Buses ferry over 20,000 passengers

MUMBAI: The late-night special buses for Ganeshotsav were a hit with passengers as more than 20,000 commuters were ferried in a week, with popular routes being C-42 and 66, a senior official said on Tuesday. "The buses go packed from 11pm to 6am as commuters hop on and hop off at Ganesh pandals en route," the official said, adding, "The BEST also earned ticket revenue of over Rs 1.6 lakh from these extra bus services."

BEST spokesperson Sunil Vaidya said if a passenger wanted to get down anywhere during the journey to visit a Ganesh pandal, he/she can just signal the driver and the bus will halt there as this bus service is meant specifically for Ganpati festivities. The special late-night buses are being operated till September 27 from CSMT to Sion, Worli to Kalachowkie, Nagpada to Oshiwara, Sewree to Dindoshi, Pydhonie to Vikhroli, Nagpada to Shivaji Nagar, Museum to Deonar, Girgaon to Sandhurst Road station and Museum to Sewree. tnn