Delhi's Bus Connectivity Crisis: Short Trips Highlight Need for Improved Neighbourhood Services, ET Infra
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Six in 10 daily trips made by commuters using public transport in Delhi are under 4 km, but most city buses operate on longer routes rather than providing robust connectivity within neighbourhoods.According to a study conducted by International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT), the true potential of public transport can only be unlocked if transit services align with the short-distance mobility needs of commuters. The study, "Neighbourhood Public Transit Services: Situational Analysis of Bus-Based Public Transport Supply in Delhi," proposes a neighbourhood-level approach for expanding bus services, especially through the deployment of smaller electric buses designed to serve short, intrazonal routes.The study presents a spatially granular analysis of bus-based public transport availability across the national capital territory. By leveraging geographic information systems, ward-level data, and transport route information from DTC and Delhi Integrated Multi-Modal Transit System, which runs cluster buses, the study concluded that 31% of urban neighbourhoods in Delhi fall outside a 500-metre radius of a public bus stop, a threshold recognised as the standard for walkable access under India's transit-oriented development policy.While Delhi made important strides in expanding its metro network and introducing new buses under govt's initiatives, ICCT in its study asserted that access to low-cost, reliable neighbourhood mobility remained limited for many. "Nearly one-third of Delhi's urban area lacks convenient access to formal bus services. For thousands of residents, daily mobility often involves long walks or costly last-mile connections, conditions that discourage public transport use and contribute to congestion and pollution," the study pointed out.It identified Deoli, Jaitpur, Sangam Vihar, Mustafabad, Ghonda, Sainik Enclave, Hari Nagar Extension and Prem Nagar among the most underserved municipal wards in the capital. These areas house a large number of unauthorised colonies and have a labyrinth of narrow lanes and bylanes that cannot be catered to by full-length buses currently operated by DTC and DIMTS.While Delhi has extensive and vast public transport connectivity, it lacks accessibility in dense urban settlements where a traditional 12m city bus cannot operate with ease. "By aligning route design with localised demand patterns and physical constraints such as road widths, the study strongly advocates short-distance, high-frequency neighbourhood buses tailored to Delhi's complex urban fabric," ICCT said, recommending that smaller 9-metre neighbourhood buses on roads seven metres or wider should be deployed.The study pointed out that Delhi govt recently launched Delhi Electric Vehicle Interconnector (Devi) buses, a fleet of smaller electric buses intended to serve as last-mile and intra-zonal connectors across areas that cannot accommodate traditional 12-metre buses."First-and last-mile connectivity and the need to serve low-density or hard-to-reach areas are critical challenges that hinder the scaling up of bus services in cities. To address these issues, cities around the world introduced neighbourhood-level bus services, such as 'Community Buses' in Japan, 'Neighbourhood Circulators' in the United States, and Quartiersbusse in Germany. In India, Devi bus is a similar innovation, with Delhi govt piloting such a service in the city," said ICCT India's managing director Amit Bhatt."If successful, this scheme would not only benefit Delhi but also have a strong ripple effect across other cities in the country," he added.
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