A high-powered committee set up by the Union urban development ministry has said if right policy framework is in place, autorickshaws and cycle-rickshaws can play an important role in decongesting the national capital. The committee has prepared an exhaustive 126-page report after taking inputs and holding deliberations with several stakeholders, as reported by sanjay kaw. Auto, cycle rickshaws Of the 8.29 million vehicles in Delhi, there are about 91,840 autorickshaws in the city. This is just 1.1 per cent of the entire vehicular population, yet autoric-kshaws transport 3.6 per cent of Delhi’s commuters. About 10 per cent people use autorickshaws for work, 23 per cent for education and 22 per cent for health, shopping and other things. A single autorickshaw may serve at least 8 to 10 trips a day, while a car would cover only two trips and occupy parking space. Similarly, in case of cycle rickshaws which play a similar role in the city, it is estimated they are about 700,000 in number, of which only 89,429 have a licence. Master Plan of Delhi–2021 notes that between 1981 and 2001 and subsequently 2011 there has been a phenomenal growth of vehicles and traffic in Delhi. As per the Transport Demand Forecast Study conducted by the Delhi government in 2011, it is seen that between 2001 and 2008, the private motor vehicle trips increased from 28 per cent to 35 per cent and non-motorised vehicle trips from 9 per cent to 15 per cent. However, bus trips have decreased from 60 per cent to 42 per cent of the total number of trips. In a business-as-usual scenario, it is estimated that the total trips would rise to 280 lakh by 2021, including 257 lakh motorised ones and 23 lakh non-motorised trips. Road network optimisation The report said that primary network should be complemented with a secondary one with pedestrians and cyclists given priority in order to facilitate shortcuts, reduced trip length and reduced travel time. However, in Delhi, secondary networks have progressively been closed, removed, blocked or gated, causing localised traffic to use arterial roads for local movement, thus congesting them even further. Providing a finer secondary road network would also enhance walkability and provide shortcuts and shorter travel distances for cyclists and pedestrians, thus contributing to easier access to public transport, amenities, markets and schools, and in turn reducing private vehicle dependency and vehicular congestion on arterial roads. A majority of the localised traffic congestion problems as well as road fatality issues can be solved by better junction design, signal management and provision of proper crossing facilities for pedestrians and cyclists at all intersections and mid-block crossings. To implement the same, the top 100 junctions in the city having congestion problems should be taken up for retrofitting immediately. Walking The report said that walking was the most important and sustainable mode of transport in Delhi. About 35 per cent of the city comprises of commuters who only walk. These commuters are different from the ones who walk to access public transport.