Ahmedabad:
Amdavadi commuters have given a thumbs up to the air-conditioned (AC) buses on the Bus Rapid Transit System, (BRTS) route. Ahmedabad Janmarg Ltd (AJL), a special-purpose vehicle of Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) for BRTS, had put an AC bus on the road on a pilot basis.
A survey carried out by Center for Environmental Planning and Technology (CEPT) in November revealed that around 82% commuters are happy with the service. On a scale of 10 the commuters gave the service eight.
At present, the lone AC bus plies on the RTO to Maninagar route. The survey also found that commuters are willing to pay more if they get better service and comfort.
Around 40% of the commuters surveyed said they were willing to pay an additional amount of Rs5 over and above the normal BRTS fare.
The commuters also found that the AC bus was more peaceful perhaps because it did not allow for outside clamor to filter in. As for criticism, some commuters said that the buses made them feel suffocated particularly when they were crowded.
AJL officials clarified that the temperature in the bus was set at 27ºC which is not adequate when large number of people travel in the same bus. Sources also said that the manufacturer has not put curtains to retain the temperature in the bus.
The commuters also wanted AJL to improve the frequency of buses so as to prevent them from getting crowded. The commuters also want the company to pay more attention to the upkeep of the bus stations. The survey found that since it began the service BRTS has been able to retain 40% of its commuters while 17% have been using the service for the last six months.
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