…or so the media has us all believe.
About two weeks ago, the Government of Delhi, India unveiled the much hyped Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), previously popular here as the High Capacity Bus Corridor (HCBS) and the construction for which had been on for the last few months. The little under 6 Km BRT stretch that is now completed and is being trial run came at the cost of some lives (accidental deaths) and at the reported cost of about 3,000 heritage trees of Delhi. The dedicated bus lanes invited mixed reaction from the public; with the car users complaining about having to spend more time on the road now than before and the bus riders being annoyed with the bus-stands being displaced to the middle of the road. Poor design and lack of coordination between different stake holders further worsened the situation. And as if all of that wasn’t enough, the media has taken on itself to narrate the “failure of BRT story” with much fervour.
The Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) in Delhi is the brainchild of the Indian Institute of Technology-Delhi’s Traffic Research and Injury Prevention Programme (TRIPP) and has been executed by RITES Ltd., a Govt. of India enterprise. The Delhi Integrated Multi Modal Transit System (DIMTS) a “special purpose vehicle” set up by the Govt. is supervising the Project. Clearly then, the Project does not have a single master: probably leading to the mess. The BRT stretch now requires over 70 traffic marshals, 35 traffic policemen and 20 transport department officials for enforcement.
However, it is not just poor planning and lack of coordination that is leading to the mayhem on the corridor. The people using the corridor are to be equally blamed. While the authorities are trying their best to ensure people drive in the lanes meant for the type of vehicle they are using, motorists are violating every rule in the book. The cycle lane is the worst hit and sees more motorcycles, scooters and auto-taxis than cycles. The BRT needs a disciplined traffic to work best, and Delhi unfortunately does not relate much to the latter. Halting on the road to take a call, changing lanes without signaling, over-speeding and jumping signals isn’t something too uncommon in the city. In fact, it is this very discipline now required to maintain on the road, that has been irritating many.
Apparently, the media has initiated a “scrap BRT campaign” of its own! Ever since the first trial run, images and footage of cars waiting forever, motorcycles scattered around the signals, pedestrians not knowing where/how to go; have been put up on the front page/prime time by several media houses. What is unfortunate is that the media seems to have ignored the large number of people who have benefited from the launch of the BRT. While some 1.2 lakh people using their personal vehicles may facing problems and hating the BRT, more than double this number of people using buses have not complained. Rather, they have not been heard.
To gain some experience, I myself took a ride on the entire strecth of the BRT. It felt good, the journey was much speedier and the same bus that used to crawl on the road was at a speed that would not have ever been possible without the corridor. The new low floored buses that have been around for some time added to my pleasant experience. Minus the AC, the experience came pretty close to what it feels when one travels in the Delhi Metro!
Next day, I took my car on the same route, got stuck at all signals - with an empty lane on my left - that had buses zooming pass by me. Then, I realized why all the irritation, disgust and hatred was for!
By Govind Singh, New Delhi
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We have the same problems in the UK where i live. There are dedicated people who are car obsessed and hate the bus lanes because they always appear empty. They campaign against the whole idea of climate change. Ironically these dedicated car enthusiasts would actually benefit from having fewer cars on the road, but they don’t have enough brain cells to think of that. The only way to solve traffic problems is to get cars off the road. Then the car lanes would be nice and empty to!
This is not accurate to say that BRT in Delhi has failed. Media is making people believe that. The project implementers did not handle media well and some comments about media in the middle of the project implementation made media to wage war against the project. The cars throughput has increased slightly and the buses cover the distance in 1/3rd of the time. The travel time for the cars will remain more or less same no matter what the throughput is. If throughput increases, then more cars will use this route and if throughput decrease then people will drive from this corridor. 60% of delhi population uses buses and around 15% are pedestrians and cyclist. They are clearly happy and from nowhere pilot project has failed miserably!
Great post! It holds dear to my heart because I just flew out of Delhi last Friday and remember seeing a couple of those buses flying around town. I also remember seeing a public debate on NDTV, I think. The discussion centered on school children and how they would have to cross three lanes of traffic each time they wanted to get to a bus. The commissioner, or some official, made the argument they have to cross six lanes of traffic at this point regardless. All heated discussion with no conclusion. What are the viable alternatives, though? Give everyone a 1 lakh car? I think that would be one “solution” guaranteed to make the situation worse…
Great post, Kartik. I have been reading a lot about BRT in Berkeley, which is pretty contentious. It’s interesting to see examples of how it’s being received in other places.
Excellent article. Anti BRT and the car lobby has been doing their damnest to kill BRT so the entire width of the road can open up to cars. Little do they realise that actually a well flowing BRT improves the flow even in the MV lanes. Sensible people need to speak up in support of BRT even while initial shortcomings are corrected.
Sujit Patwardhan
Parisar,
Pune
If we consider the trip lengths and possible options for commuting in Indian cities we have to give priority to commuters choosing the option of Public Transport. Other options of mass transport are rather costly and capital intensive. I think BRT is an attempt to give priority to commuters using public transport, which is used by 60 % of Delhi’s people. If these people using BRT do not have any complaints to make against BRT then for whom media is making faul cry. In Paris using your own vehicle is 6 times costlier than using Public Transport, still no body grumbles. Here in India on one hand we are talking about ” Inclusive Planning “, ” Including the Excluded “, and on the other hand we are arguing for the interests of few who are using their own vehicles and causing congestion on the roads and are responsible for pollution in the city. In fact BRT is nothing else but an attempt to provide mobility to common man. But it seems these people want the mobility of vehicles. rather than the mobility of people which is against the National Transport Policy.
BRTS is a proven concept so let us not question the efficacy of BRTS. The problems that Delhi faced were the same as Pune in 2006. However, in Delhi it became ‘national interest’ while no body took notice of the woes of Pune.
I can summarise what went wrong with Delhi/Pune BRTS:
a. The passenger lead (average distance commuted by bus passenger) is over 12 km in Delhi and Pune while the length of the BRTS is only 5.8 km. Hence, the average commuter would not like to take a BRTS bus for fear of changing buses.
b. Where ever BRTS has succeeded, there has been a corresponding land-use planning to ensure that the BRTS gets additional commuters. No such planning is done in Delhi or Pune. Hence, we find the bus lanes ‘empty’, while there is overcrowding in personalised vehicle lanes.
c. We in India have scant respect for the law because our representatives set the example of breaking the law and getting away with murder. BRTS needs good traffic discipline.
d. A proper BRTS has an intelligent transportation systm, just to name one basic attribute, which neither Pune or Delhi has.
e. Transportation is a ‘political’ problem, not technical and least of all economic. In the case of both Delhi and Pune, politics played a large part. In Pune, the idea was to complete an adhoc BRTS (actually a modified bus system with dedicated lanes) before the impending municipal elections. BRTS failed so did the ruling party!
f. In Delhi, there is an ideological battle. The Left wants to deprive the personalised vehicles owners space on the road while at the same time promoting (for obvious reasons) a particular brand of luxury buses for BRTS. This kind of ‘politics’ is not in the interest of the public. In Pune, the NGOs saw through the game of the consultants (the same as Delhi) and succeeded in persuading the administration not to buy buses of the particular make.
g. The citizen and the county suffers. But then who cares?
Did you say, ‘citizen’ and imply ‘India’? Which citizen and which country are you talking about? China or the US?
With Indian’s urban traffic and air pollution rivalling the worst in the world it is amazing to hear the bellyaching when a plan to increase the flow of people (not vehicles) per hour runs into snags. Of course Delhi has its metro, for billions (thats dollars or rupees, not people), but where are the sidewalks, the bus and auto stands, the safe walkways etc. Why was I able to get a cheap loan for a two wheeler at CICI Bank in Pune in Dec. 2004 when there were no sidewalks in front of the bank offering the loan? And what will happen when the two wheeled scourage of streets becomes a four wheeled one?\’
These are India’s problems to be solved by Indians. Other cities and nations have been struggling for years, with Singapore, London and Stockholm ( congestion pricing, mss transit) and Latin American cities like Mexico City (Metrobus, 300 000 people/day ni a single 25 km coridor) showing results. What will Indian cities do? Protect the majority on buses, on feet, or on pedals or pave more roads for the small minority in cars or the growing minority on two wheelers?
Lee Schipper
Berkeley
In mixed traffic, buses were carrying not more that 4000 people in the peak hour in the peak direction. One the BRT lane has opened the speed of buses is over 15 km ph and it carries close to 12,000-14,000 in th peak hour. 10,000 more people. The lane meant for motor vehicles carries not more than 2,500 people.