The NCR Commute Conundrum
The NCR Commute Conundrum - Its One Big Mess Beyond The Yamuna
No Transport Network In Ghaziabad, Noida
Poor connectivity with Delhi
In Noida, No Autos Or Taxis
As living space shrinks in Delhi, hundreds and thousands of people with offices in India's capital or neighbour Noida in recent years have settled in Ghaziabad, a booming middle-class township on the outskirts of Delhi.
As new settlers pour into Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh and builders compete with one another to shelter them in shiny towers giving the place a Dubai-like skyline, new townships have exploded: Kaushambi, Indirapuram, Vaishali and Vasundhara, to name just a few.
To our point, though: no transport network connects these colonies with Ghaziabad city.
The city of over 16-lakh people does not have a local bus service and, in its absence, residents mainly rely on a fleet of 8,000 three-wheel autorickshaws, 60 per cent of which have no licence to run.
Local authorities have been talking about an "integrated transport" system for the city, but it is not clear when that will enter service. There is a plan to bring the Metro rail service, hugely popular in Delhi, to Ghaziabad, but that will enter service only in 2012 .
The Metro In 2012 Ghaziabad Development Authority plans to bring the Metro rail service to Ghaziabad in five phases running 44 kilometres.
Phase 1: 2.65-km line, Indraprastha Anand Vihar-Vaishali.
Phase II: 20-km line, Vaishali line up to Dasna via Indirapuram and Mehrauli.
Phase III: 12-km line, Dilshad Garden to new bus terminal.
Phase IV: 0.5-km underground line, new bus terminal to old bus terminal.
Phase V: 9-km line, Dasna to old bus terminal.
Cost: RS 4,410 crore.
Project deadline: 2021
30 DTC buses on ALT Shivaji Stadium route.
50 DTC buses on other routes of Ghaziabad, passing through Ghaziabad for neighbouring towns.
8,000 Autorickshaws on various routes, most are illegal.
Towards the end of last year, the Uttar Pradesh transport minister announced an "integrated bus service in Ghaziabad and Noida" within six months. Four months since that announcement, the state government has still to carry out a feasibility study.
But local officials say things are on course. "The Ghaziabad Development Authority has already cleared the proposal for a city bus service. It will be implemented soon," district magistrate Deepak Aggarwal said.
The Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA) has agreed to pump money in low-floor buses that would form the backbone of the integrated bus service. But it is the Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (UP- SRTC) that eventually will run these buses, said a GDA official who did not want to be named. UPSRTC officials could not be reached for their views despite repeat attempts.
Residents, however,doubt if a bus service would be up on its feet anytime soon.
"In the absence of buses, commuting from one place to another has become difficult. To cover small distances of 5-7 kilometres, it often takes more than an hour. Our efforts to get a good public transport system for the city have failed," said Kuldeep Saxena, co-ordinator, Federation of Indirapuram Residents Welfare Association.
Better to go to Delhi .
"For every official work, from submitting passport form and applying for a driving licence to booking train tickets, we have to go to the main city. But it is more convenient to go to Delhi than to Ghaziabad," said Barkha Sharma, a resident of Vasundhara. "If the administration cannot provide us with an efficient public transport, it should at least open offices of various government departments in the transHindon area," said Amitabh Agnihotri, general secretary Vaishai Residents Welfare Association, in a similar vein. The areas worst affected by poor connectivity are Surya Nagar, Ramprastha, Brij Vihar, Indirapuram, Vasundhara and Pratap Nagar.
Poor Connectivity With Delhi
As Far as distances go, Ghaziabad, a booming middle-class township on the outskirts of Delhi, may be nearest to India's capital in comparison to other towns in NCR, or the National Capital Region. But when it comes to connectivity with Delhi, it ranks as the poorest.
Though shuttle trains are the most widely used mode of transport for people working in Delhi, only a section of people living in residential colonies close to the railway station benefit from the service. The rest use own transport, share autorickshaws or hop buses to reach destinations in Delhi.
With the Metro railroad network still in its infancy an integrated rail-bus transit system put on the back-burner and an integrated bus service on a slow track, commuters have no option but to pack into overcrowded trains and private buses to reach Delhi. Residents complain the bus service to Delhi has deteriorated in the past couple of years. "We used to have a decent Delhi Transport Corporation-run bus service for ITO and Connaught Place in Delhi till a couple of years ago. But that service has now deteriorated. With limited trains for Delhi, travelling in buses is not only time-consuming but also a harrowing experience, both for men and women, more so for the latter," said student Neha Saluja.
Those using own transport are not satisfied either. "Everyday we cope with long traffic snarls. I would love to leave my car at home and travel by public transport if there was an encient system in place," said Tarun Batla, a resident of Raj Nagar.
Facing the brunt of poor transport facilities are also those living in upscale Indirapuram and neighbouring areas. They complain there is no local transport for Anand Vihar Inter-State Bus Terminus, a couple of kilometres away from where scores of buses ply to Delhi everyday .
"We hop from rickshaw to rickshaw and auto to auto to reach Anand Vihar. The solution is a Noida-Delhi bus service touching Indirapuram," said Pradeep Singhal, a resident of Nyay Khand in Indirapuram.
Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA) officials said the Metro rail service, once it enters service, will solve most of the commuting woes.
In Noida, No Autos Or Taxis
Commuting Problems of residents in Noida have largely eased with a fleet of buses serving the growing township at Delhi's doorstep. Still, there are no autorickshaws and taxis for those not keen to board buses.
Worse, autorickshaw and taxi drivers in Delhi say they do not drive to Noida because they fear harassment at the hands of Uttar Pradesh transport authorities. Autorickshaws and taxis entering Noida from Delhi have to pay toll tax at border checkposts and drivers say they are often forced to pay more by law enforcers guarding the posts.
That has only worsened commuters' traveling experience. "From Kirti Nagar, the taxi driver asked for Rs 800 the other day I was returning home after visiting a relative. I had no choice but to pay the sum," said Shalini Sharma, of Sector 93A.
Others also spoke similarly "From the New Delhi railway station, no autorickshaw driver was ready to go to Noida. One said he will drop me at the Mayur Vihar (a Delhi neighbourhood that falls before Noida) border I hired the auto till that point. Once on the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh border, I crossed into Noida on foot and took a cyclerickshaw to reach home," said Rohit Kumal an executive with a multinational company.
Now, a fleet of at least 500 chartered buses, over 600 buses run by both the Uttar Pradesh Road Transport Corporation and the Delhi Transport Corporation and the private-owned Blueline fleet link Noida with various destinations in Delhi.
Officials say to complement the buses, a fleet of 15-seat autorickshaws fuelled by CNG, or Compressed Natural Gas, will soon enter service.
No Transport Network In Ghaziabad, Noida
Poor connectivity with Delhi
In Noida, No Autos Or Taxis
As living space shrinks in Delhi, hundreds and thousands of people with offices in India's capital or neighbour Noida in recent years have settled in Ghaziabad, a booming middle-class township on the outskirts of Delhi.
As new settlers pour into Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh and builders compete with one another to shelter them in shiny towers giving the place a Dubai-like skyline, new townships have exploded: Kaushambi, Indirapuram, Vaishali and Vasundhara, to name just a few.
To our point, though: no transport network connects these colonies with Ghaziabad city.
The city of over 16-lakh people does not have a local bus service and, in its absence, residents mainly rely on a fleet of 8,000 three-wheel autorickshaws, 60 per cent of which have no licence to run.
Local authorities have been talking about an "integrated transport" system for the city, but it is not clear when that will enter service. There is a plan to bring the Metro rail service, hugely popular in Delhi, to Ghaziabad, but that will enter service only in 2012 .
The Metro In 2012 Ghaziabad Development Authority plans to bring the Metro rail service to Ghaziabad in five phases running 44 kilometres.
Phase 1: 2.65-km line, Indraprastha Anand Vihar-Vaishali.
Phase II: 20-km line, Vaishali line up to Dasna via Indirapuram and Mehrauli.
Phase III: 12-km line, Dilshad Garden to new bus terminal.
Phase IV: 0.5-km underground line, new bus terminal to old bus terminal.
Phase V: 9-km line, Dasna to old bus terminal.
Cost: RS 4,410 crore.
Project deadline: 2021
30 DTC buses on ALT Shivaji Stadium route.
50 DTC buses on other routes of Ghaziabad, passing through Ghaziabad for neighbouring towns.
8,000 Autorickshaws on various routes, most are illegal.
Towards the end of last year, the Uttar Pradesh transport minister announced an "integrated bus service in Ghaziabad and Noida" within six months. Four months since that announcement, the state government has still to carry out a feasibility study.
But local officials say things are on course. "The Ghaziabad Development Authority has already cleared the proposal for a city bus service. It will be implemented soon," district magistrate Deepak Aggarwal said.
The Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA) has agreed to pump money in low-floor buses that would form the backbone of the integrated bus service. But it is the Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (UP- SRTC) that eventually will run these buses, said a GDA official who did not want to be named. UPSRTC officials could not be reached for their views despite repeat attempts.
Residents, however,doubt if a bus service would be up on its feet anytime soon.
"In the absence of buses, commuting from one place to another has become difficult. To cover small distances of 5-7 kilometres, it often takes more than an hour. Our efforts to get a good public transport system for the city have failed," said Kuldeep Saxena, co-ordinator, Federation of Indirapuram Residents Welfare Association.
Better to go to Delhi .
"For every official work, from submitting passport form and applying for a driving licence to booking train tickets, we have to go to the main city. But it is more convenient to go to Delhi than to Ghaziabad," said Barkha Sharma, a resident of Vasundhara. "If the administration cannot provide us with an efficient public transport, it should at least open offices of various government departments in the transHindon area," said Amitabh Agnihotri, general secretary Vaishai Residents Welfare Association, in a similar vein. The areas worst affected by poor connectivity are Surya Nagar, Ramprastha, Brij Vihar, Indirapuram, Vasundhara and Pratap Nagar.
Poor Connectivity With Delhi
As Far as distances go, Ghaziabad, a booming middle-class township on the outskirts of Delhi, may be nearest to India's capital in comparison to other towns in NCR, or the National Capital Region. But when it comes to connectivity with Delhi, it ranks as the poorest.
Though shuttle trains are the most widely used mode of transport for people working in Delhi, only a section of people living in residential colonies close to the railway station benefit from the service. The rest use own transport, share autorickshaws or hop buses to reach destinations in Delhi.
With the Metro railroad network still in its infancy an integrated rail-bus transit system put on the back-burner and an integrated bus service on a slow track, commuters have no option but to pack into overcrowded trains and private buses to reach Delhi. Residents complain the bus service to Delhi has deteriorated in the past couple of years. "We used to have a decent Delhi Transport Corporation-run bus service for ITO and Connaught Place in Delhi till a couple of years ago. But that service has now deteriorated. With limited trains for Delhi, travelling in buses is not only time-consuming but also a harrowing experience, both for men and women, more so for the latter," said student Neha Saluja.
Those using own transport are not satisfied either. "Everyday we cope with long traffic snarls. I would love to leave my car at home and travel by public transport if there was an encient system in place," said Tarun Batla, a resident of Raj Nagar.
Facing the brunt of poor transport facilities are also those living in upscale Indirapuram and neighbouring areas. They complain there is no local transport for Anand Vihar Inter-State Bus Terminus, a couple of kilometres away from where scores of buses ply to Delhi everyday .
"We hop from rickshaw to rickshaw and auto to auto to reach Anand Vihar. The solution is a Noida-Delhi bus service touching Indirapuram," said Pradeep Singhal, a resident of Nyay Khand in Indirapuram.
Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA) officials said the Metro rail service, once it enters service, will solve most of the commuting woes.
In Noida, No Autos Or Taxis
Commuting Problems of residents in Noida have largely eased with a fleet of buses serving the growing township at Delhi's doorstep. Still, there are no autorickshaws and taxis for those not keen to board buses.
Worse, autorickshaw and taxi drivers in Delhi say they do not drive to Noida because they fear harassment at the hands of Uttar Pradesh transport authorities. Autorickshaws and taxis entering Noida from Delhi have to pay toll tax at border checkposts and drivers say they are often forced to pay more by law enforcers guarding the posts.
That has only worsened commuters' traveling experience. "From Kirti Nagar, the taxi driver asked for Rs 800 the other day I was returning home after visiting a relative. I had no choice but to pay the sum," said Shalini Sharma, of Sector 93A.
Others also spoke similarly "From the New Delhi railway station, no autorickshaw driver was ready to go to Noida. One said he will drop me at the Mayur Vihar (a Delhi neighbourhood that falls before Noida) border I hired the auto till that point. Once on the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh border, I crossed into Noida on foot and took a cyclerickshaw to reach home," said Rohit Kumal an executive with a multinational company.
Now, a fleet of at least 500 chartered buses, over 600 buses run by both the Uttar Pradesh Road Transport Corporation and the Delhi Transport Corporation and the private-owned Blueline fleet link Noida with various destinations in Delhi.
Officials say to complement the buses, a fleet of 15-seat autorickshaws fuelled by CNG, or Compressed Natural Gas, will soon enter service.