Fresh Bus, an intercity EV bus service, launched its first fleet of electric buses on the Bengaluru-Tirupati route on Sunday. They will run at a base fare of Rs 399 per seat.
The company will also commence services for the Hyderabad-Vijayawada route later this month and run a total of 24 buses along both routes soon.
Each bus is a 12-metre premium coach with a capacity of over 45 seats. These buses can travel at a maximum speed of 90 km per hour, and they can go from 0-100 per cent charge in two hours, which can last up to 400 km of travel.
Equipped with a range of features, Fresh Bus buses offer noise-free fully air-conditioned cabins, comfortable seating, IOT-enabled real-time air-quality and temperature monitoring, regenerative braking, CCTV surveillance, amenity kits, personal charging docks, WiFi, and real-time tracking.
For safety, regular training for the crew of drivers, drug and alcohol testing will be undertaken. The e-bus service will also provide 24x7 real-time assistance to travellers through the Fresh Bus app and customer support center. The buses will also have medical kits and fire extinguishers onboard and provide a pink seat feature for women travellers.
“Fresh Bus will focus on premium quality and customer experience to make bus travel an elevated experience for all,” said Sudhakar Reddy Chirra, founder of Fresh Bus. He added that the company will launch services on routes to and from Delhi, Chennai, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Goa, Pune, and other cities in the next phase.
“By the end of 2026, we expect to scale to over 1,000 electric buses, set up over 100 charging stations pan-India, and save over 4,000 hectares of the forest,” he said.
The launch was attended by Aloke Bajpai, co-founder and Group CEO of ixigo; and Dr Laavu Rathaiah, chairman of Vignan Group.
Atmanirbhar Bharat
Nitin Gadkari, Minister of Road Transport and Highways of India, congratulated the Fresh Bus team on the launch and for contributing to the vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat.
Calling electric vehicles the “future of transportation,” he said that Fresh Bus will usher in a new era of travel that is cost-effective and green.
“This will promote the ecosystem of electric vehicles and create jobs for young tech professionals. This is a testament to the fact that we can achieve sustainable development while promoting economic growth,” he said.