DTC Top Guns to Monitor Their Services Periodically

For once, the babus are going to get a taste of their own medicine. In a novel initiative, the DTC brass will commute to work and back in their own buses on two designated days every month. The idea is for them to travel in buses to understand first hand the problems faced by regular commuters and initiate corrective action accordingly.

The corporation has made it compulsory for all senior officials to take a DTC bus to work on the second and last Monday of the month. The officials, including DTC chairman and managing director Naresh Kumar, will not use their staff cars on those days. ‘‘We have now got better buses but there are certain operational problems. Maintenance of buses is another issue. When all officials involved in the decision-making process at DTC travel in buses on a regular basis, the quality of service will automatically improve,’’ said a senior DTC official.

The decision is going to impact more than 200 officials who have been given staff cars by the government. Before the Commonwealth Games in October this year, DTC is striving to better its image and services. The corporation is going to get about 3,125 new low-floor buses. Bus shelters are also being given a facelift. But there have been regular complaints from commuters about the reliability and efficiency of buses and staff. Buses don’t follow timetables, run behind schedule and don’t stop at designated bus stops.

A slew of other measures are also being planned to improve service, like creating a dedicated fleet of buses to be run only on school routes. The decision was taken after it was observed that some DTC buses which had been put on school routes tended to withdraw from service earlier than scheduled, leaving their routes midway. At present, about 1,300 DTC buses ferry students of nearly 700 city schools.

DTC has also started imparting driving and behavior training to its drivers on simulators at Automobile Association of Upper India

Due to non availability of low floor buses Govt allowed Semi low-floor buses

At a time when the government is expediting the Blueline phase-out process and ordering removal of all Blueline from south Delhi from next month, Delhites can expect relief on ground too. The government, on Wednesday, took a decision to allow semi-low floor and standard floor buses on city routes. This, in effect, means that the first cluster of the corporatization scheme which was initiated as a replacement of Blueline will get operational before the Commonwealth Games.

Even though the cluster had been awarded to a private operator last year, there was no certainty on when the buses would start plying as the only two manufacturers supplying low floor buses in the country are anyway stretched with the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) order for 3,125 low floor buses. The government’s decision now gives the operator the choice of bringing in semi-low floor buses on the new routes, which match the specifications cleared by the Centre for buses being procured under the JNNURM scheme, for Delhi as well.

To ensure comfort and riding quality, the government has put a clause that DTC can only get low floor buses.

‘‘As per the final transportation plan for Delhi, DTC will run 60 percent of buses on all routes. We have taken a decision that the DTC fleet will only have low-floor buses. But the private corporate running buses on the 16 clusters can now bring in semi-low floor buses too,’’ said transport minister Arvinder Singh Lovely. ‘

The rest of the parameters like GPS, control rooms, etc will remain the same. The semi-low floor buses cost much lesser too making the running of clusters more lucrative for private players.

Lovely added that the first cluster will now get operational before the Commonwealth Games, which essentially means that south Delhi will have an additional 300-odd buses plying on the roads. The government is in the process of allotting the other 15 clusters too.

Meanwhile, chief minister Shiela Dikshit announced on Wednesday that Delhi Integrated Multi-Modal Transit System (DIMTS) will take up construction of 250 modern bus shelters on Public Private Partnership (PPP) model, like the one adopted by New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) and of another 800 bus shelters through a tendering process at a total cost of Rs 96 crore.

The government has put in a request with the Union Ministry of Urban Development to sanction at least half the amount from the Delhi Development Fund. The new bus shelters will come up on routes leading to Commonwealth Games venues.

Low Floor DTC Buses Fleet to Hit NOIDA roads soon

After the Metro link between NOIDA and Delhi opened on Thursday, there is some more joy in store for residents of the satellite town. Delhi Transport Corporation has decided to run 35 low-floor buses between Delhi and NOIDA from next week. Sources said the buses have already been procured and will be pressed into service once they are registered with local RTO.

Sources at NOIDA’s DTC depot said that in the first phase, 35 buses will be run daily.

‘‘We expect to take this number to 40 in the next few weeks. We wish to take the total number of low-floor buses operating in NOIDA to 100. Out of these, at least 30 buses will be air-conditioned,’’ said a senior DTC official.

Residents in NOIDA welcomed the DTC move. ‘‘The Metro might be here, but vast sections of NOIDA, including sectors 12, 22, 62, 63 and Nithari — are not covered by it. DTC buses will help people in these areas. With low-floor buses, I now hope to avoid rides on the rickety Bluelines,’’ said Sanjeev Sharma, a PR executive residing in sector 22.

Sanjay Bohidar, a media professional residing in sector 56, said he was expecting more frequent services on dedicated routes. ‘‘The service from NOIDA to Dhaula Kuan and Airport is very erratic.

There are a lot of passengers on these routes, especially during the office hours. I will request the DTC to run more buses on these routes,’’ he said. At present, the DTC has 20 buses at its NOIDA depot. The UPSRTC runs 35 buses on various Delhi routes.

UP road transport department officials said once low-floor buses are introduced in NOIDA, the department might have to revise fares. ‘‘With DMRC and DTC focusing on NOIDA routes, we will loss passengers unless we go for another round of revisions,’’ said a senior UPSRTC official.

DTC Added 107 new buses to its low-floor fleet

83 To Ply On Three Routes In BRT Corridor

Finally, some good news regarding low floor buses. On Sunday, 107 low-floor buses — maximum in a single lot so far — were added to DTC fleet, increasing the number of total DTC buses plying on city roads to 6,500.

The new buses, said sources, would be mostly pressed into service in the BRT corridor, bringing relief to thousands of commuters who use these routes. Commuters in other parts of the city will have to wait till March next year to get better frequency of low-floor buses. The government hopes to increase the number of this fleet to 3,125 by end of March.

Commissioning the new buses, chief minister Sheila Dikshit said many more such vehicles are needed. ‘‘London has 10,000 buses and for 1.6 crore population, we need to have more of such buses. We saw this dream 3-4 years ago, but there were design related issues. We rectified them and brought these buses,’’ she said.

The CM claimed a big fleet of modern buses was a sign of ‘‘Delhi marching ahead’’ but stressed ‘‘the people should have a sense of responsibility towards these vehicles and maintain them properly’’. ‘‘Treat DTC buses as you treat your own car. For visitors, local buses are the first impression of the city. Keep them clean. For us, the priority is to shift twowheeler and car users to buses,’’ Dikshit said.

Transport minister Arvinder Singh Lovely termed increase in the fleet of DTC buses a ‘‘new revolution in city’s transport system’’. ‘‘There is no alternate to DTC as far as public transport in Delhi is concerned. This would also save Delhiites from Blueline buses,’’ Lovely added.

Sources in the DTC said 83 buses of the new fleet would ply on three routes in the BRT corridor. Currently, low-floor buses plying on route No 419, 423 and 522 make around 731 trips per day. With new buses, the number would increase to 1036 trips per day.

DTC officials said that earlier the corporation was diverting buses from three depots — Sukhdev Vihar, Mayapuri and Subhash Palace — to serve commuters on the BRT corridor. But now a new depot has been started at Ambedkar Nagar and it would mean saving time and fuel. It would also free up a few buses that, said sources, would be diverted to other routes in the capital.

With these 107 buses, the number of AC buses on Delhi roads has increased to 55 and non-AC buses to 708. DTC managing director Naresh Kumar said the power of ACs in the new buses has been increased to bring maximum comfort to passengers. Dikshit also asked the transport department to explore the possibility of special tourist buses and doubledecker buses on select routes.


Road Revolution

Speed limit (40kmph) through engine management software
Gas leakage detection system
Tubeless tyres
Display of approaching bus stops with integrated voice announcement system compatible with GPS

Source : http://epaper.timesofindia.com

Bloodlines (Bluelines) to stay on Delhi Roads

The efforts of Delhi government to phase out the Bluelines (often called ad bloodlines) has got a serious kickback as now it is concentrating more on adequate supply of buses before commonwealth games

Delhi’s dream of getting rid of "killer" Bluelines has been put on the backburner. The state government has put the corporatization plan "on hold for now" to ensure that about 3,100 buses ordered by Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) arrive before the Commonwealth Games 2010.

Sources said the process of appointing an operator for the first cluster has been put on hold, but the scheme will take off again after a sizeable part of buses ordered by DTC arrives.

The two bus manufacturers in the country, Tata Motors and Ashok Leyland are utilizing their entire capacity to deliver DTC’s order for about 3,125 low-floor buses and another 1,100 semi-low-floor buses in time for the Commonwealth Games. The deadline for making the delivery of these orders is March 2010, but the first lot of buses is yet to arrive from any of the two companies. However, Tata Motors is expected to deliver about 25 buses by this month-end.

Delhi government is also planning to place order for more buses with the funds from urban development ministry under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) scheme to promote public transport. In such a scenario, if the corporates, to whom each of the 17 clusters, which the city is divided into, will be awarded the corporatization scheme, also start placing orders for buses, it is feared that the delivery of the DTC orders will get affected.

The government is of the opinion that if the corporates also approach the manufacturers with orders for more buses, it will add to the strain. ‘‘Corporates may be given faster delivery of buses as they can disburse funds more quickly than the government, which has to follow certain process for making payments,’’ sources said.

The option of importing buses from other countries was also looked into, but the rates being quoted were much higher than those offered by the Indian manufacturers.

Transport minister Arvinder Singh Lovely confirmed that the first cluster has not been awarded yet. "The corporatization scheme has been put on hold for now. Once the DTC bus order starts rolling, the first cluster will be awarded to the identified bidder," Lovely told in an interview with a leading English daily.

Sources said the phase-out of Bluelines will continue as per schedule, and by the end of the year another 700 buses will be taken off the roads. If the delivery of new DTC buses is delayed, the Bluelines phase-out process may be slowed down. The transport department has also stopped issuing new permits for Blueline buses, and even extensions of permits are temporary.

With the corporatization process having been delayed now, it seems unlikely that Delhi will meet the requirement of 11,000 buses on capital roads by 2010, as prescribed by the Supreme Court.

At present, there are about 5,800 buses, including 2,700 Bluelines and 3,100 DTC buses, operating on Delhi roads. Over 1,000 Bluelines have been phased out this year. But the government says the gap is being made up by increasing the efficiency of DTC buses, which are now making 20,400 trips as against 16,000 trips earlier.

Officials, however, said the city will not face shortage of buses before the Games. "The 11,000 mark for buses may not be reached by 2010, but there will be over 6,000 DTC buses and another 2,000-odd Bluelines plying in the city till next year. The number of trips made by DTC buses are being increased and people will not feel inconvenienced," sources said.

So far, DTC has just got the first order of 625 low floor buses.

Major Overhaul needed for Delhi Public Transport System

Metro has changed the way Delhi travels but a lot needs to be done to revamp the capital’s public transport, especially buses, before Games


The capital has often been riled for not overhauling its rickety, unreliable and, at times, killer public transport (read Bluelines). Even though Metro brought about a much-needed image makeover, Delhi has a lot of ground to cover. And Commonwealth Games 2010 came as a godsend opportunity for city government to revamp the public transport. An integrated plan with Delhi Metro as the backbone, along with buses, taxis, LRT and monorail as supplementary modes, was envisaged for transforming the way city moves.

Even as Metro projects are largely on schedule, the bus service may need special attention, especially after a Supreme Court mandate that Delhi needs no less than 11,000 buses. The state transport department’s plan to augment the DTC fleet is in fast lane and the city already has 625 new buses, including 25 AC ones. Orders for another 3,500 buses have been placed and they may start rolling in by next month. DTC will get over 6,000 buses by next year. The routes are being redone with the total number of bus routes being increased from existing 357 to 670.

But DTC fleet will account for only 60% of the total buses. For the remaining, the transport department has planned replacing Blueline buses with private bus fleet run by corporate. For this, the city has been divided into 17 clusters, each comprising a bunch of overlapping bus routes, to be run by one entity. The new system is aimed at eradicating competition between different bus operators running on the same route, as this was seen as the main problem with the Blueline fleet. The new timetables for the fleet will be made using a new technology to ensure that no trips go wasted.

But more than a year after the scheme was finalized; the government is yet to award an operator to run the first cluster. As per the first deadlines set by the transport department, the first lot of over 200 buses should have been operational by July this year. But far from that, even the contract has not been awarded. According to sources, the plan has run into rough weather because the government was unable to estimate the huge cost.

The lowest bidder for the first cluster, Star Bus Ltd, has quoted a rate of Rs 47.50 per km per bus. The government will have to pay Rs 85 crore per annum to the operator for 230 buses plying 200 km daily. It is a 10-year commitment to pay and the fares will need to be revised from time to time. This, sources say, is going to put a huge burden on the government.

The tenders for the remaining 16 clusters have also been put on hold till the fate of the first one is decided. Now, it seems unlikely that the clusters will get operational before the Games as the awardees of the clusters will need time to procure new buses, get staff and set up control rooms. The transport department has set a time of about 6 months from the day the tender is awarded for these formalities.

The other project which has gone off track is the controversial Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system, which received a major setback when trial runs on the pilot corridor between Ambedkar Nagar and Moolchand resulted in a major public outcry. Now, Pilot B, the second design for BRT with bus lanes on the extreme left, will get operational on the remaining part of the pilot stretch — Moolchand to Delhi Gate in September. Till then, six more BRT corridors planned have been put on hold till the working of Pilot B is seen.

Transport Department’s SPV Delhi Integrated Multi-Modal Transit System (DIMTS) is also working on an integration plan to connect all the modes of transport by means of integrated terminals and a common ticketing system. But not much has progressed.

With all the projects in place, the government had envisaged a reduction in private vehicles on Delhi roads — almost 1,000 vehicles are added to the existing 51 lakh-odd vehicles. Over 70 flyovers are coming up and important road projects like an east-west road link between the Games Village and Lodhi Road and strengthening of the Ring Road are expected to ease the situation further.

More Buses and 15 new Bus depots to come up in Delhi before 2010 CWG

Delhi Transport Minister Arvinder Singh Lovely Thursday said that 15 new Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) bus depots would come up before 2010 Commonwealth Games (CWG).

CCTV cameras would also be installed in all DTC bus depots to ensure security during the 2010 CWG," he said after a review meeting regarding DTC's preparation for the 2010 Games.

"With 15 new depots, the total number of DTC depots would reach 50 with multi level parking capacity of 6,000 buses. Construction works in seven new depots are going on and these depots would be functional by November 2009," Lovely added.

The minister said that DTC would be adding 2,500 low floor CNG buses to its existing fleet by March 2010 and the delivery of new buses will start next month with 150 buses joining the DTC fleet.

Of these 2,500, 1,000 are low floor air-conditioned buses while 1,500 will be normal low floor CNG buses. Besides this, 625 new low floor buses would be added in the DTC fleet.

DTC has started the process of purchasing 1,000 new semi-low floor buses, he said, adding they would have a state-of-art passenger information system and global positioning system for the convenience of commuters. As many as 574 low floor buses would be in the Commonwealth Games Village for the sports persons, Lovely added.

"All buses will be equipped with automatic vehicle ticketing system and with new logo of Commonwealth Games. Endeavor would be made to give a new look to the old buses of DTC," Lovely said.

The minister said an Internal Training Module for DTC drivers has already been formulated with the co-operation of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the central government's tourism ministry, so that these drivers may adopt better manners and behavior.

Keeping an Eye on Games, Public Transport Gets High Boost

With 2010 Commonwealth Games a little more than a year away, improving transportation facilities continued to be high on the government’s agenda. Monday’s budget was indicative of it with a whopping 31% of the total outlay, Rs 3,069 crore, allocated to this sector. Though no new projects were announced, the money was to be used to fund ongoing schemes like construction of Delhi Metro, procurement of 2,500 new DTC buses and building new flyovers, underpasses and rail over-bridges.

In a scenario where the number of vehicles in Delhi was set to cross the 60 lakh mark, the move to encourage public transport would go a long way in easing congestion.

The government announced that work on nine new Delhi Metro corridors was progressing on schedule. All the new lines, which will add another 185 km to the existing network, would be operational by October 2010.

Funds have also been allocated for 2,500 new DTC buses that will hit the roads before March next year. The purchase order for these buses has already been placed. The Union government agreed to partially fund 1,500 more buses for Delhi under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM)

In addition to buses, funds have also been set aside for new road infrastructure projects like flyovers, underpasses, rail overbridges and road resurfacing. The construction of flyovers/ROBs is gaining pace at RR Kohli Marg, Shastri Nagar Pushta, Azadpur, BJ Marg-RTR Marg, Africa Avenue, Nelson Mandela Marg, Naraina and underpasses at ITO Chungi. Work on Barapullah Nallah Road and Salimgarh Bypass projects have also started.

Further, an amount of Rs 111.61 crore has been released to MCD for construction of 17 ROBs to be completed before October 2010. Another Rs 80 crore has been released to MCD to develop a modern parking for the new DTC buses.

Before Commonwealth Games 6600 New Buses for Delhi

The Delhi government will purchase 6,600 new buses before the 2010 Commonwealth Games to provide a better public transport system during the Games, Lieutenant Governor Tejedra Khanna said Monday.

Addressing the Delhi assembly at the start of the budget session Monday, Khanna said: "3,800 new buses are proposed to be purchased in time for the Commonwealth Games 2010. It will be augmented to a fleet of 6,600 buses, to meet the requirements of Delhiites."

The bus fleet will include both low- and semi-low floor buses, along with air-conditioned buses. It is likely to provide public transport a competitive edge over private transport.

Khanna informed the assembly that the Delhi government is constructing 24 new flyovers and bridges and six road-over-bridges/road-under-bridges to provide better intra-city connectivity during the Games period.

"The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) is also constructing 18 road-over-bridges/road-under-bridges to ensure rapid flow of vehicular traffic between the competition venues. These will contribute significantly to a reduction in stoppage times," Khanna told the assembly.

The Public Works Department (PWD), New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) and MCD have also taken up a drive to beautify the roads, by way of widening, strengthening and resurfacing the roads and street lighting.

"To improve aesthetics, street scaping alongside roads and in vacant areas around the flyovers will include greenery, tree plantation, street furniture and modern signages. All these projects are at different stages of progress and will be completed in time for the Commonwealth Games," Khanna added.

Blueline buses will be Phased Out from July: Delhi Government

Ahead of the 2010 Commonwealth Games, the Delhi Government has decided to start phasing out of Blueline (often called as blood lines by Delhites) buses from July onwards by replacing them with modern buses over a period of next five months.

The Sheila Dikshit-led Delhi Government had announced last year that it would phase out the buses since witnessing a big public outcry over Blueline buses after being blamed to be involved in a number of road accidents involving several deaths.

Delhi's Transport Minister, Arvinder Singh Lovely, has told media that the phase out of Blueline buses would start from July onwards and would take at least five months to conclude the entire process. Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) would have a fleet of around 5,000 modern buses during the Commonwealth Games.

The government wants to put in place a modern bus fleet ahead of the forthcoming games in the city.

At present, nearly 2,200 Blue line buses are plying on the city's roads. Apart from the existing low floor buses, the city will get another lot of 2,500 vehicles in next couple of months.

The Cabinet has shown 'green signal' to Delhi Transport Corporation to procure 1,000 semi-low floor buses to augment the fleet of modern buses in the national capital.

More AC buses to ply in Delhi

The Delhi Transport Corporation has done a new experiment by introducing new AC buses on the roads of Delhi and the response was over cheering. The new air-conditioned bus fleet has been proved to be a huge crowd puller. The senior government officials proposed that the number of buses should be doubled and the AC fleet has to be enhanced before the 2010 Commonwealth Games, in a review meeting which held a short before. The government has good plans to increase the proposed number of 1,250 AC buses to about 2,500 in a phased manner.
After the review which showed that the AC buses currently on road were a big hit with the citizens, senior government officials said that the total number of AC buses to be procured should be doubled.

The first lot of AC buses is running to packed capacity and the transport department is flooded with people’s requests from all parts of the city to run the buses in their areas.

The first order which was placed for 525 low-floor buses, there were just 25 buses supposed to be AC. Now the transport department is trying to see how the number of AC buses in the successive orders can be increased. Doing this could also mean a decrease in the non AC green buses.

Source : Times of India News Paper , Delhi Edition

Tata Motors will be the official vehicle provider of the Commonwealth Youth Games

Tata Motors has won the contract for the official vehicle provider of the Commonwealth Youth Games Baton Relay, which is part of the 3rd Commonwealth Youth Games Pune 2008. Tata Motors will provide 23 Tata vehicles which would include Sumo Grande, Safari, Winger, Magic and others will accompany the baton relay entourage. One of the vehicles provided will be a Special Green Vehicle (SFC 407) which will continuously collect refuse from the relay; process it into manure that will be used for planting saplings on the relay route.

Rapid Public Transport System for 2010 Commonwealth games

Besides roads, public transport is also improving in the city. Already the Delhi Mass Rapid Transmit System, also known as the Delhi Metro, is a huge success and is a well maintained, very efficient means of transport within the city. They are adding more routes, lines and stations and connectivity to neighboring cities such as Gurgaon in Haryana and Noida in Uttar Pradesh. There are plans of constructing nine new subways and improving the current subway systems. The new high capacity low floored buses are also plying now in the city. For more information about the plying routes of Delhi Metro, you can access the map of Delhi metro here:

Delhi Metro Map: - http://www.delhicapital.com/delhi-metro/metro-maps.html

Low-floor buses to Operate between Delhi and Noida by 2010 Games

According to Noida Authority officials, around 40 low-floor buses will ply on Noida-Delhi routes before the Commonwealth Games 2010.Of these, 20 will ply from the Delhi Transport Corporation’s Noida depot along with another 20 buses of the Noida Authority.

The DTC is expected to sanction the buses for the Noida depot in Sector-32 soon. Semi-low floor buses will also be sanctioned for the suburb once the process of modernization is completed.

The Commonwealth Games is expected to attract a lot of visitors to Noida and Greater Noida, which will also host some of the events, apart from visitors.

The Authority plans to have many world-class hotels in place before the Games. The DTC, officials said, has that in mind, and plans to introduce many new standard buses on the city’s roads soon.

Meanwhile, sources in the Noida Authority said the officials are mooting a proposal to buy similar buses which will run on city routes. The proposals are expected to come up in a few months and the plan, if approved, will be implemented before the Commonwealth Games.

There are close to 200 buses running between Noida and Delhi on 15 routes, and 94 buses on various other routes from Delhi Transport Corporation’s Noida depot , which has 115 buses in all.