Buses

Chennai passed the Chennai Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (CUMTA) Act in 2010 and the Government of Tamil Nadu greenlit its operations earlier this year. Cities like London and Singapore with highly sophisticated city-wide transportation systems today, were in a similar condition to Chennai when they developed their own transportation authorities. As Chennai looks at creating CUMTA, there are many lessons that can be learnt by looking at the challenges cities like London and Singapore faced and how they moved ahead to where they are now.

*Chennai’s bus system (Credit:* *The News Minute*)

“Has your daily commute in Chennai changed in the last ten years?”

Most people asked this question today would feel it has changed, but can we say it has changed for the better? Chennai spends more time now being stuck in traffic than a decade ago. Public transportation can be uncomfortable and irregular. Last-mile connectivity options are few, expensive, and often frustrating for most modes of public transportation in the city, including the metro. There is also the problem of the paucity of information. At a time when most of us have smartphones and data plans make it possible for us to live stream a cricket match on them, we still lack real-time information on when the next bus or train on a particular route might arrive. Why is this so? How can we start to address these problems?

Technology in Transportation

*Public transportation schedules available on smartphone app in Singapore (Credit:* *The Strait Times*)

There are several steps that can help overcome this: accurate live route information for public transportation, a common electronic payment mechanism, and the creation of fare zones- a section of travel within which a set fare is charged. These are neither unreasonable nor unique demands. In Singapore, for example, the smartphone application for live route information also indicates the availability of seats on a bus. London, meanwhile, is moving towards contactless payments. Imagine being able to pay through your debit card or smart watch on the bus or metro or train instead of using different payment cards on each public transport mode.

How have these cities been able to do it all? What can Chennai and other Indian cities learn in order to make these necessary technological interventions and create a world class public transportation system?

One City, One Transport Authority

Central to addressing these issues is understanding the importance and role of a single city-level institution dedicated to the governance of various public transport systems in the city. Chennai today has 10 different agencies running public transportation: one each for the bus system, the suburban rail and metro rail. In addition, there are different agencies in charge of roads, enforcement, etc. One of the key challenges is the lack of coordination between the various departments. Several government agencies are responsible for individual aspects of transportation and there needs to be effective coordination between them for smooth progress to avoid delays and inefficiencies. This can be facilitated by creating a single agency to bring the different departments together. In creating such an agency we can look to different cities which have tried and achieved this. Consider the example of London, the default case study for efficient urban transportation today.

London’s transformation

*London’s bus system (Credit: The Evening Standard)*

London’s transportation landscape was as fragmented as Chennai’s today. London faced similar challenges, and different companies were responsible for operating the public bus, underground train and tram services. Further complications arose due to the existence of several train and tram companies in London.

In 2000, London created Transport for London(TfL) to bring them all together. TfL is responsible for the day-to-day operation of all public transport networks in London and the city’s main roads. The public transportation system of London was completely transformed by working under one institution, resulting in the integration of these different modes and their access through one common mobility card called Oyster. TfL’s Open Data policy has also enabled software developers to create apps that people of London can use to access real-time information for public transportation and plan their journey.

London is not the only city with a common authority for urban transportation though. Many cities around the world – including Singapore, New York, Lagos – have one. Many Indian cities, including Chennai and Bangalore are now considering a Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (UMTA).

CUMTA moves ahead

First described in India’s National Urban Transport Policy, 2006, the Government of India recommended an UMTA be set up in all million-plus cities for “coordinated planning and implementation of urban transport programs and projects and an integrated management of urban transport systems”

Finding merit in the concept, Chennai passed the Chennai Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (CUMTA) Act in 2010. The strength of CUMTA will lie in its ability to bring together the multiple agencies that are represented on its board. As a coordinating body, it can help institute integrated transport planning and decision making for Chennai as a whole. CUMTA can help give direction to the individual agencies and to the government’s overall transport strategy.

Earlier this year, CUMTA’s operations were greenlit by the Government of Tamil Nadu. As the institution comes into service, Chennai has the opportunity to radically transform its public transportation infrastructure. Learning from cities like London and Singapore which have overcome their fragmented systems to become leaders in the field of urban transportation will benefit both CUMTA and Chennai greatly.

Written by Varun Sridhar

Edited by Keshav Suryanarayanan, AV Venugopal

Upcoming: Part 2 of the CUMTA series

ITDP spoke to Mr. Shashi Verma, Chief Technology Officer and Director of Customer Experiences at Transport for London, about CUMTA’s role in defining the future of mobility in Chennai. Watch out for our next blog that will describe Mr.Verma’s inputs and recommendations/directions for the city and the institution.

A case for improving Delhi’s last-mile connectivity

Delhi—yeh sheher nahi, mehfil hai— a nostalgia bestowed upon Delhiites, from savouring the aromas of gully food, to being enchanted by the mehfil on old streets, and sometimes combined with a feeling of impending chaos. What happens when this chaos threatens the very existence of Delhi’s mehfil? Are we ready for ‘yeh Delhi sheher nahi, parking garage hai’?

As difficult it may be to let go of the age-old nostalgia of streets imagined as mehfils (gathering spaces for sharing poetry or classical music), the reality is that Delhi is clogged with cars! This is despite the city operating India’s “best-run mass rapid transit system” – the Delhi Metro. It’s vast network of over 340 kms helps 26 lakh people commute every day in the National Capital Region (NCR). While the system is classified as one of the largest in the world, it caters to less than 10 percent of NCR. Personal motor vehicles continue to rule the roost.

On the other hand, Delhi’s bus system is completely omitted from the public transport equation. Based on the existing demand and the burgeoning population, Delhi is short of over 6,000 buses – which means, Delhi needs to double its existing fleet strength. Efforts to bridge the gap in the supply of buses is the need of the hour. Lack of efficient public transport systems and the absence of last-mile connectivity has fuelled the insatious demand for personal motor vehicles. Let us now look at the issue of ‘last-mile’ connectivity.

Last-mile connectivity—how people actually get to and from the stations, particularly the Metro—has been a matter of concern among Delhi commuters. Issues surrounding the safety, convenience, and comfort to reach a station from a workplace or home, and vice-versa, has been the talk of the town for a few years now, yet neglected.

Privately run CNG autos, e-rickshaws, Gramin Sewa, and the Phat Phat Sewa have stepped in to provide last-mile connectivity, in the interim. While these systems have the stamp of legality by the State government and have managed to satisfy a portion of the mobility demand, they are largely unorganised and unregulated. The debate of whether they are a resource or a nuisance, continues.

Delhi is reported to have one lakh e-rickshaws, of which a mere 35,000 are registered, and over a lakh CNG autos. Filling the last-mile connectivity gap comes at a cost of traffic snarls and safety concerns among its citizens. Areas around metro stations have become the new choke points given the lack of integration with formal public transport, haphazard parking on main roads, and an overall lack of traffic and parking management.

*Traffic jam of autos outside metro station in Delhi (Credit: Aaj Ki Awaaz)*

It may be time for Delhi to shift focus from its archaic approach to connect the dots of its public transit system – bring home the mini-bus. When it comes to bus-based transit, let’s face it, this underdog of transit is by far one of the most efficient, affordable, and convenient modes of transport. Just one mini-bus can replace five rickshaws, or in other words, the bus can move more people in fewer vehicles in a compact amount of road space.

The mini-bus can provide the best option to improve last-mile connectivity. With better technology, services, and integration with the metro, the bus can unclog streets in Delhi, especially those around metro stations. So what does that mean for rickshaw drivers – are their livelihoods at risk? A successful transition should ensure that rickshaw drivers are formally employed into the system.

For Delhi to transition towards a people-friendly city rather than a personal motor vehicle garage, it needs to improve accessibility, affordability, and frequency of public transit as well. Cities like Pune have taken the initial steps of assessing public transit system gaps through the People Near Transit (PNT) tool, prepared with technical assistance from the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP) India programme. Pune has endorsed the PNT tool to further improve its public transit reach to reduce dependency on personal motor vehicles – a similar issue that Delhi has been tackling for over a decade. Delhi can use the PNT tool to reshape its public transport to serve maximum and pollute minimum.

For far too long, cities have ignored what is arguably the most affordable and flexible public transit option, the humble mini-bus. In the name of last-mile connectivity, rickshaws have filled the gap and where unavailable, cars have taken over. In the case of Delhi, where the city can no longer afford to squeeze more cars onto its roads, the bus can provide mobility to the maximum number of people in a compact amount of road space. Delhi should champion a publicly-run mini-bus system to solve its last-mile connectivity woe; after all, a successful bus-system has never failed to move a city.

Written by Kashmira Dubash

Technical Direction: Vishnu Mohanakumar

A Tale of Two Cities

Connecting the Dots of Delhi’s Public Transport System