Q&A/ M Ramachandran The Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) may have failed to charm the Delhi commuter, but it is working well in many cities around the world. About Rs 3,500 crore have been committed from the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) for its introduction in another 8-10 Indian cities. Urban Development Secretary M Ramachandran discusses the system with Anjuli Bhargava and the steps necessary to make it work: Which cities are suited to an MRTS and which ones to a BRTS? The metro system is useful for cities where the passenger traffic is on the higher side. They should have a peak hour per direction ridership of 30,000. If it is less than that, they can opt for an elevated rail system or a monorail system. And if the traffic is even less, it would make sense to have a BRTS system where a corridor is dedicated for buses. Therefore, in India, the seven mega-cities should look at having an underground metro system or, in parts, an elevated system. Kolkata was the first to get a metro in 1984 (the North-South corridor). Then, in 1999, came Delhi. Now, work has started in Bangalore. Mumbai and Hyderabad are doing it through the public-private partnership route. Kochi has a report ready for primarily an elevated system. Chandigarh is preparing a project report for an ambitious metro project that also covers Mohali. Smaller cities with less ridership should opt for BRTS. Will it be wise after Delhi's experience to continue to go ahead with plans for the other 8-9 cities? The system needs to be understood. You have a dedicated corridor and continuous plying of buses is ensured. Ideally, air conditioned buses must also ply. It works like a metro. A good BRTS system would mean you buy a ticket and enter with the help of the ticket at a particular station and can take a bus going in either direction. That is why it is called a "poor man's metro". Its success depends on many things. International examples like Bogota work because people follow the rules and the buses move very fast. I have seen and studied their system for myself. In Delhi, a number of problems have cropped up. Some say the pedestrian crossing has not been taken care of. Drivers' respect for pedestrians makes a difference. People may not always be willing to follow the rules or, in some cases, may not have understood the rules. It depends partly on how disciplined a city's citizens are. What one needs is an attitudinal change and a full explanation of the facts to citizens of the city. Around 1,000 new vehicles are added to Delhi's roads every day. Naturally, these vehicles have to find space on the roads. In most of the Indian cities, road constitute around 12% of the area; in Delhi, it is slightly more as roads are wider and more spread out. So, the success of the BRTS in Delhi depends critically on shifting people's preferences. To do that, in hot places like Delhi, air conditioned buses is a must. People may be unwilling to give up the comfort of their air conditioned cars to take a bus. We have to see and plan how many lanes will be left for other vehicles to ply before embarking on the BRTS. In Indore, for instance, substantial widening is taking place. So, they can provide almost three lanes in addition to the bus lane and a cycle lane. That is one of the problems with the Ambedkar Nagar to Delhi Gate corridor in Delhi. There is not enough space to widen the road. They have done some widening but it may not be enough. Then, for a BRTS to work, a comprehensive mobility plan is needed. When a bus commuter gets off somewhere, what should he do? He may be forced to take a three-wheeler or a cycle rickshaw. Again, the culture issue comes in. In Delhi, even if the commuter is quite close to his destination, he may not want to walk. In most months of the year, he can't walk due to the heat or even rain. In an ideal situation, he should be able to reach his final destination through the BRTS and maybe after walking a bit. For instance, Delhi Metro found that once a commuter gets off the metro, if he doesn't get a bus immediately, the purpose is lost. So now they have introduced 500-odd feeder buses (run by Delhi Metro on a contract basis). The ticketing is also integrated here. If you take a train ticket, you can use the bus system on the same ticket. They are not yet air conditioned, but somewhere in the future that will also happen. Eventually, parking will also be included in the same ticket. So, with the BRTS, the commuter should know that he can get another bus and use the same ticket to travel further. That is when the use of four and three wheelers will come down. BRTS PLANS City Length of corridor Cost Pune 101.7 km Rs 807.13 crore Indore 11.45 km Rs 98.45 crore Bhopal 21.71 km Rs 237.76 crore Ahemdabad 58.00 km Rs 493.32 crore Jaipur 26.10 km Rs 219.19 crore Vijaywada 5.50 km Rs 152.64 crore Vizag 42.80 km Rs 452.93 crore Rajkot 29.00 km Rs 110.00 crore Pimpri Chinchwad 23.00 km Rs 312.14 crore Surat 29.90 km Rs 469.00 crore Under JNNURM, 359 km of BRTS are planned and Rs 3,352 crore have been sanctioned Then, will you review the plans of all these cities in view of the Delhi BRTS ? We are convening a meeting on May 12 to discuss the proposed plans of all these 8-10 cities (we are providing them funding under the JNNURM). Transport experts, transport secretaries and urban development secretaries will all be there. We will review the plans in light of the Delhi's experience. People must appreciate that this is a process which has been initiated. So, there are no final and perfect solutions. Even in Bogota the first mayor who introduced the BRTS did not win the next election and the new mayor said that he was also planning a metro. So, there is a correction taking place, on the basis of public reaction. There is no plan to scrap the system in any city. It has emanated at the city level. We have to work out what is lacking and what to avoid.