Beginning of BEST’s Red Buses downfall ?

Route nos 1, 51and 4 Ltd connect south Mumbai to the western suburbs.

BEST buses have for decades been Mumbai’s wheels, popular with the working-class Mumbaiite for being cheap and covering nearly every corner of the city. But the network once called Mumbai’s pride and Asia’s best public bus service is in poor shape today and rapidly losing popularity.Route nos 1, 51and 4 Ltd connect south Mumbai to the western suburbs.

Several passengers are saying that the frequency is extremely poor.There is poor frequency and late arrival of buses.Drivers and conductors remain absent from work daily on an average, which is affecting the frequency of red buses in the city.

The wait is as long as one and half an hour, and this frustrates commuters who switch to share autos or taxis.Whenever the citizens get a bus on these routes, it is packed with passengers and difficult to board.

Poor condition of red buses is not only causing considerable inconvenience to commuters but also creating a bad impression.The Mumbai roads are crowded, and buses moved slower and became less punctual and commuters loose patience.

Internal factors such as bad maintenance and poor governance only made it worse. Frequency on these routes should be increased. BEST has steadily been losing commuters to app-based cabs and sharing taxis.Several passengers depend on this bus for travel and they had to wait for a long time on L J Road Mahim bus stop and Muhammed Ali Rd Bus stop. Some passengers are frustrated and opt for taxi.Citizens want good number of buses on these routes.