Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Siddharth Shirole took to X (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday to announce that the construction of the Shivajinagar bus depot will begin soon. He stated that the estimated cost for this project is ₹250 to ₹300 crore, and the duration is three years.
"I held an extensive meeting with Shravan Hardikar, Chairman and Managing Director of Maha Metro, and Hemant Sonawane, Executive Director of Maha Metro, to review the progress of both the Shivajinagar-Hinjewadi Metro line and the construction of the new integrated complex of the Shivajinagar ST Station," Shirole wrote.
He added, "The ST Corporation has already submitted its plans to Maha Metro, and the project is set to proceed on a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) basis. The agreement has been drafted, and a final decision is anticipated within the next fifteen days. The project is estimated to cost between ₹250 to ₹300 crore."
"A grand complex, which will include the new ST bus station, is expected to be developed within the next three years," he further said.
Pune Metro was given one acre of land for an underground Shivajinagar metro station on the four acres owned by MSRTC. The Shivajinagar bus depot was subsequently shifted to the Dairy Development Department’s Wakdewadi location, 1.5 kilometres away, after metro work began in December 2019. Now, the bus depot is to be brought back to its original location, and for this, a detailed project report (DPR) is being prepared, with a tender to be floated soon. The project includes a bus station, depot, parking, and staff quarters.
Meanwhile, the bus depot in Wakdewadi, along the Pune-Mumbai highway, has increased traffic on the already busy road and is causing inconvenience to commuters.
