No private operators have opted for Ghaziabad RRTS feeder bus routes

The Uttar Pradesh government had in January this year given an in-principal approval for operation of feeder buses after which the regional transport authority (RTA) gave its final go-ahead

Even as the 17-kilometre priority section of the regional rapid transit system (RRTS) is scheduled to open passenger operation this month, no private bus operators have so far come forward to opt for any of the 17 routes proposed from three RRTS stations in Ghaziabad, officials of the regional transport department said.

The RRTS station in Ghaziabad. According to the project report, the entire RRTS route is expected to cater to 800,000 passengers daily once it begins operations in March 2025. (Sakib Ali/HT Photo)

The Uttar Pradesh government had in January this year given an in-principal approval for operation of feeder buses after which the regional transport authority (RTA) gave its final go-ahead. The RTA chalked out 17 different routes from the three RRTS stations of Sahibabad, Ghaziabad City and Guldhar.

“So far, no operators have come for any application to run the feeder buses from any RRTS stations. There were 114 permits on offering for the 17 routes, but no one has applied so far. It could be due to restriction that only BS6 compliant buses (20-22 seaters) will be allowed. Further, the operators may be waiting for the start of the RRTS priority section and waiting for the passenger footfall numbers,” said Arun Kumar, regional transport officer.

The 82km-long RRTS project proposes to run RapidX trains between Delhi, Ghaziabad and Meerut and has 25 stations in total, with 22 within Uttar Pradesh. The project in Ghaziabad has eight stations — at Sahibabad, Ghaziabad city, Guldhar, Duhai, Duhai Depot, Muradnagar, Modinagar (North) and Modinagar (South).

The stations barring Muradnagar and Modinagar stations constitute the 17km priority section, which will be the country’s first RRTS stretch to open for passenger operations.

According to the project report, the entire RRTS route is expected to cater to 800,000 passengers daily once it begins operations in March 2025.

The proposed routes include nine originating from the Sahibabad RRTS station while four each have been proposed from Ghaziabad city and Guldhar stations.

Regarding the feeder bus permits, the officials said that it generally takes one week to process such applications and two months’ time is given to the operator to start bus operation. In case they fail, another four months’ extension is given but with penalty clause of ₹1,000 per month.

“These processed applications need further approval from the RTA. We have a meeting scheduled in June and any interested operators can still apply to operate feeder buses. If no one comes forward, we have planned to divert the routes of 50 low-floor electric-buses to cater to RRTS passengers from stations,” Kumar added.

The feeder buses have been proposed to ferry passengers to their nearest destinations from RRTS stations. These buses are expected to cater to about 100,000 passengers daily and will operate in radius of 8-10km from the stations.

The officials of the National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC), the agency taking up the RRTS project, said that the operation of buses is to be taken care of by the transport department.

“The deadline for the 17km priority section is June. We are in process of readiness for operation and waiting for the inauguration. The inspection by the Commissioner for Metro Rail Safety (CMRS) is going on and the final clearance is needed to commence passenger operations. The CMRS clearances include clearance for the section and rolling stock besides others,” said Puneet Vats, chief PRO of NCRTC.