TGSRTC to add 70 new electric buses in Hyderabad fleet

TGSRTC plans to introduce around 70 new electric buses in Hyderabad while phasing out ageing diesel vehicles. The corporation is also retrofitting existing buses and expanding charging infrastructure, aiming to reduce emissions and modernise public transport in the city.

Hyderabad: The Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TGSRTC) is set to expand its electric public transport fleet, with plans to roll out another set of about 70 new electric metro express buses in the city soon.

The launch is likely to coincide with the forthcoming inauguration of the newly constructed charging station at Kukatpally. The Kukatpally bus depot currently operates around 70 old diesel buses, many of which have outlived their service life and are on the verge of being scrapped.

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Hence, the RTC authorities have decided to send these buses for scrapping, while those still fit for use will be used for district operations.

In addition, the RTC is also moving ahead briskly with its plans to convert the 21 existing diesel buses into electric ones through retrofitting in the region. This is part of a broader target to retrofit as many as 250 buses across the city. The process involves removing diesel engines and replacing them with electric motors similar to those used in battery-operated buses.

TGSRTC officials said that although the technology for such conversions has been available for some time, high costs had delayed its adoption. Recently, however, RTC has entered into agreements with a few private firms to carry out the conversions at their own expense. The corporation will repay the investment in installments with interest over the contract period, after which the buses will become its property.

At present, the Greater Hyderabad (GH) region has around 3,200 buses in operation, of which nearly 1,000 are considered outdated. The RTC has been steadily replacing these ageing vehicles with electric alternatives. Currently, about 440 electric buses are running in the city.

Electric buses offer significant environmental benefits. Compared to diesel buses, each electric bus is expected to reduce carbon emissions by nearly 70 per cent annually, which is equivalent to around 46 tonnes and cut nitrogen oxide emissions by about 23 kilograms, contributing to cleaner urban air in the city.