After being tagged the most polluted city in the world by a World Health Organisation report in May, the New Delhi transport department is formulating an inter-connectivity public transportation plan.
A high-powered committee was formed by Delhi’s Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung last month, which is being headed by Delhi chief secretary Deepak Mohan Spolia, who took charge of office on August 28.
The panel has submitted a report to the Lieutenant Governor, highlighting a number of suggestions for the transport department not only to combat the high levels of pollution but also to improve transport connectivity of the city.
To begin with, all public transport vehicles, including a new Delhi Metro Rail Corporation feeders buses, new Delhi Transport Corporation buses and 15,000 new four-wheeled autorickshaws will be run on compact natural gas, according to an official of the Delhi Transport department.
"The idea is to make it comfortable enough for passengers that they do not need to use private vehicles, which is one of the major causes for pollution in the capital," the official said.
Increase buses
The Delhi government plans to buy 11,000 new buses by the end of 2016 for the Delhi Transport Corporation. Delhi now has approximately 6,500 buses, of which 6,088 buses owned and operated by the Delhi Transport Corporation.
A study by the Ministry of Urban Development in 2012 showed that there is half a bus available per 1,000 passengers in Delhi. The average waiting time on the Delhi Transport Corporation's 517 routes is an hour. On an average, the DTC rolls out only 5,185 buses daily of its total fleet of 6,088, because the vehicles have broken down.
“We want to ensure that the average waiting time for passengers seeking to use DTC buses is not more than 15 minutes,” said Delhi Transport Corporation, official spokesperson, RS Minhas. "Adding 11,000 new buses will help us not only better the frequency in the urban parts of the Capital, but also ensure better connectivity in the rural areas."
Delhi Metro
The panel has also asked Delhi Metro Rail Corporation to increase the number of coaches on all its trains to eight: at present, only 58 of the system's 208 trains are this long. However, officials said that by 2016, a total of 130 trains will have eight coaches.
Meanwhile, the panel has also recommended the Northern Railways to revive its Ring Rail network, a circular rail network in Delhi that runs parallel to the Ring Road, and integrate it with Delhi Metro to increase the connectivity.
The committee has also recommended that the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation increase its fleet of feeder buses for the last-mile connectivity. At present, there are 120 functional feeder buses, but according to DMRC officials, 400 more feeder buses will be made operational by the end of 2016.
The transport department has also been recommended by the committee to induct mini eco-friendly 10-15 seats buses running on CNG. They will be similar to the feeder buses of the Delhi Metro. “The transport department can either purchase it or hire it and ferry passengers from metro stations in suburban parts of Delhi,” the member said.
Other cities
Mumbai and Bangalore already have limited metro systems and, like Delhi, face high levels of pollution. Experts say that introducing CNG buses, autorickshaws and taxis will help these cities to bring down their pollution levels, just like Delhi intends to do with its new interconnectivity plan.
Last-mile connectivity is something Mumbai can learn from Delhi’s new interconnectivity plan, officials say. "The city needs to better its transport network in the next six months or a year first and let metro plans run parallel," said transport expert Sudhir Badami. "Also, adding new buses should be a priority since the population of the city has increased over the years and the number of buses has decreased.”
Bangalore is also facing shortfall of buses. According to Bangalore-based urban expert Ashwin Mahesh, the city needs to add 1,500 new buses every year. Developing new corridors and making more buses operational is the key, he said.
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A high-powered committee was formed by Delhi’s Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung last month, which is being headed by Delhi chief secretary Deepak Mohan Spolia, who took charge of office on August 28.
The panel has submitted a report to the Lieutenant Governor, highlighting a number of suggestions for the transport department not only to combat the high levels of pollution but also to improve transport connectivity of the city.
To begin with, all public transport vehicles, including a new Delhi Metro Rail Corporation feeders buses, new Delhi Transport Corporation buses and 15,000 new four-wheeled autorickshaws will be run on compact natural gas, according to an official of the Delhi Transport department.
"The idea is to make it comfortable enough for passengers that they do not need to use private vehicles, which is one of the major causes for pollution in the capital," the official said.
Increase buses
The Delhi government plans to buy 11,000 new buses by the end of 2016 for the Delhi Transport Corporation. Delhi now has approximately 6,500 buses, of which 6,088 buses owned and operated by the Delhi Transport Corporation.
A study by the Ministry of Urban Development in 2012 showed that there is half a bus available per 1,000 passengers in Delhi. The average waiting time on the Delhi Transport Corporation's 517 routes is an hour. On an average, the DTC rolls out only 5,185 buses daily of its total fleet of 6,088, because the vehicles have broken down.
“We want to ensure that the average waiting time for passengers seeking to use DTC buses is not more than 15 minutes,” said Delhi Transport Corporation, official spokesperson, RS Minhas. "Adding 11,000 new buses will help us not only better the frequency in the urban parts of the Capital, but also ensure better connectivity in the rural areas."
Delhi Metro
The panel has also asked Delhi Metro Rail Corporation to increase the number of coaches on all its trains to eight: at present, only 58 of the system's 208 trains are this long. However, officials said that by 2016, a total of 130 trains will have eight coaches.
Meanwhile, the panel has also recommended the Northern Railways to revive its Ring Rail network, a circular rail network in Delhi that runs parallel to the Ring Road, and integrate it with Delhi Metro to increase the connectivity.
The committee has also recommended that the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation increase its fleet of feeder buses for the last-mile connectivity. At present, there are 120 functional feeder buses, but according to DMRC officials, 400 more feeder buses will be made operational by the end of 2016.
The transport department has also been recommended by the committee to induct mini eco-friendly 10-15 seats buses running on CNG. They will be similar to the feeder buses of the Delhi Metro. “The transport department can either purchase it or hire it and ferry passengers from metro stations in suburban parts of Delhi,” the member said.
Other cities
Mumbai and Bangalore already have limited metro systems and, like Delhi, face high levels of pollution. Experts say that introducing CNG buses, autorickshaws and taxis will help these cities to bring down their pollution levels, just like Delhi intends to do with its new interconnectivity plan.
Last-mile connectivity is something Mumbai can learn from Delhi’s new interconnectivity plan, officials say. "The city needs to better its transport network in the next six months or a year first and let metro plans run parallel," said transport expert Sudhir Badami. "Also, adding new buses should be a priority since the population of the city has increased over the years and the number of buses has decreased.”
Bangalore is also facing shortfall of buses. According to Bangalore-based urban expert Ashwin Mahesh, the city needs to add 1,500 new buses every year. Developing new corridors and making more buses operational is the key, he said.