E-Paper
18% rise in daily bus ridership as compared to Oct 31
New Delhi: On Monday, daily ridership of Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) buses and cluster buses went up by nearly 18% compared to October 31.
New Delhi: On Monday, daily ridership of Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) buses and cluster buses went up by nearly 18% compared to October 31.
The state transport department and the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) Monday said a large portion of the increase in ridership is attributable to the odd-even road space rationing scheme. “The other factor is the natural daily variations. On Monday, when the odd-even rule was in place, as many as 12.31 lakh passengers took DTC and cluster buses, compared to 10.45 lakh on October 31. On October 30, the ridership was around 11.08 lakh,” a transport official said.
While schools will continue to be shut till Tuesday, owing to severe pollution levels in the national capital, many commuters on Day One of the odd-even drive said it was a breeze to drive in the city owing to reduced traffic.
Other commuters complained of inadequate public transport as the government could roll out a total of only 6,173 private, DTC and cluster buses against a target of 7,558 buses. Despite enrolling over 850 private buses, only 643 buses were pressed into service Monday.
When asked about complaints regarding low frequency of buses, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said, “I will check the routes where there are a shortage of buses and more buses will be deployed with immediate effect.”
During peak hours, a few busy Metro stations such as Rajiv Chowk, Vaishali and Kashmere Gate had reported overcrowding. The Delhi Metro, however, did not share its ridership data.
Auto-rickshaws, however, did brisk business on Monday, though many users complained of being overcharged.
Taxis under cab aggregators were available but during peak hours, even they resorted to surge pricing in some locations. Cab aggregators Ola and Uber, however, did not issue any statement till the filing of this report, despite seeking comments on surge pricing.
“In the morning, I got a cab easily to my office using one of the mobile apps. But by 8pm, when I had to head back home, the cab fares had nearly doubled,” Trishala Sharma, who travels to work to East of Kailash from Preet Vihar, said.
