West Bengal Transport Corporation

Last updated

West Bengal Transport Corporation
Company typePublic transport
Predecessor
  • STS (1948–1960)
  • CSTC (1960–2017)
  • CTC (1880–2017)
  • WBSTC (1991–2017)
Founded8 June 2016 (2016-06-08)
HeadquartersParibahan Bhavan – I, 12, R.N. Mukherjee Road,
Kolkata, West Bengal 700001
,
India
Area served
Kolkata
West Bengal
Services
  • Bus Service
  • Tram Service
  • Ferry Service
Owner Ministry of Transport, Government of West Bengal
Website wbtconline.in

West Bengal Transport Corporation (WBTC) [1] is a West Bengal state government undertaken corporation which plies buses, trams and ferries in the state. It was formed by merging existing state transport agencies, namely the Calcutta State Transport Corporation (CSTC), the Calcutta Tramways Company (CTC) and the West Bengal Surface Transport Corporation (WBSTC). [2] [3]

Contents

History

Bus services in Kolkata (then known as Calcutta) started in the year 1920 but were unorganised. The organized road transport in the public sector was given shape on 31 July 1948 with the creation of State Transport Services under the Directorate of Transportation, Government of West Bengal. It started operations on 6 intracity routes, with a fleet of 25 buses. The diesel era started with the addition of two double-decker buses in 1949–50. Then the STS became self-sustainable with the establishment of depots and terminals. Gradually, the structure of State Transport Services turned into a full-fledged organization with spreading its network of operation to the entire city (mainly covering Calcutta Improvement Trust area). After about 12 years, State Transport Services became CSTC (Calcutta State Transport Corporation) on 15 June 1960. [4] This was the start of a new era for the public transport system in the city and state. Up to 1966-67, CSTC nationalized about 90% of the city's routes. After that CSTC could not sustain the increased passenger demands in the city mainly due to financial constraints. Since then the Government decided to allow private buses to operate on CSTC routes and areas. It also started operating on long-distance routes, starting with CalcuttaDigha in 1968. Over the years, with rapid expansions of long-distance operations, CSTC connected remote rural areas of the state with Kolkata. Soon, it covered almost the whole state and connected the district headquarter towns. In 1989, a new body was formed, named West Bengal Inland Water Transport Corporation Limited, for the operation of vessel services. It started with ferry services on the Hooghly River and the Muri Ganga rivers. Later this was merged into West Bengal Surface Transport Corporation, which provided bus services in Kolkata and different areas of South 24-Parganas, along with the CSTC. In June 2016, WBSTC, CTC and CSTC were merged into one with operational name WBTC. Till the merge, WBSTC had a fleet of 233 (Volvo AC, TATA Marco Polo AC and non-AC) buses. [5]

Operations

Fleet

WBTC has a fleet of 1337 buses as of 2019. [6] and 20 vessels for Passenger Ferry Service. Right now its fleet consists of 400 AC buses. The buses are in blue and white livery of Volvo, Tata Marcopolo, Eicher and JanBus models from Ashok Leyland, the first low floor front entry public buses in the country. These were brought under the visionary of the central JNNURM scheme. [7]

Division

Previously, the depots were separately administered by CSTC , CTC , WBSTC . But after the merger, all have come under the purview of WBTC. [8]

Depots

WBTC Depots are used for parking and repairing buses and trams. The following depots are: [9]

Belghoria Depot
Garia Depot
Howrah Depot
Kasba Depot
Lake Depot
Maniktala Depot
Paikpara Depot
Salt Lake Depot
Taratala Depot
Thakurpukur Depot
Belgachia Depot
Tollygunge Depot
Khidirpur Depot
Kalighat Depot
Gariahat Depot
Park Circus Depot
Rajabazar Depot
Ultadanga Depot
Joka Depot
Barasat Depot
Nilgunge Depot
Habra Depot

Services

Bus services

Buses are operated on many routes across Kolkata and its suburban areas providing express bus service with limited stops. [10]

City Bus - Dorina Crossing - Esplanade - Kolkata 2016-06-23 5194.JPG

Late Night Bus services

This was introduced to provide late night transportation service to the city. Buses ply on several routes across the city connecting northern & southern parts of the city with Howrah Station, Kolkata Airport, Salt Lake and New Town. These routes are AC-54, EB-14, AC-39, AC-24A, AC-12D, AC-5, AC-37, AC-47, AC-50A, S-10A, S-3A, E-1, E-32, S-22, S-24, S-7, S-12, S-12D, S-30 and S-31. [11] The last bus on these important routes will leave at 10.45 Pm and will run until 12.30 Am. [12]

Banglashree Express AC Bus services

This service was introduced to connect district Headquarters towns of the state with the state capital with express bus service, so that people can travel overnight to reach Kolkata. [13]

The bus route number starts with BE.

Tram services

The tram operations came under WBTC from CTC, after the merge. In 2019 air-conditioned Trams were introduced in the network. [14]

Ferry services

WBTC also operates ferry routes across Hooghly river. One can avail the services using daily tickets, and few routes using season ticket. [15]

Special services

Some special bus services are also provided on some occasions like [16]

Public initiatives

In 41 days the area was converted into a paradise for tram lovers, with stamps, tickets, coins, old tram documents and vintage photos. Food, music and art will be added in due course to make it an international tourist destination for tram lovers.

Launched by MD Rajanvir Singh Kapur IAS in presence of Chairman Rachpal Singh IPS Retd.

Other utilities

Intelligent Transport System

To cope up with the increasing demand of public transport in the city, some innovative measures were taken up, with a cost of ₹ 9,39,89,926, except fleet management. This also includes the Pathadisha app.

See also

References

  1. "West Bengal Transport Corporation". WBTC. Retrieved 10 September 2025.
  2. "WB govt merges three transport corporations". The Times of India. 8 June 2016. Retrieved 12 September 2025.
  3. "West Bengal transport gets Biswa Bangla stamp". The Times of India. 8 December 2016. Retrieved 7 September 2025.
  4. "Kolkata's CSTC celebrates 75 historic years with decorated fleet". The Telegraph. 2 August 2023. Retrieved 12 September 2025.
  5. "transport dept. wb". Archived from the original on 20 June 2019. Retrieved 25 June 2019.
  6. Bandyopadhyay, Krishnendu (24 June 2019). "Kolkatans ditch cars, warm to AC bus fleet". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 2 August 2019. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
  7. "City gets bus fleet the world is waiting for". 30 July 2014. Retrieved 12 September 2025.
  8. "Bus Depots & Terminals". Transport Department, Government of West Bengal. Archived from the original on 20 June 2019. Retrieved 25 June 2019.
  9. "Bus Depots & Terminals". Transport Department, Govt. of WB. Retrieved 10 September 2025.
  10. "WBTC City Bus routes". WBTC. Retrieved 7 September 2025.
  11. "Kolkata to Resume Night Bus Services in 20 Routes after 7 Years" . Retrieved 12 September 2025.
  12. "রাত ১১টার পরও মিলবে বাস পরিষেবা, যাত্রীদের সুবিধায় শহরে সরকারি বাসের 'লেট নাইট সার্ভিস' চালু". Sangbad Pratidin. 4 March 2025. Retrieved 12 September 2025.
  13. "Bengal CM flags off Banglashree Express buses". AITC. Retrieved 12 September 2025.
  14. "West Bengal Transport Corporation gets award for reforms in Kolkata tramways". The Telegraph. 6 May 2023. Retrieved 12 September 2025.
  15. "Ferry Service – WBTC-West Bengal Transport Corporation". Archived from the original on 15 January 2022. Retrieved 23 August 2019.
  16. "Special Services – WBTC-West Bengal Transport Corporation". Archived from the original on 11 May 2023. Retrieved 27 June 2019.
  17. "World's First Tramcar For Young Readers in Kolkata". India.com. 15 November 2020.
  18. Kuruvilla, Elizabeth (8 May 2015). "Business Lounge with Priti Paul". mint.