With the Delhi Government ordering phasing out of Blueline buses from the much talked about Bus Rapid Transit corridor with effect from Thursday, most commuters travelling on the new stretch had something to cheer about. Not only was the bus lane free of traffic on Thursday, the Delhi Transport Corporation's new low-floor bus fleet also became an instant hit with commuters travelling in the corridor. Sandeep Sharma, a commuter on board a bus on route 522, said: "The ride is definitely smoother and the service is excellent too. There is a bus every five to ten minutes. The only major problem is the huge time lost at various traffic signals. Despite the bus lane being almost empty, there is stoppage time of almost 15 minutes at signals along the stretch. If this issue is tackled then we would not face any problems with the BRT system.' However, some commuters living in Deoli and other interior areas complained that the BRT corridor had increased their commuting time by over 20 minutes on an average due to alteration of the original route of these buses. Rosy Martia, a bus regular on route 423, said: "Earlier private buses used to come up to Deoli. However, owing to their size, the new DTC buses are not allowed there any more so people residing in Deoli and other interior areas have to walk another 15 minutes from Deoli to reach Khanpur.' Road discipline Offering a different take on the much criticised BRT corridor, student Michael Joseph, a regular on route 522, said: "Though my commute time has increased by 10 to 20 minutes after the BRT corridor became functional, I feel that the BRT system has helped buses follow road discipline and made the rides safer for us.' "Earlier there never used to be any traffic police present on this stretch and buses would routinely over-speed and break traffic rules. But now owing to the presence of so many officers, buses stop more often at bus stands and people are not allowed to dangerously hang out of the bus any more,' he added.