Bengaluru's first 25 electric buses roll out. 65 more to join soon

Commuters in Karnataka's state capital Bengaluru will be able to experience ride in electric buses now. The city saw the first batch of electric buses flagged off by the state's Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Monday. These buses, developed by JBM Auto, will ply under the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC).

As many as 25 such electric buses were flagged off on Monday out of the first batch of 40 electric buses delivered by JBM Auto to BMTC. The company said that another 50 electric buses will be delivered in the coming months. The company had earlier committed to supply 90 electric buses to BMTC.

"The JBM ECO-LIFE electric buses will be running under the metro feeder services in the Smart City initiative. Earlier this year, JBM Auto had received an order of 90 non-AC electric buses for the city of Bengaluru," JBM said in a release.

"This e-bus service marks the first ever rollout of electric buses in the state of Karnataka. These buses shall be operated from the Kengeri, Yeshwantpur and KR Puram bus depots," it added.

The electric bus, developed by JBM Auto, is capable of covering a distance of 120 kms on single charge with a maximum speed of 70 kmph. Noting that the non-AC buses have a seating capacity of 33 passengers and a driver, JBM said these buses are equipped with six Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide (NMC) battery packs.

The electric buses come packed with several features such as Real Time Passenger Information System (PIS), Panic Buttons for emergency, Automatic Bus Vehicle Location System, CCTV cameras, Public address system, Stop request buttons among others.

JBM’s ECO-LIFE electric buses are also in service in other parts of the country, like in Navi Mumbai under Navi Mumbai Municipal Transport Corporation (NNMT). A total of 30 ECO-LIFE buses are a part of the NNMT. Earlier this year, JBM supplied 105 electric buses in Ahmedabad and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.