In April 2025, only about 120 city buses ran out of a total of 368 in Bhopal. By May 2025, operational buses dropped to just 63. With this decline, daily passenger numbers fell from 1.5 lakh to just 10,000–12,000. The government promised to run 552 e-buses in 6 cities across the state under the PM e-Bus Scheme. According to reports, 100 e-buses were approved for Bhopal but got delayed. In November 2025, 16 CNG buses returned to the roads.
The Bhopal Municipal Corporation shares different information. According to them, the city currently has only 100 city buses in total. Of these, only 80 to 88 buses actually run on the roads. The remaining buses are stuck in court proceedings.
Right now, many areas of Bhopal, including Trilanga and Bavadiya, have no city bus services at all. In areas where buses do run, they come very rarely. Local residents say the bus shortage creates heavy crowds in buses and makes travel uncomfortable. Many people say they have no choice but to take autos and other private transport.
As buses disappear, private vehicles keep increasing in the city. Meanwhile, government claims don’t match ground reality.
According to CEIC Data, which uses data from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), vehicle registration in Bhopal (RTO MP-04) was 8,213 in March 2025. This jumped to 9,637 in April 2025. In just one month, 1,424 new vehicles hit the roads.
What’s worth noting is that during this same period, commercial transport vehicles actually decreased by 42, from 853 to 811. The government keeps making promises to increase buses and bring new technology buses to Bhopal. But the ground reality in Bhopal remains far from the Municipal Corporation’s promises.
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