Thane: Poor route planning, long travel time and limited operating hours appear to have derailed the Thane Municipal Transport’s (TMT) much-publicised AC double-decker bus service, with the city’s first such bus drawing barely a quarter of its carrying capacity during its first week of launch.Introduced last Tuesday, the lone bus service modelled on Mumbai’s popular BEST double-deckers operates eight trips daily in two shifts — from 8 am to 12 noon and 2 pm to 6 pm — on the Wagle Estate-Bhayanderpada route. The service has so far attracted few passengers daily despite being capable of carrying nearly 100 commuters at any time.Plus, the upper deck, touted as the service’s main attraction, has surprisingly remained largely empty, observed Thane transport officials.“The route is too long and should ideally terminate at Teen Haath Naka for faster turnaround. Since only one bus is operating, the waiting times are high as commuters prefer quicker options. If the service can extend to Borivali or Mira Road, then it may also see more patronage,” said commuter Sanjay Joshi.Passengers also blamed poor publicity for the weak response, saying many residents remained unaware of the service. Transport observers also pointed to the absence of connectivity with key transit hubs such as Thane railway station, limiting the bus’s attraction among office-goers.“We are earning an average of Rs 2,500 or roughly carrying 250 passengers daily. We will increase awareness about the service and also examine route and timing rationalisation to improve occupancy. The addition of another bus in the coming weeks may help ridership,” said Bhalchandra Behare, transport manager, TMT.
