Mumbai: In a move aimed at enhancing commuter safety, BEST general manager Sonia Sethi has made four weeks of training compulsory for all wet lease drivers operating electric buses, up from the existing week-long training. She also highlighted recent enforcement actions following inspections of wet lease buses after incidents of fire in which around 10 to 11 buses were found with defects and were immediately taken off the roads.
Safety Oversight Tightened
BEST has tightened safety oversight after a series of incidents, including bus crashes, fires at depots, and repeated complaints about maintenance standards, driver behaviour, and vehicle condition. A BEST official informed the committee on Tuesday that the expanded curriculum for new drivers of wet lease buses is aimed at technical familiarisation, safe handling practices, and operational discipline, as the city’s fleet increasingly includes electric buses.
Penalties and Inspections
Notices are being issued where defects are not attended to, including penalties of Rs 10,000, and further action is initiated based on compliance. Inspections are being conducted jointly with wet lease operators, focusing on identifying recurring faults and ensuring rectification before buses return to service. The city recently witnessed four separate incidents of bus fires at Kurla, Pratiksha Nagar, and Santacruz depots. Concerns were also raised at the meeting about depot-level lapses. A senior official cited two gas leak incidents in the recent past and said negligence at two bus depots has been flagged.
Committee Members Raise Concerns
Committee member Ajay Singh alleged that buses catching fire point to poor maintenance of wet lease buses and flagged complaints that drivers do not stop at designated stops and that several wet lease buses are in poor condition. He also referred to a recent public event where a bus reportedly malfunctioned in the presence of city mayor Ritu Tawde, which was an embarrassment for the transport undertaking. “It is high time the wet lease drivers are properly sensitised to road discipline and safe driving by BEST during the four-week training,” he said.
Senior committee member Sunil Ganacharya said, “There is a small team of maintenance staff workers for 3-5 depots, and they conduct checks randomly and not daily,” adding that BEST should supervise all maintenance activities and cannot put the onus on contractors.
Panel member Faisal Khan said there were four injuries in a single day in the Shivaji Nagar area and there is a need to discipline reckless drivers.
