Maharashtra cabinet minister Aaditya Thackeray tweeted a photo of a Volvo hybrid-electric bus in the UK while announcing that Mumbai's iconic double-decker bus would go electric.
The Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport (BEST) is procuring 900 AC electric double-decker buses for Mumbai. These buses will be fully electric and emission free.
Thackeray, who is Maharashtra's Minister of Environment and Tourism, said that he and Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray have been personally interested to revive Mumbai's iconic double-decker buses.
Posting a photo of a red bus sporting the BEST logo, he wrote, "The BEST double-decker, now electric! CM Uddhav Thackeray and I have been personally keen on reviving Mumbai's iconic double-decker buses. While doing so, the BEST is procuring 900 of them, fully electric and emission-free. As we increase our BEST fleet, ultimately to 10,000 electric/clean alternate fuel buses, our aim is to have maximum double-decker buses, as this increases our capacity."
Click here to view an archive of the post.
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Fact Check
BOOM did a reverse image search on the photo and found it on a press release from Volvo Buses published on November 1, 2016. The caption with the picture reads as, "The new B5LHC Double Deck Electric Hybrid from Volvo Bus, premiered at the Euro Bus Expo 2016 show in Birmingham."
The "BEST" logo does not feature in the original image. The comparison between the viral photo and the image from Euro Bus Expo 2016 show in Birmingham can be seen below.
We reached out to BEST's deputy PRO MS Varade to know the details about the bus manufacturer. Varade said the buses will be made by Causis E-Mobilty Pvt Ltd and Switch Mobility Automotive Ltd. He also confirmed the buses will be electric, not hybrid vehicles.
According to a Hindustan Times Auto report, "Hybrid cars are Low Emissions Vehicles (LEV) while the electric cars fall under the category of Zero Emissions Vehicles (ZEV). Electric cars are more cost-efficient as there is no expenditure on the fuel, while the same is not true for hybrid cars. Hybrids are more flexible as well."
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