DTC buses to take over Bluelines in Noida

The beginning of the end of Blueline buses in Noida and eventually all of Delhi is starting from December 10.

The beginning of the end of Blueline buses in Noida and eventually all of Delhi is starting from December 10.

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From Thursday, Noida residents can expect safe and reliable Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) buses slowly taking over Bluelines and catering to their commuting needs.

The transport department has decided to remove 251 Blueline buses that ply on 32 routes connecting Noida with the Capital.

“We are starting the phasing out process from

December 10. Very soon, all Blueline buses running between Delhi and Noida will be replaced by DTC — both old and low-floor buses,” Delhi Transport Minister Arvinder Singh Lovely said.

“By the Commonwealth Games next year, the entire fleet of remaining 2,700 Blueline buses will be phased out from Delhi.”

Senior transport department officials said operators of Blueline buses have been informed about the phase out process.

The move, said officials, has been necessitated after the Uttar Pradesh’s state transport authority insisted on sending its private buses to Delhi.

Regular confrontations between Blueline operators and the crew of DTC buses running on common routes between Noida and Delhi is yet another reason for the transport department to speed up the process.

Officials said the common transport agreement between the two states could not be implemented because Uttar Pradesh is insisting on allowing its private operators to run buses in Delhi.

“To avoid any further confrontation we have decided to take off the private buses from the Noida route,” a senior transport department official.

Meanwhile, several DTC drivers and conductors have asked the transport officials to remove them from the Noida route.

“The Blueline bus drivers and operators often threaten us to drive slow and let them go first. Several complaints have been lodged with the police but nothing has happened,” said a DTC bus driver, requesting anonymity.

Blueline bus operators, however, deny the charges.

“These are mere excuses to harass us. Even if it has happened, the transport department should take action against the particular operator and not all of us,” Delhi Bus Ekta Manch spokesperson Shyam Lal Gola said.

“We will protest and may even move the court if any such arbitrary decision of phasing out our buses was taken,” he added.