The Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking has drawn up a special bus plan to facilitate the movement of devotees travelling to beaches, lakes and other designated locations ahead of the Chhath Puja celebrations across Mumbai.
An official statement from the BEST Traffic Department noted that additional buses will operate on Sunday, November 15, and Monday, November 16, morning to manage the expected rush of passengers visiting Chhath Puja venues, including Juhu Beach, Dadar Chowpatty, Ganesh Ghat in Powai and Gorai Creek.
As part of the arrangements, BEST has further planned to deploy 15 additional buses on Sunday evening and six buses on Monday morning, according to the official statement from BEST.
BEST releases detailed schedule for additional buses on Sunday and Monday
For Sunday evening, the additional services will operate from different depots to facilitate connectivity to Juhu Beach.
- Four buses from the Santacruz depot will operate on Route 231 between Santacruz station (West) and Juhu Beach from 2 pm onwards.
- Three buses will operate on Route 203 between Andheri Station (West) and Juhu Beach from 6 pm onwards.
- Two buses from the Majas depot will operate on Route 339 between Juhu Bus Station and Majas Depot from 4 pm onwards.
- Three buses from the Malvani depot will run on Route A-256 between Juhu Bus Station and Malvani Depot from 2 pm.
- Three buses from the Gorai depot will operate on Route A-203 between Borivali station (West) and Juhu Beach from 3 pm onwards.
For Monday morning, additional services have been planned between 6 am and 7:30 am.
- Three buses on Route A-203 from Borivali station (West) to Juhu Beach, operated by the Gorai depot.
- Two buses each on Routes 231 and 203 from Santacruz station (West) and Andheri station (West), respectively, towards Juhu Bus Station.
The BEST administration has also directed depot managers from Backbay, Worli, Santacruz, Oshiwara, Malvani, Gorai, Dindoshi, Vikhroli and Mulund to deploy officers and inspectors at the nearest beaches, chowpattys, ponds and lakes within their respective divisions.
Routes connecting Girgaon Chowpatty, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Park, Juhu Beach and Juhu Bus Station have been instructed to operate with their full complement of buses.
Authorities to ensure smooth passenger movement
To ensure smooth passenger movement, two inspectors each from the Bandra, Oshiwara and Goregaon divisions have been directed to report to the Santacruz depot at 2 pm on November 15. A security officer, one constable and two security guards will also be deployed at Juhu Beach from noon on Sunday until 8 am on Monday.
A breakdown van will remain stationed at Juhu Beach from 3 pm on Sunday to address any vehicle-related issues. BEST has also kept the provision for operating additional buses depending on passenger demand.
Furthermore, depot managers have been instructed to submit feedback reports on the additional services, including passenger numbers, earnings and kilometres operated, to the Planning Department by November 20.
