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Indian Express
15-05-2025
- Automotive
- Indian Express
For passenger safety, DTC will monitor all its buses in real-time. Here's how
To ensure safety of passengers, avoid accidents, and stop drivers from speeding, the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) has asked its depot managers to ensure that all buses in the fleet are integrated into the Bus Management System (BMS) dashboard, which will be monitored through a control and command centre on a real-time basis. The BMS initiative was introduced last year by then AAP transport minister Kailash Gahlot to monitor buses using GPS (Global Positioning System) data to stop drivers from speeding, jumping red lights, and not stopping at designated bus stops. 'The object of the BMS dashboard was to assess and compare the performance of depots using key performance indicators (KPIs), and to take corrective measures for any underperforming depot,' said an official. Officials said the directions came at a meeting of DTC officials on May 7. 'Around 80 TATA buses are yet to be integrated with BMS. The Strategic Business Unit has been instructed to issue necessary directions to TATA to immediately share details of its buses with the BMS vendor and ensure that the integration is completed without further delay,' read the minutes of the meeting. Also, all depot managers have been directed to verify the functioning of Intelligent Transport System (ITS) devices on the buses, it added. Officials said directions have been issued to impose penalties on 'non-functioning systems' in accordance with the terms of the Service Level Agreement between DTC and TATA. Further, DTC has asked its depots to submit a comprehensive weekly report every Monday on region-wise infractions and depot-specific violations, among others. 'Performance across depot-level KPIs was reviewed… Kalkaji Depot was praised for its initiative to impose penalties on concessionaires (TATA/Jay Bharat Maruti) for non-compliance and infractions. However, BBM Depot, Hasanpur Depot, and Nand Nagari Depot were flagged as defaulters for not enforcing penalties on concessionaires,' read the minutes. Further, all depot managers have been instructed to ensure active monitoring through BMS. The DTC has also asked its operations department to seek explanations for inaction from defaulters and to constitute a committee of regional managers (RMs) to monitor the reasons behind lower earnings. 'Depot performance review meetings will now be held every 15 days…,' said an official. Officials said DTC has sought regular inspections of depots. 'Also, a standard depot inspection programme is to be developed to ensure uniformity and accountability in inspection reporting, which will focus on clean and well-maintained buses to improve public visibility of DTC,' said an official. There are 2,152 electric buses in Delhi, of which 1,752 buses are run by DTC and 400 under the DIMTS-Cluster scheme. On average, 40 lakh people travel by buses in Delhi every day.
Indian Express
11-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
One out of three Delhi localities lack access to a bus stop. Here's what a study shows
More than 31% of Delhi's neighbourhoods are not within 500 metres of any public bus stop, a recently released transport study has found, pointing to major gaps in the national capital's public transport system — especially in dense settlements where narrow streets prevent regular buses from entering. The study, conducted by the International Council on Clean Transport (ICCT), examines the extent to which different neighbourhoods of a city are served by a bus service and identifies those which have little to no access to public transport. The working paper, titled 'Neighbourhood Public Transit Services: Bus-Based Public Transport Supply in Delhi', makes the case for the introduction of a reliable, short-distance, high-frequency neighbourhood-level bus service. Last week, Chief Minister Rekha Gupta had launched 400 electric buses under the Delhi Vehicle Interconnector (DEVI) scheme. Last year, then Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot, under the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, had flagged off trials of a mohalla bus service, under which nine-metre buses, different from the standard 12-metre ones, would ply on Delhi streets to boost last-mile connectivity. The scheme's name was changed to DEVI under the new BJP government. Despite having over 7,800 buses on more than 600 routes operated by the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) and DIMTS, authors of the study — Bhaumik Gowande and Revanthy Pradeep — found that large parts of the city still remain unserved. The study, which evaluated the level of public transit accessibility by finding out if a neighbourhood has access to public buses within a 500-metre radius, found that 69% of Delhi's built area is within the 500-metre radius of a public bus stop. A city with good public transit access has 85-90% of its built-up areas within the 500-metre radius. Municipal wards like Deoli, Jaitpur, Sangam Vihar A, Mustafabad, Ghonda, Sainik Enclave, Hari Nagar Extension and Prem Nagar have zero buildings within a 500-metre walk of a bus stop. 'Residents in these areas often need to walk distances higher than average to reach the nearest bus stop, exacerbating first- and last-mile connectivity challenges,' the study noted. Among wards with almost all of their residential areas within the walking radius are CR Park, Dilshad Garden, Civil Lines, Karol Bagh, R K Puram and Mongolpuri. To identify gaps and plan new routes, ICCT used route data from DTC and DIMTS, last-mile permit records, and satellite imagery. A Geographic Information System (GIS)-based analysis was used to map population density against public transport stops, using a 500-metre buffer as a walkability threshold. Delhi's transport planning has largely focused on long-haul trunk routes and Metro corridors. However, 60% of trips in the city are under 4 km, and 80% are under 6 km, according to previous government studies. One example is Dwarka, where a previous government study found that nearly 18% of Metro users travel within the sub-city itself, suggesting a significant reliance on Metro even for short commutes. The analysis had also revealed that within a 5-km radius, the average trip length in Dwarka is 4.3 km, indicating a substantial demand for short-distance travel. Thus, the ICCT study argues that without local or intra-zonal connectivity, even residents living close to Metro stations struggle to complete their journeys without relying on autos or private vehicles, leading to congestion. Delhi ranked 44th for congestion among 387 cities in the 2023 TomTom Traffic Index. The average speed during rush hours was 24 km/h in 2023, with the average time to cover 10 km increasing to 21 minutes and 40 seconds, a slowdown of 30 seconds compared with the previous year, the study notes. Devansh Mittal is a trainee correspondent with The Indian Express. He studied political science at Ashoka University. He can be reached at ... Read More
Indian Express
21-04-2025
- Automotive
- Indian Express
2,500 old DTC & cluster services' buses to go off roads in Delhi by year-end
More than 2,500 old Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) and cluster services' buses will go off the road by end of the year, officials said, adding that the phasing out has started in March, and till date, 397 buses have been removed from fleet. 'These buses were procured during the 2010 Commonwealth Games and many of them are being operated even after their Annual Maintenance Contract (AMC) had lapsed. These buses are in a poor condition… face problems like frequent breakdowns… and with the summers here, there are chances of these buses catching fire,' said a senior official. Officials said while these buses come with a shelf life of 12 years, including two years of maintenance, these usually ply for 15 years after their AMC lapse, if these remain in a good condition. 'Permission to ply for more than 12 years is given after the buses are inspected,' the official said. According to Transport department data, of the 1,860 DTC buses, 345 have been phased out in March. The rest will be phased out by December, said officials. Under the cluster bus services – operated under Delhi Integrated Multi Modal Transit System Limited – 997 buses have completed their shelf life even after their AMC period, approved on April 15, 2024, had expired. Last year, after some cluster buses had completed a 10-year contract period, the department had decided to phase these out. However, then Transport minister Kailash Gahlot had directed the department to give the buses an extension of nine months. 'The concessionaires of cluster 7 and 8 buses, having around 600 buses, had received interim relief for three weeks – from April 15 to May 7 – after they moved court against the phasing out of the buses. The buses of cluster 6 and 9, meanwhile, have been phased out,' said a senior official. Asked how the department plans to fill the gap when these buses go off road, the official said, 'These buses will not be phased out at one go…These will be phased out every month or as when the AMC period ends. Also, new buses are being inducted…' Officials said that Delhi will get more than 5,000 new e-buses under National Electric Bharat Program (NEBP) Phase 1 and PM E-Drive. 'Under NEBP 1, agreements have been signed for procurement of 2,080 buses that are 9-m long for DTC and cluster services,' said an official. Agreements have been signed with five concessionaires — JBM Ecolite, PMI Electro Mobility, Green Cell, White Bus, and Switch Mobility — for the supply of these buses, officials said. Moreover, the government has sought around 1,300 buses (12-m-long) under PM E-Drive. Also, the department has floated tenders to procure 1,900 buses — 12-m-long — of which around 400 are yet to join the fleet, said officials, adding that by the end of the year, the city will also have around 2,800 e-buses. On Tuesday, Chief Minister Rekha Gupta will flag off 330 electric mohalla buses, procured under the AAP government. The BJP government has renamed the initiative as Delhi EV Interconnector (DEVI).
