&gt;&gt; The oldest tram ticket issued in <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/sunday-mid-day/article/how-mumbai-fought-the-british-raj-23374090" target="_blank" rel="none noopener">Bombay </a>featured three languages: English, Marathi and Gujarati.
&gt;&gt; One of the first <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/mumbai/mumbai-news/article/mumbai-best-extends-exhibition-commemorating-77-years-of-municipalisation-by-2-days-23373598" target="_blank" rel="none noopener">BEST </a>bus service route maps, published by the British India Press in 1942, displayed routes A to O in multiple colours.
&gt;&gt; BEST route bus timetables were issued in attractive multi-colour formats.
Such quirky facts and ephemera of the BEST undertaking from various private collectors have been compiled into a memorable souvenir. This collection spans from tickets for BEST&rsquo;s horse-drawn tram carts to timetables, transfer tickets, maps, brochures and more. A group of BEST ticket enthusiasts from the city has brought together their collections to celebrate 77 years of the undertaking&rsquo;s municipalisation. The 77th BEST Day on August 7 also marks 150 years of BEST&rsquo;s journey from trams to buses.
<img src="http://origin.mid-day.com/images/2024/aug/Tram-ticket-1_e.jpg" alt="One of the last tram tickets" width="1280" height="720" /> One of the last tram tickets
&ldquo;The rarest items in the collection are the old tickets for horse-drawn trams that ran between 1874 and 1905. The collection also includes old BEST timetables, maps of tram and bus routes, various brochures, public documents like BEST by-laws, old English and Marathi punched bus tickets, advertisements and official books published on the BEST undertaking,&rdquo; said Swamynathan R, who assembled the collection.
<img src="http://origin.mid-day.com/images/2024/aug/Tram-ticket-2_e.jpg" alt="Horse-drawn tram tickets" width="1280" height="720" /> Horse-drawn tram tickets
&ldquo;My motivation was to compile this collection of BEST materials into one place, which will be useful for many for years to come. The oldest pieces are three rare horse-drawn tickets (pre-1905) from the Bombay Tramway Company, thanks to contributions from Suketu Jhaveri, Jigar Desai, Percy Jokhi, Ankush Kalantre, Vijay N Sonawane, Anand Bhabal, and Rishabh Parikh. I am indebted to the support from Uday Gosalia and Jhaveri for making this compilation possible,&rdquo; he added.
Although trams in <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/mumbai/mumbai-news/article/your-handy-mumbai-metro-network-status-guide-23374443" target="_blank" rel="none noopener">Mumbai </a>were completely shut down on July 31, 1964, various routes had been closed over time. The collection also includes a handwritten note on the back of one tram ticket, marking the closure of a route two years earlier. It reads, &ldquo;Last day of tram service between Foras Road and <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/mumbai/mumbai-crime-news/article/mumbai-body-found-in-nandigarm-express-toilet-at-dadar-station-23373687" target="_blank" rel="none noopener">Dadar</a>&mdash;July 21, 1962.&rdquo;

From trams to buses, a rare collection celebrates 77 years of BEST’s municipalisation with vintage tickets, timetables and more

Bombay’s tram ticket time capsule: BEST’s 150-year journey

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Bombay’s tram ticket time capsule: BEST’s 150-year journey

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