500 electric buses for KSRTC SWIFT

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: KSRTC will procure 500 electric buses within a year for SWIFT long-distance services. The tender process has been initiated for the project, which is expected to cost Rs 450 crore. This is in addition to the 50 electric buses currently under contract.

Instead of completing the journey on a single charge like the existing e-buses, a system will be implemented to keep reserve batteries at depots and continue the service using them. In this way, the limitation of taking a long time to recharge can be overcome.

E-buses will also be used for medium-distance services. 15 out of the 50 e-buses under the old contract have arrived at SWIFT headquarters in Anayara. These buses will soon hit the road. The steps, including the purchase of new buses, have speeded up after the High Court dismissed the cases against KSRTC Swift.

70 Swift buses will run in Thiruvananthapuram city alone. Fifty of them will be electric buses.

• Electric Bus price: Rs.85-97 lakhs
• Battery Price: Rs.30-40 lakhs
• Charge Time: 01- 2.5 hrs
• Time required to replace battery: 5 minutes

Diesel buses to be converted to electric buses
The Transport Department has given permission to a start-up company to conduct an experiment to convert diesel buses into electric buses at a low cost. The company promises to convert the diesel bus into an electric one at Rs 4 lakh.