Behind this new look are the efforts of P.M. Bayas, general manager, PMT, and Shyam Mankar, former chairman, PMT. Thanks to their creativity, bus-stops have transcended from being mere waiting stops to something else entirely. Says Mankar, ``We wanted to provide our citizens with nice shelters that would also protect them from the sun and rains. These bus-stops have been built at new sites. Having them around has helped in crowd management, as people do not crowd at any one particular stand. Also, buses for different routes need not stop at just that one marked stop. This creates traffic problems during peak hours since the buses would line up, one after the other.''

How did the PMT go about this? ``With no funds at hand, we were looking for sponsors. So we approached big builders, who we thought would be interested in constructing the stops,'' says Mankar. Out of a total 80 such bus-stops, around 40 have been sponsored. Three important points were kept in mind before embarking on this project, Mankar asserts, ``We decided to have bus-stops that could be easily maintained by the builders, even while yielding them some profit and lending comfort to citizens.'' Citing the example of the Shri Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Balewadi, he said, ``After the initial hullabaloo, this complex was completely neglected. Long-term planning is important for big-budget projects.'' The old bus-stops, which co-exist alongside the glittering new ones, are eye-sores.

``Around 550 old bus-stops cannot be touched as they are bound by contract for five years, till March 2000,'' says Bayas. The agreement between the PMT and the builders says that the latter do not have to pay the former for the first three and a half years after the construction. If the party wants to extend its contract for another year, the PMT will receive a rent of Rs 1,000 per month. If he wants to extend it further by an additional year, a rent of Rs 1,500 per month is charged. For a period of five and a half years to seven and a half years, the PMT will receive a rent of Rs 2,000 per month. If after three and a half years, the party wishes to discontinue, then the PMT becomes the owner of the property.

The Dadhe Group has constructed nine bus-stops so far. ``We plan on making 21 more this year,'' says its managing director, Aditya Dadhe. His father, Jayant Dadhe, says, ``This inspiration was drawn from the Pune-Bremen Chowk, inaugurated in September 1998. It was part of the city beautification project. The new bus-stops aim at renovating Pune. We have invested without any profit motive.'' Hitendra Advertising has built eight bus-stops so far, and plans to make another 50.

The design of the new stops has been borrowed from Singapore while the construction material has been imported from Germany. The stops have also become non-conventional advertising media - the PMT has a one-year contract with ACC Cement, Rajashree Cement, Chakson, Onida and others for displaying their advertisements at these new stops. The client will pay them Rs. 6,000 to 7,000 per month, with an advance payment for three months.

This is not the end of PMT's innovativeness. Says the general manager, ``I am thinking of implementing an in-bus facility which will help the commuter know the number of stops he has to get down after.'' Guess Puneites have a lot to look forward to!