Experts suggest short trips, many halts for Delhi’s Mohalla bus scheme

The Delhi government organised an international expert consultation for implementation of the Mohalla bus scheme that was announced in the Budget.

The Delhi government organised an international expert consultation on Monday for the implementation of the mohalla bus scheme launched during this year’s Budget, officials said, adding the experts gave several suggestions including that the new service should cater to short trips, should have many halts and provide better quality of transport so that people shift from private to public transport.

The Delhi government plans to roll out 2,180 such buses by 2025. (HT Photo)

According to officials, the mohalla bus scheme aims to connect congested areas by designating small and medium-sized electric buses in poorly connected residential and commercial hubs. The Delhi government plans to roll out 2,180 such buses by 2025.

Addressing the meeting, transport minister Kailash Gahlot said, “The route rationalisation study conducted by the Delhi government, which understood the needs and demands of public transport users, has laid the path for introducing the mohalla buses in Delhi. These buses will operate on shorter distances in Delhi, connecting important points of interest, including transport hubs such as Metro stations, within neighbourhoods. In the coming years, we plan to integrate different transport modes into a reliable, affordable, convenient, and high-frequency multi-modal transport system.”

Experts agreed that buses are the backbone of any public transportation system, offering a level of flexibility that other systems such as railways cannot match.

“The launch of Delhi’s mohalla bus service marks a potential game-changer in the way we view the role of buses in a city’s overall development and progress. By leveraging the flexibility of buses and tailoring services to meet the needs of local communities, this initiative has the potential to revolutionise public transportation in Delhi and beyond,” said Amit Bhatt, managing director (India), International Council of Clean Transport (ICCT) that jointly organised the consultation and also presented two pilot route plans from Delhi Secretariat for the mohalla bus service.

OP Aggarwal, senior fellow at Niti Aayog, suggested that the service should meet multiple local needs.

“It should not be confused with a mere Metro feeder service. Instead, it should be looked at as a service connecting multiple points of interest within a small area such as malls, shopping complexes, employment hubs etc. I make only one long-distance trip in the day to my office, but the rest are all short trips around the area I live in. I would be glad to have a service that is reliable, comfortable, clean and less crowded that I can use instead of a car,” said Aggarwal.

However, professor Shivanand Swamy, from CEPT University, differed from the former opinion. He shared his experiences from designing bus services in Surat and Ahmedabad, including the Savaar-E feeder service.

“Surat has three bus services working together. One of the things that really worked was that all services have the same ticket. So, you get a ticket for one spot to the other and you can use the same in the BRT or the feeder bus for the same cost, even if you change modes. A service such as the mohalla bus service needs to have high frequency, low fares and should be demand-responsive,” said Swamy.

He added that in the initial days of operation, the bus should be flexible about making multiple stops, apart from the designated stoppage to increase potential customers. He also said that in smaller buses, the option of not having a conductor can also be explored to reduce cost by having the driver act as the conductor. In Surat, the bus fares start as low as ₹4.

Sam Zimmerman from the World Bank discussed the popular ‘DC Circulator’ bus services being run in Washington DC since 2019. He emphasised how differentiation in colours was created for the convenience of bus users. Showcasing how the DC Circulator buses started as free initially and are now run on a fixed $1 fare, he emphasised that the mohalla bus service also should have a simple fixed fare, with free transfers from the existing public transport system if possible.

“What worked best is that we have a common card that ensures easy transfers and makes using multiple modes convenient for commuters. Vehicles should be identifiable and there should be simpler and shorter routes with very high-frequency services so that people don’t have to wait,” he said.

Dr. Dario Hidalgo, professor of Javeriana University in Bogota, discussed the success of feeder services in various cities in Europe and Latin America, particularly Colombia and Brazil, and held them to be essential to the success of the overall public transport system.

He said that the mohalla bus service needs to have short station spacing and higher frequency to reduce walking distance and waiting time for commuters. He also recommended the overall travel time on these routes be kept under 30 minutes.