Commute

In 2019, the Tamil Nadu government gave a serious push to green mobility, when the erstwhile Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami flagged off two electric buses in Chennai for a trial run. This was in fact the second attempt, after an earlier trial run conducted in July 2017, again with a trial test for an electric bus. In 2019, the buses, operated by Ashok Leyland, plied on two routes — Chennai Central to Thiruvanmiyur and Koyambedu to Broadway routes. The three-month trial was completed in late 2019. But since then, Chennaiites have not seen any major progress on the electric bus…

Looking at Chennai's roads, one would wonder if the roads in Indian cities are designed only for motorised vehicles. Two wheelers and four wheelers account for 90% of the total vehicle fleet pushing users of public transport, pedestrians and cyclists to the margins even though the majority of trips are made by them. The civic administration in Chennai woke up late to this issue. It began constructing footpaths in several parts of the city. And I decided to get a feel of these footpaths to see how comfortable it is to walk on them. What better place to experience than to…

India’s cities are dealing with an array of complex challenges that have arisen from growing rates of urbanisation, population, motorisation and wealth disparity. They have been consistently ranked as the world’s most congested and polluted cities, which has led to high annual traffic deaths and extremely dangerous levels of particulate matter, on top of lost economic potential. These circumstances, in addition to the COVID-19 pandemic, in all its calamity, have the effect of bringing to the fore the benefits that cycling can offer in terms of local economic recovery, healing mental and physical health, reinforcing social connections in our communities…

With Bengaluru becoming the most traffic-congested city in the world in 2020, mass transit is the key ingredient for a sustainable, low carbon footprint future and the only solution to decongest Bengaluru's roads. However, the perception that cost effective transport options are primarily for use by the economically weaker section of the society, is a big worry.  The extensive bus network of Bengaluru, with a fleet size of over 6775 buses, is the largest in India, and among the 20 largest in the world. Why then is it not leveraged as a solution to its traffic congestion? Even with the…

Pandemic or no pandemic, when it comes to urban mobility especially in cities like Bengaluru, the reality is that the private vehicle is here to stay, whether powered by petrol or electricity, and along with it, traffic jams. But even if public transport buses and Metros were running normally, is it possible to determine the factors that affect an individual's choice of a particular mode of transport? If such factors are identified, they could then be included in public decision-making. For example, if it is determined that distance to a transit station is the key factor in people using cars,…

In Part 1 of this series, we saw how BMTC's ridership is affected by the corporation's slashing of services post COVID. In this part, we explore how BMTC can sustain services in these difficult times, despite its severe losses. Across the world, public transport corporations are reeling under losses during COVID. There is hardly a corporation that is recovering without government support, say transport experts. Dr Ashish Verma, Associate Professor, Transportation Systems Engineering at the Indian Institute of Science, has been reviewing case studies on the topic from across the world. "The experience is similar everywhere. As long as there…

Afeena, a domestic worker, does not commute by BMTC bus anymore. Ever since COVID's onset, bus services to her workplace has reduced so much that she is forced to either walk nearly 4 km or hire an autorickshaw every day. The recent BMTC staff strike cut off public transport in the city, but even before this, many loyal BMTC commuters had been affected after the corporation reduced its services due to COVID-induced revenue losses. According to the data BMTC shared with this reporter, in March end (before the staff strike), BMTC was running only 5,320 buses out of its fleet…

For Santhana Selvan, an IT professional, cycling began as a part time hobby, just a few trips to nearby destinations to run errands. From those days to the beginning of April 2021, when he took over as the Bicycle Mayor of Hyderabad, it has been a long journey. One in which he has evolved from just another enthusiastic biker to one who feels deeply about the need to spread the culture and practice of cycling among a much larger section of people.  The challenges in a city like Hyderabad, where the conditions are not particularly amenable, are vast. But in…

“What’s the way forward?” is a familiar refrain among much-harried motorists and pedestrians when negotiating the tortuous Konanakunte Cross traffic signal. To say that “chaos” prevails there at all hours is too modest a description.  Generally, a “Z” crossing cutting across a national highway creates complicated dynamics at any traffic junction. Synchronised traffic lights cannot prevent longer wait periods of vehicles and will only lead to lengthier, slow moving lines of traffic.  Crisscrossing paths of vehicles in motion causes confusion and disorientation, especially for first-timers passing through the busy Konanakunte Cross (K-Cross) junction. Traffic movement at present on Kanakapura Road…

The Bengaluru Bus Prayanikara Vedike has urged the government to make ‘affordable service for all’ a key goal in its bus rejuvenation plan for the city. In a petition addressed to the Chief Minister of Karnataka, the BBPV elaborated the impact of pandemic on the public transport corporation and made suggestions for the government's proposed rejuvenation plan for the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation. Over the past year Bengaluru saw diminished bus operations. People struggled with long wait times, crowded buses and costly commutes during the pandemic. BMTC struggled with low revenues and was unable to provide timely benefits and social…