Transport bodies now spar over stops

“On Wednesday,we will pass tenders for building 23 bus stops from Vashi naka to Bandra,” he said. These bus stops will be next to the BEST stops. The NMMT has asked the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to grant permission to construct its own bus stops in the city.

“How can somebody enter my house (territory) without my permission,” asked BEST general manager Uttam Khobragade. When contacted,C S Sangitrao,principal secretary (transport),said,he was unaware of this development.

When contacted,Deepak Kapoor,state transport commissioner,said,“We shall talk to both the transport bodies and sort out the issue amicably.”

At present,NMMT buses ply on two routes in Mumbai—to Mulund and Bandra— while BEST operates its buses on five to six routes in Navi Mumbai. The NMMT also plans to start services from Navi Mumbai to Bandra-Airport-Andheri route and Dadar-Byculla-Mantralaya route. For this,it plans to erect 300 bus stops.

The dispute between the NMMT and the BEST is not new. Two weeks ago,the NMMT had started its new Volvo AC bus service between Belapur and Bandra,but the bus was denied entry to the BEST’s Bandra depot.

It is to be noted the BEST uses NMMT bus stops and terminals in Navi Mumbai. “We have no problem in BEST using our bus stops and terminals as it is in the interest of the public. We are trying to resolve the issue at the highest level and should soon find a solution,” said Damodaran.

But it is the commuter who is going to bear the brunt of the clash between the two transport units.

“The frequency of buses between Mumbai and Navi Mumbai is low. If I miss a BEST or an NMMT bus,I need not change the bus stop for boarding another bus. Different bus stops for NMMT and BEST will complicate the matter,” said Piyush Aggarwal (21),a student of D Y Patil college.