The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : RTC to take over shelter maintenance again

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Tuesday, Jan 15, 2008
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

RTC to take over shelter maintenance again

S. Sandeep Kumar

HYDERABAD: Faced with sharp criticism from commuters over the poor maintenance of bus shelters in the twin cities, the ASPRTC proposes to take over the maintenance of bus shelters again.

A majority of the 1,250-odd bus shelters in the city are either damaged or in dilapidated conditions, while in some places on the main roads, there are no shelters at all.

The Corporation had entered into an agreement with then Municipal Corporation of Hydreabad (MCH) in 2005, transferring the maintenance of the bus shelters to the corporation, while the income generated through advertisements on shelters was to be shared equally by the MCH and the RTC.

Of late, the Corporation has been flooded with complaints about the poor maintenance of bus shelters in the city.

The same was explained to Transport Minister K. Laxminarayana at a review meeting held recently and he had instructed the RTC to take over the bus shelters’ maintenance, according to the APSRTC Managing Director V. Dinesh Reddy. The GHMC authorities are saddled with other important works and in the process they had given least priority to bus shelter maintenance in the city, affecting the passengers, he said.

The GHMC had recently called for tenders to develop nearly 600 bus shelters with the provision of Real Time Passenger System. It had also identified over 300 bus shelters that require immediate facelift.

“The tenders would be finalised by this month and once it is done, bus shelters in the city would have proper seating facility, route maps, LED screens and dust bins. It costs nearly Rs. 7 lakh,” said a GHMC senior official.

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