.D. Glider, and the Finance Minister, Shri Vaikunthlal Mehta. VALUATION OF THE BUS TRANSPORT SECTION By his letter of 18th April 1947 to the Municipal Commissioner, the General Manager of the B.E.S.T. Company offered to sell the B.E.S.T. Company alongwith its bus transport section to the Corporation; but he wanted that since the original Agreement did not include the bus service in the item concerned, the deal should be regarded as an obligatory sale, and that an amount equal to twenty per cent of the value of the bus transport section should be paid to the Company as goodwill. But this demand was rejected in view of the Governments policy of nationalising transport and its intention of withdrawing the permission given to the B.E.S.T. Company to run the bus service if the Corporation wanted to run it. However, the payment of goodwill was accepted in pricniple. The Corporation proposed that if there was no agreement on the quantum of compensation, the matter should be referred to arbitration. THE VALUATION According to the advisers of the Corporation, the value of the total assets of the B.E.S.T. Company, including its buildings and the land on which they stood, was Rs.5,39,81,000. The Companys advisers pitched it at Rs.15,80,28,287. This amount was inclusive of the value of the bus service and the goodwill, which came to Rs.40,00,000. With this wide gap between the two valuations, it was inevitable that the decision should be left to an arbitrator. Meanwhile, the Corporation paid to the Company Rs.6,35,00,000, against the final valuation. VALUATION OF THE B.E.S.T. CO. LTD. Category Valuation of Valuation of the B.E.S.T. The Municipality Co.Ltd. (in Lakhs) (In Lakhs) Rs. Rs. (I) Combined Undertaking (Tramways and
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Valuation as per the Award (in Lakhs) Rs.

Electricity) 1) Land and Buildings 2) Other Assets 3) Goodwill (II)Bus Undertaking 1) Lands and Buildings 2) Other Assets 3) Payment for taking over a running concern

371.17 1,155.17 40.00 32.01 110.57 20% of the total value

161.76 263.74 40.00 27.63 42.35 10% of the total value

268.98 556.41 40.00 23.73 77.46 20.00 (works out to 19.7) 986.58

Total

No urban transport service can hope to escape problems, they keep on cropping up all the time. And they have to be tackled ! Else the press and the citizens will not leave you in peace. Knowing this fully well, the BEST undertaking took charge of the bus and tram transport in the city in 1947, and it soon ran into a whole lot of problems. There was a big spurt in the number of new industries; refugees poured in. The Regional Transport Authority invited the Undertaking to run the bus transport in the suburban area-and that at a twenty-four hours notice. Innumerable housing colonies had sprung up, all over the suburbs, the Government Colony at Bandra (East), the Dhake Colony on the Andheri-Versova Road, the Malvani Colony on the Malad Marve Road, the Nehru Nagar at Kurla, the Tagore Nagar and the Kannamwar Nagar at Vikhroli, the S.G. Barve Nagar at Ghatkopar and the Sardar Nagar near Antop Hill.

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Actually, Mumbai had started changing in a big way since World War II. Its population in 1941 was about 14 lakhs; in the next ten years it shot up to 28 lakhs; the next ten years took it to 41 lakhs, and in 1970 it was 56 lakhs. This population explosion, as far as the city was concerned, was most unexpected. Oblong in shape, Mumbai has most of its Government, professional and commercial centres of work concentrated in its southern part. This sets a peculiar traffic pattern : The rush is north-south in the mornings, and in the reverse direction in the evenings. Mumbai has thus changed a great deal from what it was about fifty years ago. But the changes, and the difficulties of adjustment that changes usually bring, did not come suddenly. They were spread over the years. In its early years the Undertaking tried ad-hoc solution to every problem that cropped up. The available buses were re-allocated amongst the various routes, according to the pressure of traffic. The seating arrangement in the buses was altered to squeeze in a few more passengers. The procedure for repairing the buses was streamlined so as to reduce the number of buses on sick list, and more buses were acquired. But the Undertaking also gave a thought to long-term measures like getting a scientific survey of the busroutes made with the help of a computer, or getting experts to study the possibilities of using alternative means of transport like underground railway, mono rail, water-bus or mini-bus. These fifty years the Undertaking has been conscientiously trying to plan for and provide as efficient a service as it can. It discovered that a short-term measure can only bring a temporary cure. Every increase in the pressure of traffic rendered such measures futile. But the experience was not futile. It strengthened the Undertakings resolve to pursue its problems to their roots, and also to equip itself for the task. And thus we have a much improved bus service - and the people appreciate it !

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THE GROWING FLEET The Undertaking applied itself to improving its service in many of its aspects, but the prime need was for increasing the number of buses. Since its inception in August 1947, the Undertaking has been making a well-planned effort to meet the need. Every year brought new vehicles. In 1947, 242 vehicles were on the roads. In ten years the number swelled to 582. A double-decker bus was more suitable than a single-decker one, for occupying no more road space than the latter and with only one driver, it carried one and a half times as many passengers. In the early days of the Undertaking a pressing need was increase the carrying capacity of the buses. The standee bus system introduced in 1955 was one attempt in that direction. It was restricted in the beginning to vehicles of a particular type. In thse buses, ten standees were allowed in the city, and seven in the suburbs. In 1958, the permission was extended to some double-decker buses; these were allowed to take eight standees. Today there are almost 4400 buses with best n more than 3800 buses on the streets of Mumbai.

ALL STANDEES BUS Another innovation came in 1967 : the "all standee" bus. It has only a few seats, the rest of the space being for straphanging passengers. These buses were put on short routes. It was hoped that they would reduce the period of waiting in the queue for the passengers. But the passengers were not impressed. Finally, in 1970, the buses had to be withdrawn. ARTICULATED BUS 1967 saw yet another type of bus put on the roads : the articulated bus. There were ten of them. The Undertaking was the first transport organisation in the country to use such a bus. The engine was separate from the bus in this vehicle, and the two were joined together. The vehicle was of entirely Indian make, with the Ashok Leyland of Madras manufacturing the tractor-engine, and Mahindra Owen of Poona building the bus part of it.
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TROLLEY BUS In the days of the B.E.S.T. Company, the proposal to run trolley buses was seriously considered. The Undertaking too gave a thought to it. Its tramcars had been ageing fast. Could a convenient substitute be found? So it decided to go in for trolley-buses. Twelve such vehicles were imported, and they replaced the tramcars on the Gowalia Tank-Mazgaon route on 11th June 1962. Somehow, the service did not do well. The trolley buses would go out of order again and again. They were finally withdrawn on 24th March 1971 in favour of ordinary buses. One reason for the failure of the service was that as it passed along very congested roads its speed had to be kept much below its maximum; and the trolley-bus had to run at a good speed in order to be profitable, as experience showed. As such speed is impracticable on any of the old tram-routes, it seems very unlikely that trolleybuses will be tried again in the city. COACH SERVICE The undertaking had eight luxury coaches, and they were open to hire at three rupees per mile, but the demand for them was very limited. Therefore, to put them to profitable use, the Undertaking started a Coach Service in 1966. The service operated every day between Electric House and Sion, and between Dadar and Juhu on Sundays and holidays. There was a special fare for this service : 8 paise per kilometer. Once the novelty of riding in a luxury coach wore out, the higher fares tended to discourage passengers from using it, unless they had no time to wait for the regular service bus. The service lasted for hardly a year. With more limited services introduced on the Sion-Fort route, the Coach Service was patronised even less. The income from the service started dwindling, while the operating costs kept rising. Finally, in June 1967, it was discontinued. MINI BUS The idea of using mini-buses was first mooted in March 1969. The vehicle was to be something between a taxi and a bus, and it was to be used for short runs. According to the initial scheme, for a flat charge of 30 paise, mini-buses were to ply on the following routes : Strand Cinema to Nagar Chowk (Bori Bunder) or Ballard Estate or Churchgate; Colaba Bus Station to Churchgate; Museum to Mahatma Phule Market (Crawford Market); and Pydhoni to Dhobi Talao. In addition to using the bus stops, the mini-buses were to set down or pick up
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passengers on request. The driver was also to act as the conductor. It was intended to use station wagons for this service. A year before the proposal started taking shape, some public bodies approached the Undertaking with the request that it start a mini-bus service on certain routes as between the Ghatkopar Railway Station and the S.G. Barve Nagar, for example. The demand for mini-buses kept growing. Meanwhile, all the aspects of the proposal were under scrutiny. Two points were newly stressed : (1) Some of the undeveloped areas in the suburbs have narrow and Kutcha roads, which cannot take ordinary buses. Mini-buses would be particularly useful in such areas. (2) Mini-buses could be used to provide direct and speedy transport between the suburbs and the central parts of the city.

BUS TRANSPORT IN SUBURBS The Bandra Bus Company used to run the bus service in the Western suburbs. As the Company refused to comply with the Regional Transport Authoritys order that only the main road in those suburbs should be used for the service, the Authority requested the B.E.S.T. Undertaking to take it over immediately. That was on 30th September, 1949. The request was more of a challenge - for it meant assuming the responsibility of providing transport for 50,000 passengers at twenty-four hours notice. The undertaking accepted the challenge. And on 1st October 1949, B.E.S.T. buses started plying in the western suburbs. Twenty-six buses were spared for the service, which was hailed by the residents of the suburbs as a boon. The Undertaking was overwhelmed with expressions of praise and gratitude. The Undertaking bought eleven of the buses the Bandra Bus Company had been using. The Undertaking also took over the employees of the old company. The old fare, in the suburbs, was 12 pies per mile; the Undertaking changed it to 9 pies per mile, which had been its fare for the city. In January 1955, the Undertaking launched its bus service in the eastern suburbs. Thus it came to serve the entire suburban area, carrying nine lakhs of passengers every day. This was about the same as the number of suburban passengers using
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the two railways. However, the eastern suburbs had some private bus services still plying. The Undertaking asked for their closure. The matter dragged on in a court of law for four years. The verdict, given in February 1959, was for the closure of the private services. The Undertaking applied to the Regional Transport Authority for permission to extend its bus service to the areas newly included in Greater Bombay - that is up to Mulund in the east and Dahisar in the west. Meanwhile the operators of private buses had moved the High Court for permission to appeal to the Supreme Court. On the High Court turning down their plea, the Authority granted the necessary permission to the Undertaking, from 1st December 1960. MORE FACILITIES FOR JOURNIES BY BUS You have read of the various schemes operated by the Undertaking to augment the efficiency of its transport service. Simultaneously, more facilities, besides the daily bus service, were being made available. Since the days of the B.E.S.T. Company, schools and private parties had been hiring out buses, and the practice continued. Some facilities tried out by the Undertaking were given up after a while as unworkable. The Luxury Coach Service was one of these. It was started in August 1955. The coach was fitted up with all manner of conveniences like Dunlopillo cushions for the seats, adjustable backs, a reading light for each seat, and fans. The coach was mainly meant for the use of foreign tourists. They were taken round in the coach on a guided tour of the city. Accompanying them was a guide to tell them about the important places. As the Coach Service failed to get sufficient response, it was closed down in 1971.

There was a Sunday Excursion, specially meant for visitors to the city. The bus left from the Taj Mahal Hotel every Sunday morning, and stopped at Hanging Gardens, the Juhu Beach, the Aarey Colony, the Powai Lake, Ghatkopar and Chembur, before returning to the Taj Mahal Hotel in the evening. In 1961, the "Travel-As-You-Like-Ticket" was introduced. Rs.1.50 was the price for adults, and 75 paise for children. It was issued for Sundays and Holidays only. This ticket entitled the holder to travel anywhere in the city and the suburbs. But as it was found that the facility was misused, the Undertaking abolished it in 1967.
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Today again the best has introduced this service with rs.20 and rs.25 ticket. DEPOTS AND BUS STATIONS The undertaking had to build more and more depots and bus stations at suitable places in the city and in the suburbs as its bus service went on expanding. In a depot, a vehicle is cleaned up, its machine is oiled, and minor repairs are done. For major overhaul, of course, the vehicle has to be sent to the workshop. During the last fifty years bus depots came up, one by one, as under : (1) Bombay Central, 1950; (2) Santacruz, 1950; (3) Kurla, 1955; (4) Tardeo, 1960; (5) Wadala, 1961; (6) Worli, 1961; (7) Poisar, 1966; (8) Marol, 1968; (9) Deonar, 1969; (10) Vikhroli, 1972; (11) Ghatkopar, 1974; (12) Backbay, 1976; (13) Goregaon, 1978; (14) Bandra, 1980; (15) Dharavi, 1980; (16) Dindoshi, 1985; (17) Anik, 1988; (18) Oshiwara, 1990; (19) Malwani, 1991; (20) Magathane, 1992; (21) Govandi, 1992; (22) Kalakilla, 1993; (23) Majas, 1995; (24) Gorai, 1996 and (25) Pratiksha Nagar, 1996.

BUS FARES Even after the B.E.S.T. Company was taken over by the Municipal Corporation, the bus fares continued unchanged till 31st March, 1951. For the city the fares were telescopic, that is, as the distance increased the fare per mile came down. For the suburbs, the fare was flat, that is, it remained the same whatever the distane. For one anna you could go a mile and a half in the city, but only one mile in the suburbs. Every day the Undertakings buses run about 6.51 lakh km. and carry about 47 lakh passengers. These figures are an index of the vastness of the transport system. It would be wrong to expect that everything will run smoothly in such an organization. Troubles have to be taken for granted; difficulties will arise. The organization has to take them in its stride. A trivial incident touches off a lightning strike. There is hectic running about. The complaint is traced to a misunderstanding. It is set right, and normal working is resumed. In 1950, the Undertaking had a serious problem to face. Conductors in those days carried a ticket-issuing machine, specially designed to print and produce a ticket of the required denomination at the turning of a handle. The machine recorded the amount automatically. At the end of his day, the conductor had to pay in the days takings as recorded. This sounds smooth and foolproof. But some conductors, who were obviously anything but foolish, found a way of so manipulating the machine
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as to make it record less than the amount collected. How much the Undertaking was fleeced of was anybodys guess. However, the moment the trick was discovered, the Undertaking took swift action, and in twenty-four hours the ticketissuing machine with every conductor was replaced with a ticket-box. These are internal troubles; not all of them cause disturbance to the transport service. But external troubles invariably do, and sometimes they can be serious. The dislocation caused by the first heavy showers of the rainy season is almost a matter of habit. The low-lying parts of the city are flooded, and buses have to be diverted. To make it worse, the railway services too are disrupted. That puts further responsibility on the bus service. The buses, of course, do their best, but the best in such circumstances can never be good enough. Then there are the railway accidents, and man-made troubles like strikes, riots and hartals (or bandhs). They put a heavy strain on the bus service, but it has not been found wanting. Strikes and political agitations usually aim, among other things, at disrupting communications. Buses, on such occasions, are exposed to the risk of being damaged; the drivers cabin has to be fitted with wire meshes to protect him from different types of flying missiles. On some of these occasions not many people move out. Should the bus service be suspended then? The Undertaking does not opt for it; it owes a duty to the community. OVERHEAD RAILWAY ( MONORAIL) Having examined the underground mass rapid transit system, the Undertaking also gave thought to overhead rapid transit which principally comprises of electric rolling stock with pneumatic tyres running on a single wide flanged concrete rail instead of the two conventional narrow steel rails and supported on elevated pylons. This system is popularly called Monorail. The idea of monorail dates as far back as the 19th century. There were certain patents, designs and achievements though they are not much known to-day. These achievements did gain much ground but ultimately fell into the greatest disrepute, except a few short lengths probably in Germany. There were mainly two reasons for this disrepute. Firstly, they made unbearable noise for the inhabitants of the streets over which they ran and, secondly, the elevated lines encumbered in an abusive manner the sky over the streets.

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BEST believes that it has a social obligation towards the city where it has grown. As such it is felt essential to provide concession to certain sections of society. A few schemes are listed below. Free Travel Facility: Presently, the BEST provides free travel facility to the freedom fighters. One person accompanying the freedom fighter is also permitted to travel free. Municipal Councilors and Non-Councilor Members of the BEST Committee are also permitted to travel free on BEST buses. Adhoc Members of Legislative Assembly and Legislative Council, accompanied by his wife and Female Members accompanied by any one viz. husband, son, daughter, father, mother, brother or sister are allowed to travel free on BEST buses. Police personnel are allowed to travel free on BEST buses against an ad-hoc payment of compensation towards free travel facility by the Government of Maharashtra. This facility of free travel however is not available on Luxury and Air-Conditioned services. Concessional Fare: Children below 12 years of age are charged concessional fare. Student studying upto Higher Secondary and upto the age of 22 years are charged concessional fare. Persons who are 60 % and above, permanently Orthopaedically handicapped are charged concessional fare. Blind persons are charged a flat fare of Re.1/- per journey. Concessional fare facility is not available on Luxury and AirConditioned Services.

Public Cash Counters For Distribution of 5 Rupee Coins For the benefit of general public, coins in the denominations of Rs. 5/-, in exchange of notes in the denominations of Rs.50/- or Rs.100. are made available by the Undertaking, at all the Depots. The timings for this are 10.00hrs to 15.00 hrs, on all working days. Special Counters are also opened at the following places for the same: . Bandra Bus Station (West) . Andheri Bus Station (West) . Agarkar Chowk Bus Station, Andheri (East) Reservation of Seats: The BEST has reserved 3 seats for handicapped person , 2 seats for Senior Citizens and 6 seats for lady passengers in the Single Decker
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buses. In the Double Decker buses it has reserved 3 seats each for lady passengers and handicapped persons and 2 seats for Senior Citizens. Front Door Entry: The BEST have permitted physically and mentally handicapped persons, senior citizens, and expectant mothers to board the bus from the front door except at starting point. Passenger Refund Claims: In case the conductor does not have enough change to return the balance of the passenger, he writes on the back of the ticket the amount of balance due and authenticates the same. Such a ticket is treated as a receipt by the BEST. The passenger can claim the balance amount from Ticket & Cash Department, head office at Wadala after producing the ticket. Disaster Management: In the event of disruption of rail services the BEST operates additional buses in the area of disruption. Timely actions are taken with the help of our communication system. Lost Property: The lost property section of the Transport Division is in existence prior to the municipalisation of the BEST Undertaking in the year 1947. Initially the Lost Property section was at Colaba Depot, Transport House and it was subsequently shifted to 2nd floor of Wadala Depot, Administrative Building with effect from 01/02/1980. As per Act 132(4) of Bombay Motor Vehicle Rules 1959 (New rule 122 of Maharshtra Motor Vehicles Rules 1989), the Lost Properties were required to be handed over to the Police Department, However the BEST Undertaking has been exempted from the provision of rule 132(4), and therefore all such articles are deposited in the Lost Property Section of the Undertaking vide notification issued by Home Department No MVR.1859/69814-XII date 07.10.1959. The working of the Lost Property Section is given below: The articles found by the conductor or any other member of staff in the bus or in the premises of the Undertaking are handed over to the nearest Bus Terminus Starter, who sent it to the concerned Depot. These articles are then forwarded to the Lost Property Section. On receipt of such articles from Depots to Lost Property Section the same are entered in the register maintained for the purpose, after bifurcating them as per their category. Whenever any claimant approaches immediately to the Bus terminus / Bus Chowkey where the article is deposited, then the articles are issued to the claimant by the officer on duty after due verification and taking necessary charges as per the administrative order.
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The particulars of charges to be recovered as per Administrative Order Number 304 dated 06/02/2003 from claimant are as under: Registration Charges For Cash and Sundry Articles For Valuable and Semi Valuable Articles For Outside Parties Rs.10/Rs.50/For Employees Rs.5/Rs.25/-

Storage charges are only applicable for cash deposited and collected only after 3 days from the date of lost. Storage Charges For Outside Parties For Cash Rs.3/- Per Day, Deposited UptoRs.100/Maximum Rs.10/For Cash Deposited From 12/% of the Cash and Rs.101/- to Rs.500/Maximum of Rs.60/For Cash Deposited From 12/% of the Cash and Rs.501/- to Rs.2000/Maximum of Rs.200/For Cash Deposited From 12/% of the Cash Rs.2001/- to Rs.5000/- andMaximum of Rs.300/For Cash Deposited 12/% of the Cash above Rs.5001/andMaximum of Rs.750/For Employees 50% concession 50% concession 50% concession 50% concession 50% concession

Whenever any claimant approaches Lost Property Section at Wadala Depot, the articles are issued only after confirming the Identity and genuineness of claimant on verification of residential proof such as ration card, passport, election voting identity card or driving license of the claimant. In case of higher amount or valuable ornaments, the claimant has to obtain No Objection Certificate from concerned police authorities. After verification and receiving necessary charges, articles are handed over to the claimant. Traffic outdoor staff has been strictly prohibited from handing over any Lost Property articles directly to the claimant. However, the concerned Traffic Officers can issue such articles at the Depots after satisfying themselves as to the authenticity of the claimant and charging necessary charges as applicable. The cash or valuable articles (Gold or Silver Ornaments) received in the Lost Property Section is kept in the section for one month, and there after deposited at the Undertaking Cash department for safe custody. In case of foreign currency deposited in the Lost Property section the same is deposited with our Cash Department at Dadar for further disposal.
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Perishable articles such as vegetables, ready food etc is disposed off on the same day at the depots by auction in the presence of Traffic Officers. The other perishable articles such as sugar, tea powder, oil, and talcum powder etc are kept for 10 days in the Lost Property section and then disposed off, by auction in the presence of officers, and auditor. Medicines are kept for one month and then disposed off. Unclaimed lost property articles (Semi valuable, and sundry) are sent to Oshiwara Scrap yard after one month for further disposal by way of auction. A letter of appreciation is issued to the member of staff who deposits lost property articles. If the value of the article deposited is Rs.2000/- or more then the concerned member of staff is recommended for cash reward / appreciation letter to be given on BEST Din.

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Bus transport profile Mumbai the capital of Maharashtra, worldwide known as the commercial capital of India , is a cluster of seven islands spread over a vast area of 430 sq.kms. It's western borders reaching upto Dahisar and Eastern borders upto Mulund Significantly contributing to the industrial development of India , this city has it's 'Arteries' in the form of Central and Western Railways. Not less importantly than that, BEST's Bus Service running across the vast area of Brihan Mumbai limits, can be very well called the blood vessels of this metropolis. The common citizen of Mumbai is obviously not aware of many surprising features of the BEST's Bus Service. Just to state a few examples : Bus Route No. 166 - plies on roads interconnecting maximum Hospitals. Bus Route No. 161 - This route covers on the way maximum Oil Reservoirs and unpopulated areas in Eastern wings of the city. Bus Route No. 9 - A network of large number of school and colleges is interwoven by this route. Bus Route No. 320, 22ltd., 25ltd. - These routes have an outstanding feature of connecting two largest water reservoirs of the city. Bus Route No. 66Ltd Special Night Trips are available on this bus route. This is the first step in our endeavour of revealing this information regarding Bus Service through the Internet.

THE entire operation is divided into 25 depots. The Depot Managers are heading each Depot. The Traffic Officers, Assistant Traffic Officers and Sr. Asst./Office Asst. assist the Depot Managers. This team of officers directly control the operational and administrative activities of the respective Depot. Apart from this team, the supervisory category viz. Bus Inspectors, for plugging the leakage in revenue, Starters for controlling the bus operation etc., are appointed at depots. Each depot is provided with a wireless vehicle, which is used to monitor the operation of buses in the jurisdiction of the depot.
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TRAFFIC CONTROL ROOM: The Bus Running Control (BRC) Officer mans the Traffic Control Room, round the clock. The section is provided with VHF set and with hot lines connecting all the depots as also the Police Control, Traffic Police Control, Railways etc. This officer regulates the entire operation smoothly with the help of the Divisional Officers, by being in touch with them through wireless sets.

BUS CONTROL ROOM: The Bus Control Section functions round the clock, to attend to the vehicle breakdowns on field. The total operational area is divided into zones and emergency breakdown vans are provided for each zone. These vehicles are provided with necessary spares/units so as to carry out emergency repairs on the field itself. For speedy communication these vehicles are equipped with VHF sets.

TRAFFIC TRAINING CENTER: The BEST has established a Training Center , to provide training and refresher courses to the operating crew members. On line training to new bus drivers is also provided with the help of training vehicles. At the depots our Accident Prevention Training Vehicle, is making rounds and counseling the operating staff about safe driving habits.

TICKET & CASHDEPARTMNET: The Ticket and Cash Department collects the daily revenue earned at the depots. The same is counted, consolidated, and remitted in the banks. Inventory of ticket blocks to be issued to the conductors, is also maintained by the Ticket & Cash Department. ACCIDENT & CLAIMS SECTION: The Accident and Claims Section, as the name suggests, is established for settling the claims of personal injury / death due to accident involving our buses. Also various programs on Road Safety / Passenger Safety, to create awareness amongst the operating staff, passengers, pedestrians,
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and school children, are organized by this section in co-ordination with Training Center. TRAFFIC PLANNING SECTION: The Planning Section is established to prepare the schedules for different routes. An exercise in revision of schedules is periodically carried out after taking into consideration the guidelines given by the Management, suggestions received from the Divisional Officers and also from our valued commuters. The schedules are revised after every four months. Uneconomic routes are discontinued and the financial viability of the routes is appraised both at depot level as also at the Head Quarter level.

The routes operated by the BEST can be broadly classified in the following categories. .1) Feeder Routes: These routes which feed the railway stations either from the residential complexes or Business Districts. 2) East-West Connectors: These are the routes, which run East/West, where railways have no role to play and connect the Western Suburb with the Eastern suburb. 3) Trunk Routes: : These routes run South-North through the city and are almost parallel to the railways. 4) BRTS Routes: : These route runs on Western, and Eastern Express Highways, to provide faster services to the commuters The primary role of the BEST is to supplement Suburban Rails, which is the mass carrier. It is for this reason that BEST always gives priority for feeder routes and thereafter for East-West connectors where the railways have absolutely no direct role to play. The third priority is the long distance trunk route, which is an alternative to Suburban Railways, apart from being inter-corridor link between Suburbs and City. The BEST always gets suggestions for introducing new routes. These suggestions are categorised into the above mentioned groups. While introducing the bus operation on any new road the following requirements are ensured for maintaining the quality of service.
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1) The road is Municipalised. 2) The road is Bus worthy and wide enough to allow the passage of two vehicles at a time. 3) There are no overhead obstructions in the form of cables/tree branches. 4) There are enough streetlights. 5) Manoeuvering is comfortable and there are no blind corners. 6) There is a good turning circle at the terminating point for reversing the buses. At this stage it is necessary to state that when every commuter desires a direct connection, he should realise that it is not always possible to inter connect every point with a direct route. One change is absolutely inevitable in any city transport network. Inspite of this the BEST tries to provide a direct connection wherever absolutely required but specific access to some areas is available with one changeover. For convenient changeovers, the Undertaking has introduced Bus Pass Scheme, and Daily Travel As you like passes. With these passes the commuter can easily changeover on parallel routes, and can enjoy multiple journeys. SALIENT FEATURES OF THE TRAFFIC OPERATIONS Zero Waiting Time Plan: The BEST operates buses with Zero Waiting Time concept on different routes during the Morning and Evening peak hours to have faster clearance of heavy passenger traffic outside Railway Stations and major residential/commercial/CBD Areas. The BEST ensures that a bus is always waiting for a passenger rather than having it the other way round. The plan is designed keeping in mind the volume/period of traffic with a view to encourage use of Public Transport and discourage use of private and Intermediate Personal Transport modes like Taxis and Autorickshaws. The important points of operation are Bhatia Baug, NCPA, World Trade Center, etc. Excursion Action Plans: : The city of Mumbai has various Excursion points where heavy passenger traffic is generated from the City and Suburbs during Weekends and Holidays. To cater with the heavy demand of the passengers, the BEST operates Excursion Action Plans on various routes on Sundays/Holidays. Some of the Action Plans are Juhu Chowpatty Action Plan, National Park Action Plan etc.lan etc. Festival Action Plans: Mumbai being a cosmopolitan city its citizens celebrate their festivals with gaiety and pomp. The BEST operates special buses during the festivals like Ganapati Festival, Diwali Festival, Bandra Mount Merry Festival, Erangal Festival Christmas and New Year Eve. Also on special occasions like
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various pre-planned rallys organized by the social bodies where huge crowd is expected, the Undertaking is operating special buses in consultation with the organizers. Ladies Special & Ladies First Services: In Order to reduce the hardships faced by the Lady commuters, while boarding the bus during the peak hours, the BEST has introduced Ladies Special Trips on heavily patronized routes. Similarly Ladies First At Starting Points trips are also provided to facilitate lady commuters. OPERATION OF MIDI BUSES: The areas in which it was not possible for the BEST to operate the conventional buses due to narrow roads, the BEST has introduced Midi Buses at such places. It thus goes on with its ultimate aim of providing a BEST bus service to every nook and corner of the city. UPGRADED SERVICES: The vehicle population in the City of Mumbai has increased considerably in the recent past. More and more people are using personalized vehicles and this has resulted in ascendancy of traffic problems. With a view to motivate private owners to switchover to Mass Transport, BEST has introduced upgraded Air-conditioned services under Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS), along the Eastern and Western Express highways. On these sector newly acquired King Long make buses are being operated during peak hours. Also the Undertaking is operating Air conditioned services on prominent sectors. LOW FLOOR BUSES We have received demands from various section of the society, who are working for the welfare of physically handicapped, regarding need for introducing Low Floor buses in the city of Mumbai. In response to these demands and suggestion, BEST has launched the trial run of Low Floor buses provided by TELCO

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EXCURSION SERVICE BEST in collaboration with the Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation, has introduced a special heritage tour with effect from 26th January 1997 , in an Open Deck Bus in South Mumbai . GROUND BOOKING: For the convenience of the passenger the Undertaking has implemented ground booking scheme at the prominent locations during peak hours. OPERATION BEYOND MUNICIPAL LIMITS: The BEST operates inter-city services to three different areas beyond the Municipal limits of Mumbai city, i.e. into the limits of the bordering corporations. The three areas are as follows: 1) Navi Mumbai: Due to the closure of the Bombay Metropolitan Transport Corporation, the BEST management was requested to extend some of its services from Mumbai to Navi Mumbai, in order to relieve the hardships faced by the commuters of Navi Mumbai. 2) Mira-Bhayander: Citing the reference of the BEST operation in Navi Mumbai area, the Chairman, Mira-Bhayander Nagar Palika and the residents of that area requested the BEST to extend the service in their jurisdiction. 3) Thane: The Mayor, Thane Municipal Corporation had requested the BEST, on behalf of the residents of the Thane area, to extend a few services of BEST into the jurisdiction of Thane Municipal Corporation. Transport is the lifeline of any city, and BEST being the monopoly stage carriage Operator of this great Metro, it becomes the prime duty of BEST to ensure the development of the satellite townships by providing a proper transport network. No city or township can develop, if the Transportation, and Communication network is not proper and it is here that the onus of developing a transport network falls on the BEST.

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New projects COMPRESSED NATURAL GAS (CNG) BUS The demand for petroleum products in India has been increasing at a rate higher than the increase in domestic availability. At the same time there is continuous pressure on emission control through periodically tightened regulations particularly for metropolitan cities. In the wake of this situation there is an urgent need to promote use of alternative fuel as substitute for HSD. Among the options Compressed Natural Gas has received a great deal of attention and has been already applied successfully to some of the BEST buses (first time in India). The BEST is planning to increase the strength of CNG buses in its fleet. CNG can be used in the existing SI/CI engines with minor modifications. Availability in abundance. CNG is a clear burning fuel, with no black smoke and very low particulate emissions. Thus CNG engine is environmental friendly. CNG being lighter than air, diffuses upwards. CNG is very safe fuel due to its very narrow flammability limits. Excellent knock resistant, lower compression ratio. Lower rates of pressure rise and low peak cylinder pressures. Low noise level of the engine. This will add to passenger comfort. A/C LUXURY BUS In an honest effort to attract the private vehicle owners to BEST buses and thereby reduce the congestion to some extent on Mumbai city roads, which affects the mobility of vehicles, BEST has introduced 71 Air-conditioned buses, including 20 newly introduced King Long make buses. The salient features of these buses are:

Luxury seats with soft transo fabric. Completely Air-conditioned passenger saloon (for A/C Buses) Carpeted flooring Jack-knife doors at entrance and exit Wide corridor for easy movement.

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Stanchion bars for safe movement in the corridor (for Luxury Buses) Thermocole stuffing between inner and outer panelling to reduce saloon temperature and dampen the vibrations.

LOW FLOOR BUSES We have received demands from various section of the society, who are working for the welfare of physically handicapped, regarding need for introducing Low Floor buses in the city of Mumbai. In response to these demands and suggestion, BEST has launched the trial run of Low Floor buses provided by TELCO

MONTHLY BUS PASS SCHEME THROUGH-SMARTCARD (GO Mumbai) In a move to aid commuter convenience, and to mitigate its cash handling pains, BEST, 'Mumbai's Lifeline' has adopted a new alternative method of paying for bus fares. From 2nd January 2007,. The multi-application card system is called "GO Mumbai" is made available to the desired commuters. This card is issued as a bus pass. Bus Pass Scheme:The scheme of Bus Passes was introduced in BEST Undertaking w.e.f. 2nd January 2007. The Bus Passes are in form of Smart Card, which, is a plastic card resembling to Debit/Credit Cards of Banks with a built in electronic chip that stores information of validity period of the bus pass, the destinations of travel permitted on the pass, value of the bus pass, and passengers Identity Card number. Conductors working inside the buses / Inspectors posted for checking the passenger tickets validate these bus passes with the help of a Hand Held Terminal (HHT). These Smart Cards are contact less cards and can be validated by Bus Conductors / Inspectors by simply holding these Smart Cards close to the HHT.
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The screen on HHT displays the validity period of the pass, the permitted destinations for travel on bus pass & the I-Card Number of the Pass Holder. Passenger can charge (purchase / renew) these Smart Cards for different types of passes at any of the convenient Service Delivery Points (SDP) located at various important Bus Chowkies & Bus Depots in the City. At a time passenger can load more than one type of bus pass on the same Smart Card as per his requirements. The entire activity of issuing / renewing bus passes (Smart Cards) is outsourced.

Installation of P.C.O.s in BEST Buses : The purpose of fitting P.C.O.s inside BEST buses was one of the measures enlisted in the actions to be taken under Disaster so to provide them means of communication. This will also yield Non Operating Revenue to the Undertaking

Bulletproof glass for A/C buses The best has come up with a new project of installing bullet proof glasses on the windows of a.c buses. This step has being taken for the safety of the passengers travelling in buses, as terror attacts have increased in Mumbai.

Installation of Vodafone Drop Boxes in BEST Buses : M/s. Vodafone Ltd. have installed their Drop Boxes in BEST buses. One drop box is installed per bus behind the drivers cabin area. Vodafone customers drop their payment cheques in these boxes and BEST gets Non Operating Revenue towards fixed rental charges and cheques collection charges per bus every month. . Grab Handles on BEST Buses : M/s. Admire Sign & Display Pvt. Ltd., a firm engaged in business of advertising has replaced the old grab handles with those of international design and standard. These Grab Handles are patented product and would be maintained by them. The
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space on grab handles will be sold by them as an advertisement space at their cost and the revenue will be shared with BEST on a fixed income per bus per month basis

FAQ;s by passengers

1) From where can ticket balance amount be collected / refunded, if any and how? A. From Ticket & Cash, Head Office (Wadala Depot) or at the given address by post. 2) Where can articles lost in the bus be claimed and what are the charges for the same? A. From Lost Property Section, Wadala Depot, after paying necessary registration / fine charges.

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3) Does BEST provide any assistance / help in case of accidents involving buses? A. Yes, by giving hospitalisation, monetary assistance and informing close relatives and friends. 4) How BEST buses can be reserved? A. By entering into a contract with BEST and making necessary charges towards reservation, at Reservation Section, Wadala Depot (Traffic Head Office). 5) Where can information about bus operations be available? A. At Traffic Control Room on phone nos. : 2413 7937, 2414 3611. 6) Where can Suggestions, Complaints be lodged? A. At the Bus Stations / Bus Chowkies, where the Suggestion/Complaint book is provided. Suggestions/Complaints can also be lodged with the inspecting staff or by writing letter to BEST Officials. 7) How are complaints redressed? A. By conducting a departmental enquiry against defaulting staff, in which case the complainant is called. 8) What are the concessional facilities given in bus fare? A. 1) Flat fare of Rs. 1/- to blind person 2) Children below 12 years of age, are charged concessional fare. Students studying upto higher secondary and upto the age of 22 years, are charged concessional fare. 3) Persons who are 60% and above permanently orthopaedically handicapped are charged concessional fares.

A question & answer session was done with MR.A.V.Soble the p.r.o of best. 1. How do ypu handle the demand and supply of busses in peak hours?
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a. Any organization keeps some reserve stock.like this even best has reserve buses which run on roads during the peak hours. These run in a specfis format lioke maximum number of busses will run from north to south of Mumbai, and in vening maximum numbers of buses will run from south to north.and a normal fleet of buses are operated during the afternoon. 2. Are there any health check-up camps held for the staff? a. Medical check up facility is available at all depots. Medical camps are also organized Distressing training camps are held at dindsohi oshiwara a refresher cource is held for 1day, 4days, and 7 days 3. Are all the complaints redressed? a. Every complaint is redressed after the completion of the enquiry. 4. How many buses are in the fleet of best? a. A total of 4200 buses out of which 3800-3900 buses are on the streets of Mumbai 5. What is the ratio of working power involved behind 1 bus? a. The ratio for 1 bus is 13 person per bus. this the highest in india. 6. Any new projects of development of best? a. Converting the diesel buses into CNG. b. Increasing the fleet of buses. c. Better traffic management so that buses operate on time.

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A survey was conducted with the best staff and passengers travelling in best buses. Questionare for best staff which includes drivers and conductors. QUESTIONAIRE Name:________________________ Working from:______________ 1. How many hours do you work? __________________________________________________________ 2. No. of trips per day? __________________________________________________________________ ____________ 3. Route of driving? __________________________________________________________________ ____________ 4. How is the route decided & who decides it? __________________________________________________________________ ____________ 5. who is liable in case of an accident? __________________________________________________________________ ____________ 6. Is there a insurance policy claim for 3rd party? Age:_________ locality: __________

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__________________________________________________________________ ____________ 7. what are the benefits ,incentives received? __________________________________________________________________ ____________ 8. what are the different health related problems faced? __________________________________________________________________ ____________

9. Are any health check-up camps, de-stressing sessions organized? __________________________________________________________________ __________ __________________________________________________________________ __________ 10. what are the problems faced ? __________________________________________________________________ __________ __________________________________________________________________ __________ 11.are the passengers rude to you? Yes no sometimes

12. If yes then how do you tackle them? __________________________________________________________________ __________

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__________________________________________________________________ __________

Sign: _______________

The replies obtained from the staff

1. How many hours do you work? 8 hours 2. No. of trips per day? Not more than 2 trips per day
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3. Route of driving? It is fixed by the planning committee. 4. How is the route decided & who decides it? The route of the drivers is decided on 4 month basis. It is fixed for every driver and conductor

5. who is liable in case of an accident? The company is liable in case of the accident in a few cases there are exceptions (a) if ther is the drivers fault then an enquiry is set and then dthe conclusion is found out. (b) If the second party is liable then he pays the cost incurred on it 6. Is there a insurance policy claim for 3rd party? Yes there is a third party insurance and also the government provides assistance. 7. what are the benefits ,incentives received? The incentive has being reduced in the last few years They get bonus only ont the basis of their performance like the IN -TIME 8. what are the different health related problems faced? Breathing problem, back-ache, pain in their knees, stress in their eyes 9. Are any health check-up camps, de-stressing sessions organized? Yes . Health check-up camps are held at dindshoi oshiwara in every 6 months 10. what are the problems faced ? Strikes n nuisance of political aprties, lots of traffic congessition
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and commuters are rude to them. 11.are the passengers rude to you? Yes No - 37% -25%

Sometimes - 38% 12. If yes then how do you tackle them? By being polite with the commuters sometimes when commuters get more angry then they act accordingly n fellow passengers support them. Questionare for passengers QUESTIONARE Name:________________________ Qualification:__________________ 1.what is your mode of transport? Public 2. If public what is the means? Bus Taxi train Auto private Age:_________ locality: __________

3. Frequency of the service used by you? ___________________________________________________ 4. Are u satisfied by the frequency of the bus? Yes No Fine

5. How is the behavior of the best staff ? ___________________________________________________

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6. How is the condition of the bus? ___________________________________________________ 7. How is the hygienic condition of the bus ? ___________________________________________________ 8. Is the staff coperative ? __________________________________________________

9.Additional services required? ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________

10. Are you aware of the new services provided by best? ___________________________________________________

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The replies obtained by the passengers travelling in best bus Q1. what is your mode of transport?

Sales
1st Qtr 2nd Qtr 3rd Qtr 4th Qtr

Q2.frequency of the service used by you?

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frequency of the service used by you

everyday

sumtimes

never

Q4. Are u satisfied by the frequency of the bus?

level of satisfsction

yes no fine

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Q5. How is the behavior of the best staff ? The behavior of the best staff is fine according to the passengers travelling by buses. But sometimes they do complaint that the conductors behave rudely whit them.sometimes this rudness turn into a big quarrel n also effects the route and the traffic system of the buses running on the route.

Q6. How is the condition of the bus? The condition of the buses are not good.even the A.C buses have a leakage problem.they say that a proper inspection was done but it seems to be fake.The physical condition of the buses are god but not to the standard as per the officials of best.

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Is the Bus Running Late? : New Technological Solutions in the Transportation Sector From having relied on its employees in the interaction with customers, the service industry now move towards an increased adoption of technology to enhance the value of the service offering to the customer. This development has also reached the public transport sector which is traditionally seen as low-tech. In this study we investigate how the customers experience the use of high-tech supporting services within a low-tech context. The case that is used is the city-bus transport provider Karlstadsbuss who provide a high-tech supporting service called Live, which delivers realtime information on bus departures through a website, a WAPsite, and electronic boards at certain bus stops. Focused group interviews were used to get in-dept information from commuters of how they perceive Live. Results show that respondents do not use Live website or

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WAPsite because the information is not worth the effort of use. Commuters question the service because many buses do not run according to the Live-schedule. Still the commuters say they benefit from Live because it contributes alternative ways of finding departure times, and it presents an overview of departure options. However, if the information is in real-time or not is of secondary importance.

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Landmarks Dates 05.08.1996 14.01.1997 30.03.1998 10.02.2000 07.09.2001 05.01.2005 18.08.2005 15.09.2005 15.10.2007 19.12.2007 Vestibule bus introduced. Ashok Leyland CNG bus introduced. AC bus introduced. Bus confirming Euro I Norms was introduced. Bus confirming Euro II Norms was introduced. TATA CNG bus introduced. TATA Ultra-low floor bus introduced. Bus confirming Euro III Norms introduced. (MUTP) Midi CNG Bus confirming Euro III Norms introduced. Kinglong AC CNG buses conferming to Euro III norms introduced.

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Kinglong Bus

Midi CNG Bus

Euro III Bus (MUTP)

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Vestibule Bus

Leyland CNG Bus

Air Conditioned Bus

Euro II Bus

TATA CNG Bus

TATA Low Floor Bus Top

Organisational set up of Transportation Engineering Department. The transport wing of B.E.S. & T. undertaking operates buses within the Municipal limits of Greater Bombay and it is presently extended up to
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Belapur in Navi Mumbai in northeast direction as well as up to Bhayander and Teen hath naka at Thane. In order to keep this bus fleet roadworthy, a Two-Tier System of maintenance is followed by Transportation Engineering Department. A workshop located centrally at Tilak road near Khodadad Circle, Dadar acts as one work centre, which carries out major overhauling of all units, chassis, major body damage repairs and modification work, replacement of heavy units, reclamation work. This system facilitates grouping of jobs requiring same process / machines / equipment's together for better utilization of manpower. Depot is another work centre, which provides bus services effectively on every day, carries out preventive maintenance as well as repairs on buses. We have 25 depots located in four zones viz. City, Central, Western, Eastern suburban zones. Dadar Workshop Dadar workshop has a built up area of 27,170 square meters. All Unit overhauling, repairing of Body damages, tyre cut repairs, plant & equipment installation and repairs, reclaimation activities are carried out in the workshop. Following are the important sections of workshop. Bus body repairs & its ancillary sections Engine & its ancillary Units Major Units, Brake, Transmission Units Electrical Units Tyre section Machine Shop & Reclaimation Chassis overhaul, Repair and Scrapping
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Inspection Section & Chemical Lab Material Control Work Study section

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Photographs of some of the sections:

Body Shop

Engine Section

Major Units Section

Minor Units Section

Electrical Section

Tyre Section

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Machine Shop

Chassis Repairs

Material Control Considering higher in-house cost i.e. labor cost, many jobs are given to outside contractors such as Body building, Body repairs, Tyre re-treading, Tyre cut repairs & reclaimation of spares. This approach is called as Tapered integration whereby overflows of workload or new activities are carried out without increasing present manpower. Operation Wing Operation wing consists of 25 depots spread over the areas of greater Mumbai in addition to Bus Control section, Motor vehicle section and statistical section. For its effective bus operation all the depots carry out various maintenance practices such as preventive maintenance, unit replacement, RTO passing, body damage repairs of buses. An imprest stock of various units, important chassis / bus components is maintained at depot level. Depot replaces the defective units with the imprest stock units and sends the defective unit to Material Control section of workshop for repairs.

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Depot Premises

Transport. Engineering

Pits for Buses

In order to curb the menace of air pollution, which is fast deteriorating the health standards of the citizens of Mumbai, we take special efforts to curb the amount of smoke emitted by our vehicles. Smoke meters of the latest state of the art technology are provided in all depots so that the vehicles emitting excessive smoke are attended immediately at the depot itself. Bus Control Section This section in the undertaking primary looks after the breakdown of the vehicles on the line as well as looks after the repairs of plant and equipment at
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the depots. It also acts as coordinator between depots, central workshop and senior officials of BEST. The smooth functioning & roadworthiness of the buses on the line is ensured in the minimum amount of downtime. This section is equipped with wireless sets and the mobile sets are installed on break down vans located at each depot. This section also deals with breakdowns of plant, machinery, installed at depots.

Breakdown Van

Wrecker

Wireless Operators Project Planning & Development

Technical Training Centre, Wadala We have our Technical Training Centre situated at Wadala depot. Training centre is well equipped with models, equipments & latest training aids. On the job training is imparted to trade apprentices in various cadres as well as probationary engineers. It also conducts refresher training programs for supervisory staff / employees. We also have one well-equipped mobile training van, which goes to the depots and imparts training related to specific problems of maintenance of different types of bus systems.

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Training Centre @ dindsohi

Model of Engine

Classroom Training Inspection and Chemical-testing Lab: We have physical and chemical-testing Labs to test the material as per relevant standard specifications. Physical Testing consists of Visual inspection, dimensional check, and physical properties like hardness, tensile strength, breaking strength etc. Chemical testing of materials such as Lubricants, greases, paints, plastic, rubber seals and hoses, packing material, etc is carried out by the Chemical Lab. This Lab also monitors field trials on various grades of lubricants, greases, paints, etc Research & Development Section: New Technologies Introduced Automatic fan belt tensioner & Fan belt alignment gauge. Hub bearing adjustment tool. Accelerator cable in place of linkages. Wheel drag & engine friction measurement for improved KMPL. Calibrated fuel gauge. Low sulfur content diesel. Diesel pre-heater. Air intake by pass system on CNG buses. Buses running on Bio Diesel Bio Diesel trials completed in July 2005. Evalution report is awaited from Ashok Leyland.
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Auto fan belt tensioner

Hub bearings adjust. tool

Wheel Drag Checking

Fuel Gauge

Diesel Pre-heater

Using Fan-belt gauge

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Organisation Chart of Transportation Engineering Department.

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Composition of Bus Fleet Type of Bus 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9 Single Decker Diesel Buses Single Decker Midi Buses CNG Buses Air Conditioned Buses Low Floor Buses MUTP Buses Double Decker Buses Midi CNG Buses Kinglong AC CNG Fleet as on 22.06.2009 1844 63 1070 32 31 644 134 125 70

Total Fleet

4013

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Suggestion for the best 2 improve their service The best should adopt a good strategy 2 deal with the problems of the passengers travelling by bus. Increase the frequency and efficiency of the fleet of the bus. Improve the condition of the buses and specially the hygienic condition of the buses. A lot of buses need to be started on various odd routes. There should be a proper redressal center of the complaints of the passengers. The resources avilable shuld be used properly. It must not be missused The frquency of buses specially in peak hours must be increased There should be special buses running for ladies

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Conclousion Best has played an very important role in transportation in mumbai. It has become a part of the life of people. Though trains are said to be the life line of mumbai but buses are also equally important.it has efficently doing its work of transporting the people of mumbai from one place to another. Though best says its suffering losses but then too its one of the most reliable source of bus transport in India as compared to places like Delhi, Kolkatta nad other cities of india.

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Awards

o The prize for the second best production achievement by an Urban Transport Body in the Country for the year 1982. o The second prize for production achievement in Urban Transport during the year 1984. o A memento for the Administrative Report and Statement of Accounts of the Undertaking for the year 1983-84 awarded by the selection committee nominated by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India. o The first place and the Best production achievement award in the category of urban transport for the year 1986-87. o National Productivity Award for the year 1991-92. o Award for the best passenger-safety record for the year 1994. o The prestigious award for the Best Passenger-Safety performance in Urban Transport in the whole country instituted by the Association of State Road Transport Undertaking (ASRTU) for the year 1995-96. o International Road Safety Award for the Year 2003

Bibliography http://www.bestundertaking.com/faq_tran.asp
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http://www.essays.se/essay/af0463cf92/ Shri A. S. Tamboli -Public Relations Officer

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