Trial run of six e-buses under the Smart City project

SRINAGAR: The trial run of six e-buses procured under the Smart City project began in Srinagar on Thursday. The trial run of these buses will take place from Lal Chowk to Nishat and will return via Foreshore road today.

CEO of Srinagar Smart City Limited, Athar Aamir Khan told news agency KNO that the trial run of e-buses started today.

Khan mentioned that the e-buses have been procured under the Smart City project with the aim of addressing the unavailability of transport facilities.

He stated that a total of 100 e-buses have been procured for Srinagar, including 75 nine-meter buses and 25 12-meter buses.

These electric buses will ensure zero emissions, and the driver will have full control over the vehicles, including doors and other functions. Khan added that once these buses begin operating on the roads, they will help reduce congestion.

“These buses are similar to those in London. The plan is for these buses to run for the next 12 years,” he said, noting that the contract for the first 12 years has been awarded to Tata Company, and proper route planning has been undertaken.

Currently, there is a maintenance point at Pantha Chowk, but in the near future, there will be charging points at multiple locations in Srinagar, he said.

The trial run, which commenced today, will continue for the next few days and will be formally inaugurated next month, he added.

Notably, KNO had previously reported that the Jammu and Kashmir administration has procured 200 e-buses, with 100 allocated to each of the cities, Jammu and Srinagar.

These air-conditioned buses, equipped with CCTVs, are being procured under the Smart City project. They will also feature digital onboarding facilities and live tracking to keep passengers informed about the arrival times of the buses—(KNO).