The B.E.S.T. all-day travel ticket

Update 2011-03-20: Rs. 15 add-on to day travel ticket introduced: As of mid-March 2011, read a newspaper report that the B.E.S.T. has introduced an add-on ticket of Rs. 15 (that is valid with the Rs. 25 all-day ticket). This add-on allows the passenger to also travel on the fast-track corridor routes ("whose bus numbers start with alphabet C").

Update: As of August 2010, the Rs. 20 all-day suburban ticket is no longer available. It has been withdrawn. The all-day ticket is now a single ticket at Rs. 25 valid for travel throughout Mumbai (suburbs as well as city). Read the below post only to get the gist of the ticket scheme. The variants are no longer valid.

About 2 years ago, the B.E.S.T. introduced the all-day travel ticket. The use of this has, as is the BEST tradition, not been explained anywhere officially. Just a small newspaper note is all that was put out. But, those who know of this avail of it. From the conversations I hear in the buses, irregular users of this ticket seem to be confused about the rules and regulations concerning this. This post is for those who need this information.

Disclaimer: This is the unofficial version of the information. In case of doubt, always verify with the counductor / other authorities to make sure the ticket is valid on a certain route.

There are 3 basic variants (city, suburb, all zones) of this ticket. The actual price also depends on whether it is a holiday or not (prices are lower on a holiday; Sunday is regarded as a holiday aside from other state public holidays).
The ticket is valid for travel on any route (non-AC buses) any number of times on the day of the ticket upto 12 midnight in the zones as mentioned below:

1. Variant 1: City : Rs. 15 : South of Mahim / Sion
2. Variant 2: Suburb: Rs. 20 : North of Mahim / Sion, including beyond Dahisar / Vashi
3. Variant 3: All zone: Rs. 25 : Anywhere the BEST buses ply

It is available with all the conductors on all the regular routes.

The ticket layout is also different from the regular ticket. Instead of punching in the "stage number" of the bus stop that the passenger got in from, the conductor instead has to make 4 punches:
- Date (1 to 31), Month (1 to 12), Gender (Male or Female), Year (top-left: single digits were used until now: "8" for 2008, "9" for 2009, etc.)

The most important of these is the gender. While buying a ticket for a group, make sure to specify the gender correctly for the number of passengers in the group. Also, make sure that the center of the ticket specifies which kind of ticket it is (of course, it is in Marathi), and also the date / month punched.

The ticket has no personal identification. As a result, it can be given to acquaintances who might need it. This, I believe, is exploited to the fullest by the courier guys. One guy buys the Rs. 25 ticket in the morning. At the end of his shift, it is handed over to another guy who can use it until the end of the day.