Brihanmumbai Electric Supply & Transport (BEST) committee members have raised concern over growing absenteeism of drivers and conductors, which has risen to 15 per cent every month due to various factors, including the new rota. Statistics taken in December 2015 for May to October in the same year show 13 to 15 per cent of conductors and drivers not showing up for work. There are 12,500 conductors and 11,900 drivers operating the buses on city streets every day.
BEST Committee member Ravi Raja said that one of the reasons behind increased bunking is the new rota system introduced by Canadian software, Trapeze, implemented by the undertaking a year ago.
“It is seen that around 15 per cent of conductors and drivers are not turning up for work. This can be because of various factors but it can also be due to the Canadian software. This software has increased working hours of conductors and drivers which in turn can be the reason for increase in bunking,” he said.
Other committee members like Sunil Ghanacharya said that conductors and drivers are overworked as their duty routes are very far from their place of residence. “A lot of our drivers and conductors residing in areas like Kalyan and beyond have duties in the western suburbs, which takes them more than two hours for each trip. We should try and review this and see if their duties can be closer to their homes,” he said.
BEST GM Jagdish Patil said that around 91 per cent of conductors and drivers turn up for work every month. “Given the number of conductors and drivers, 91 per cent is a good number. We see to it that the buses run on time and along all the different routes,” he said.
