Flyover Bus Service
A Point to Point Flyover Bus Service Between -
The Distant Western Suburbs and BKC/South Mumbai
An application of “Think Rail Act Bus”
Introduce such a Service using all the flyovers as well as the Bandra Worli Sea Link and a priority bus lane at Haji Ali, catering primarily to commuters. This can be operational immediately. Similar service can also run from Ghatkopar/Chembur to Museum – a route on which a number of flyovers exist and new ones are being added.
This is necessary and useful because
A full fledged median lane BRTS on western express highway will get operational not earlier than 2011. Further since there are 15 flyovers on WEH in a distance of 26 km , this system may suffer a handicap of having maximum passengers below the flyovers at all junctions whereas it needs to use the flyovers to achieve speeds.
Such a service can run between
- Bhayandar to BKC/South Mumbai
- Mira Road to BKC/South Mumbai
- Borivli to BKC/South Mumbai
- Kandivli to BKC/ South Mumbai,
And have one/two stops each at start up and at termination,(something like a Borivli fast train!) In off peak direction, the return services can take stops below the flyovers to improve the capacity utilization.
In a small experiment conducted by us, we traveled in a car from Bandra to Bhayandar, all the way below the flyovers, while on return journey, we used all the flyovers. At a constant speed not exceeding 50kmph, this distance of 30 kms took 78 minutes to go whereas only 36 to get back!
Benefits of this service:
- No civil work or any change in bus design or stops will be required.
- Reduce the total commute time and interchanges between the residence and the place of work as compared to suburban railway.
- Offer much higher level of passenger km and revenue per day per bus for BEST.
- Wean motorists away from cars and contribute to reducing congestion and pollution.
Key Elements for the success of such a service:
- A strong communication campaign through media.
- A special identity to these buses/bus stops, with distinctive color schemes as they have to be perceived as a Premium Service.
- Punctual and predictable timings based on the study of habits and needs of potential commuters.
The experience of such a service will help BEST to be more focused in identifying different niches and segments and how they can be exploited efficiently. E.g. It is very sad that Mumbai does not have an Airport to city bus service with an arrangement for luggage; such a service is available in most cities around the world.
What do you feel? Please share your views, so we could forward the same to BEST.