Chennai’s Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) has cancelled tenders for 1,000 low-floor air-conditioned electric buses and 220 small and micro air-conditioned buses intended exclusively for first- and last-mile connectivity to Metro stations, putting a major planned expansion of the city’s public transport fleet on hold.
The cancellation was reported by Times of India – Chennai, which said MTC cited administrative reasons for withdrawing the tender for the 1,000 AC electric buses. The tender for the 220 Metro feeder buses was cancelled after no bidders came forward. MTC officials were unavailable for comment, according to the report.
The state government had allocated Rs 500 crore in the latest budget for procuring 1,000 buses. The tenders were floated in February, but bid openings were postponed multiple times before the cancellation. The available information does not specify whether MTC plans to issue fresh tenders, revise the technical or financial conditions, or change the procurement model.
The proposed 220 small and micro buses were designed for a specific operational role: connecting passengers to Chennai Metro stations from neighbourhood streets and other locations that may not be served efficiently by larger buses. Their cancellation leaves the status of the planned first- and last-mile service unclear, particularly for areas where access to a Metro station depends on an additional road journey.
MTC currently operates a fleet of 4,206 buses across Chennai, including 755 electric buses. Of the electric fleet, 400 are non-air-conditioned buses and 355 are air-conditioned. The existing electric buses are operated by OHM Global Mobility and Switch Mobility under the gross-cost contract model, under which the operator typically provides and runs the buses while the transport agency pays according to agreed service terms.
MTC operates 687 routes and serves 31.27 lakh passengers, making the outcome of the cancelled tenders relevant to the city’s daily transport network rather than only to a future vehicle purchase. The planned 1,000-bus procurement would have added substantially to the corporation’s electric fleet, while the feeder-bus tender was linked directly to the integration of bus and Metro services.
The fate of a separate tender for 300 non-air-conditioned small buses was also unclear in the report. MTC had scheduled the opening of bids for Friday, but the available information does not establish whether that process will proceed, be postponed or be cancelled.
The next formal milestone is the scheduled bid opening for the 300 non-air-conditioned small buses. MTC’s decision on that tender, along with any revised procurement schedule for the 1,000 electric buses and 220 Metro feeder buses, will determine the immediate direction of Chennai’s planned fleet expansion.
