Low-floors won’t run on bad roads

Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) will not run low-floor buses on roads that are uneven or have big potholes. The decision came a day after the Delhi government slapped a penalty of Rs 4 crore on Tata Motors, for negligence in maintenance of buses, reports HT Correspondent.

Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) will not run low-floor buses on roads that are uneven or have big potholes.

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The decision came a day after the Delhi government slapped a penalty of Rs 4 crore on Tata Motors, for negligence in maintenance of buses.

According to senior transport department officials, low-floor buses are not meant for rural areas or for roads that are not smooth.

“We have also asked the depot managers to carry out a study and prepare a report on roads which are in a bad condition,” Transport Minister Arvinder Singh Lovely said. “The DTC officials have been asked to communicate to the road owning agencies about the condition of those stretches. Till the roads are repaired, DTC will replace low-floor buses with old, standard buses on those particular routes,” Lovely said.

A day after the government blamed Tata Motors for poor maintenance of the fleet, the automobile giant also conveyed its concern about the condition of city roads.

“Everybody in the government knows that low-floor buses can’t run properly on uneven roads. We don’t have to tell them that,” a Tata Motors spokesperson said. “We have just requested the DTC that the routes are continuously monitored to ensure that the buses are plied on roads which are appropriate for such ultra low-floor vehicles. In case a particular road is scraped or uneven, the buses should take a detour,” he added.

The poor condition of Delhi’s roads, especially in remote areas, is considered to be one of the problems.