The Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport undertaking on Wednesday decided to terminate its contract with wet lease operator Hansa City Bus Service Private Limited after failing to resolve a dispute over the operator's inability to operate buses.
BEST sources said that as a result, the 280 red-coloured air-conditioned mini-buses that BEST had hired under the wet lease model -- where private contractors handle driver salaries and bus maintenance -- will no longer operate on Mumbai's roads.
"In today's meeting, the wet lease contractor again expressed its inability to execute the contract. Hence, legal proceedings for the termination of the contract will be initiated shortly," BEST spokesperson Sudas Sawant said.
Over 500 mini buses, which BEST had introduced in 2019, will now be removed from service.
Last year, BEST had terminated the contract of another bus operator, sending 285 buses off the roads.
Aiming to improve last-mile connectivity on shorter routes, BEST introduced the "smallest" mini-buses into its fleet in 2019, instead of mid- or full-sized buses, due to worsening traffic and the difficulty of maneuvering larger buses on crowded roads.
The mini buses were expected to have a better turnaround time because of their smaller size and fewer seats compared to regular-sized buses. -- PTI