Gurgaon: At least 10 passengers had a narrow escape on Thursday when a city bus caught fire.The incident took place around 9.30am when the bus ferrying passengers from Sector 12 bus stand to Dundahera reached near Sirhaul village in Sector 18.After smoke was noticed near one of its tyres, the driver immediately stopped the vehicle and evacuated all passengers. Soon after that the fire intensified and engulfed the entire bus.The fire department was alerted and reached the spot with two fire tenders. A fire officer said a call about the blaze was received at 10.05am and teams from Udyog Vihar and Maruti fire stations were deployed.“There were around five to 10 passengers on board, but none of them sustained any injuries. The fire was brought under control within 30 to 40 minutes,” the officer added.The blaze temporarily disrupted traffic movement on Old Delhi-Gurgaon Road. Police reached the spot, managed traffic and facilitated the removal of the charred bus — route no 215B — from the road, following which traffic movement returned to normal.The cause of the fire is being investigated. According to preliminary information, an air-suspension component near the tyre, resembling a rubber airbag, burst, following which smoke began emanating from the vehicle.GMCBL CEO Vishwajeet Chaudhary told TOI, “A thorough investigation will be conducted to ascertain the cause of the fire. We will identify the cause to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future.”The incident has once again brought the condition and maintenance of the city bus fleet into focus. This is not the first instance of a city bus catching fire. In April, a city bus caught fire near Sector 51, while another bus was gutted in a fire near Mahavir Chowk in April last year.At present, the city is managing with a skeleton fleet size of 150 buses. The ageing fleet has been affecting daily operations, with around 20 to 25 buses breaking down on average each day. Frequent breakdowns result in service disruptions, delays and higher maintenance requirements.City bus services were launched in 2018 with a fleet of 200 CNG low-floor buses. In 2021, 50 buses were transferred to Faridabad, reducing the number available for the city.The existing fleet has now been in operation for several years and is approaching the end of its concession period. Under the current concession agreements, around 100 buses are scheduled to be phased out in June 2029, while the remaining buses are due to retire by Aug 2029.In July, GMCBL board approved the replacement of 25 ageing buses with new BS-VI-compliant CNG buses. However, with a sizeable portion of the existing fleet continuing to age, GMCBL is expected to face the challenge of maintaining reliable services while gradually replacing the older buses.
