B.E.S.T. STRATEGIES FOR MUMBAIKARS

GROUP MEMBERSNAME ROLL NO.

MANSI MISTRY 519

MAYUR PALAV 520

CHANDNI PARIKH 521

ARCHANA PATEL 522

DHARA PATEL 523

SANKET PATHARE 524

Introduction of BEST 15 July 1926 - First bus ran between

Afghan Church and Crawford Market. For several years, it was looked upon as

transport for the upper middle class. Those were the days when the tram was the

poor man's transport; it carried one all the way from Sassoon Dock to Dadar. The bus fare for the same journey was 25 paise.

In response to the pleas made by the Government and the Bombay Municipal Corporation, the company extended its services to the northern part of the city in 1934.

It now operates as an autonomous body under the Municipal Corporation.

The bus transport service covers the entire city of Mumbai

Also extends its operations outside city limits into neighboring Navi Mumbai, Thane and Mira-Bhayandar.

In addition to buses, it also operates a ferry service in the northern reaches of the city.

Double decker buses were introduced in 1937 in order to cope better with the growing traffic. The first limited bus service in Bombay, and probably the first in the country as well, started running in 1940 between Colaba and Mahim.

interesting facts of present-day BEST buses:

• BEST has introduced A/C Kinglong services on certain routes.

• From 19 November 2004, route SPL-8 travelling from Churchgate to World Trade Centre has started accepting cashless smart cards for automatic fare collection in BEST buses.

• BEST currently has over 1500 environmentally friendly Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses on its fleet and plans to increase the number of buses.

• Due to the 9/11 bombings, BEST has installed an audio-visual surveillance system (CCTV) on each of its buses to monitor suspicious behaviour on board its vehicles.

• Almost all buses have two LCD TVs per bus. BEST buses are well maintained buses.

• Air conditioned buses are very popular with office goers. The A/C bus "AS-4" from Oshiwara Depot to Backbay Depot, is the route with the highest revenue for BEST. The "AS-4" is most popular bus with morning office goers, as it covers a distance of about 30 km from Andheri to Mantralaya in only one and half hours.

BEST A decade of reforms and improvements

As pioneers in adopting and implementing multiple new technologies and innovative processes, BEST has achieved significant operational improvements. Recent upgrades in technology include Electronic Ticketing Machine (ETMs) in all 4,200 buses.

Surveillance cameras have been installed in all 4,200 buses with recording abilities in almost 2,000 buses. This is a first step towards ensuring safety and security of passengers. However, linking with the cameras with a Traffic Management Center would be more beneficial for inspections from the control center.

STRATEGIES LOW FLOOR BUSES:

Introduced for the welfare of old and physically handicapped people. Regarding need for introducing Low Floor buses in the city of Mumbai. In response to these demands and suggestion, BEST has launched the trial run of Low Floor buses provided by TELCO 

MONTHLY BUS PASS SCHEME THROUGH-SMARTCARD :

In a move to aid commuter convenience, and to mitigate its cash handling pains, BEST, 'Mumbai's Lifeline' has adopted a new alternative method of paying for bus fares.

Segmentation:Basis of segmentation Segments

Income or comfort wise

Without AC & AC bus.

Speed wise Unlimited bus, limited bus, super fast bus, non stop bus

Gender wise Ladies special bus

Distance wise Short distance,Medium distance,

Long distance

Better ticketing arrangements.Better lightings on bus stops also

inside the busses.Clean and well built bus stop.Proper urinal facilities at the bus

depots.Cushioned seats inside the

busses.Well-trained personnel for

complaint handling or grievances.

product levels in BESTThe expected Product:

◦Timeliness◦Safety of passengers◦Brand name of provider◦Proper ticket dispensation and

checking◦Proper planning of structure of bus

for easy entry and exit.◦Cleanliness

The Augmented Product:Softer seats and air condition busConcessions for certain sector of society like

freedom fighters, military men. Permanent Reserved seat for ladies, old

people and handicapped people

The potential product :Providing separate line to BEST bus on

maximum number of routeLess waiting planDisaster management24 hour service on maximum route

QUALITY DIMENSIONS (RATER)

Reliability:Thousands of people regularly travel by Best buses to reach their destinations. In peek hours many of the commuters depend on these buses to reach their offices, workplace, etc. It is also one of the cheapest modes of transport as during peek hours the Taxis, Auto rickshaws, and even private vehicles may prove costly due to heavy traffic jams at most places in Mumbai. The facility of these Best buses is available at almost all the parts of Mumbai, and also the frequency of this buses and the customer carrying capacity is quite good.

Assurance- The commuters traveling by the best buses are quite assured of reaching the correct destination as the correct and quite visible transport route of the bus is displayed on front side and also on the left hand side of the bus. Also the conductors and drivers of these buses are quite polite and helpful to the passengers in guiding them to the right destinations. (Of course there are some exceptions to this.) BEST do have a good amount of credibility among the passengers as their slogan says “Safety is our Motto” and they also market themselves as the “Safest mode of Transport”.

Responsiveness- The BEST is quite responsive to its customers as they try their best to provide immediate solution to the problems of their customers For E.g. - If the Best buses while transporting people breakdown due to flat tyre or any other kind of technical problem then the passengers traveling by that bus are shifted in another best bus and they are not charged for it and the ticket of the bus which is punctured is also valid in the new bus in which they are shifted.

Future PlansThe next level BEST expects to introduce is

the computerized scheduling of buses and depots to match the efficiency in staffing requirements.

Although the agency is facing challenges due to staff acceptance of the scheduling changes, negotiations are presently underway to set a way forward.

THANK YOU Travel more by

Public Transport. It reduces pollution.