AC cabs for Mohali soon

Mohali will soon get air-conditioned radio taxis, popularly known as maxi cabs, which will cover a 40-km radius from the bus terminal.

Mohali will soon get air-conditioned radio taxis, popularly known as maxi cabs, which will cover a 40-km radius from the bus terminal. Besides Mohali, this service will also be provided in Ludhiana, Jalandhar and Amritsar.

After the introduction of AC bus service at a fare just 10 per cent more than ordinary buses, the Punjab government has moved to modern public transport at affordable rates within the major cities. Announcing the introduction of this service on Wednesday, the State Transport Commissioner-cum-State Transport Authority, Punjab, invited applications for contract carriage permits from only those operators who would be able to operate and maintain a fleet of at least 50 cars.

The service will be allowed in new vehicles only, which will be phased out after every five years. While the vehicles will be linked through a modern communication system with a control room maintained by the operators, the fare structure will be as per the specifications laid down by the State Transport Department.

If proved successful in these four major cities, the service will be extended to other viable places, say the transport officials.

The fare structure will be specified by the state government and the interested operators can apply till January 9, when at 4 pm the tenders will be opened, say sources.

At present, the residents of Mohali are availing of the AC cab service from Chandigarh. However, the new service will facilitate the Mohali commuters to move up to Ropar, Rajpura, and almost 20-25 km beyond Panchkula.

However, the work on new air-conditioned bus terminal-cum-commercial complex was yet to begin, with the Punjab Infrastructure Development Board PIDB still looking for eligible bidders for the state-of-the-art project with services planned on a par with that at airports. Mohali8217;s new bus terminal will come up on 6.6 acres in Sector 57, adjoining Verka Chowk, on National Highway-21, in place of the present bus stand in Sector 62.