MUMBAI: Getting to Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) from western suburbs is set to become cheaper and easier with the airport operator announcing a slew of cheaper ground transport solutions on Monday.Among them are MSRTC electric buses starting at Rs 170 and a free hourly shuttle between Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) and Mumbai’s main airport at Sahar-Parle.A complimentary hourly shuttle operated by Cityflo, Aarya and Chalo will connect NMIA directly with Mumbai airport. The Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) will start e-Shivai electric bus services from NMIA on Oct 7, connecting the airport with Dadar, Borivali and Pune.Fares will be Rs 170 to Dadar East, Rs 210 to Borivali and Rs 450 to Pune, said a press release issued by Adani Airport Holding Ltd (AAHL) late on Monday. Children below 12 and women travelling with a National Common Mobility Card will be eligible for half-fare.The Dadar service will operate via Sion and Atal Setu, while the Borivali route will connect NMIA with Mumbai terminal 1, Bandra and Atal Setu. The Pune route will have two daily services, one in the morning and another in the afternoon. Services to Thane and Nashik are planned by mid-November.Private bus connectivity is also being expanded. Chalo Bus currently operates 21 daily services linking NMIA with Marol in Andheri East, Bandra, Dadar and the World Trade Centre in Colaba. The Navi Mumbai Municipal Transport (NMMT) operates seven dedicated airport routes connecting terminal 1 with Kharkopar, Targhar, Belapur, Nerul, Panvel, Khandeshwar and the Airport Project Office, the statement said.No transport options announced for eastern suburbs (apart from Sion) and Thane, though.On the taxi front, Bharat Taxi will begin operations on Oct 10 with a dedicated fleet of up to 40 vehicles. Uber Go, Uber Premier and Uber Auto will also be available, as usual, alongside prepaid taxis, rickshaws and car rentals. The total ground transport capacity is being scaled up to 4,594 vehicles, comprising 3,787 app-based taxis, 184 car rentals, 171 autos and 547 buses, it added.AAHL which runs Mumbai and Navi Mumbai airport has been trying to move a third of international departures from Mumbai airport terminal 2 to Navi Mumbai airport ahead of the airline winter schedule which begins on Oct 25. The decision to move the slot has been met with protests from airlines, the civil aviation ministry has intervened and called a meeting between the airport operator and airlines on Tues. For passengers, the move would have made air travel costlier, largely because of the higher cost of ground transportation to the new airport, due surge prices charged levied by cab aggregators and the longer travel distance.
