Now, about 1,400 people who go to different RTOs in the city to get licences issued will have to undergo a computerized test. Unlike the existing process where tests are taken on paper by officials, who reportedly pass candidates even without sitting for it by accepting bribes there have also been complaints of deserving candidates getting the red mark because they have refused to pay bribe -- the new process has little human interface. Once a person has taken the test and passed it, s/he will be granted a licence.

To ensure that only the candidate getting the licence is sitting for the exam, the system records fingerprint details of each applicant at the time of depositing fees. Every workstation at the testing room is fitted with a fingerprint reader and only after the fingerprint details of the applicant match with those in the server will the test open up. The test rooms are also being fitted with CCTV cameras for added surveillance on RTO staff.

Source: Times Of India By Megha Suri Singh Learner's licence test on computer

A single planning, co-ordination, management and monitoring entity called the Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (UMTA) has been envisaged to implement the system. The UMTA will be in charge of:

• A common fare collection system
  
• A common passenger information system
  
• Multi-modal integration at level of infrastructure, fares, operations and information,
  
• A common control centre for automated and computerised management of new auto-rickshaws and taxis

• Adoption of a standard design for arterial, collector and local roads
  
• A uniform signage system
  
• Establishing freight terminals outside the city to prevent trucks from entering the city
  
• Making proof of owning dedicated parking space mandatory for registration of any vehicle in Delhi and NCR
  
• Providing for a Regional Rapid Transit System through a joint venture between the Centre and states, called the NCR Transport Corporation
  
• Phasing out old and outdated yellow-and-black taxis, modernising auto-rickshaws, and synergising their operations using GPS

A DTC employee in the kiosk will not only provide informa- tion on the route number of buses plying between destina- tions, it will also give informa- tion on fare structure, fre- quency of buses and expected time of arrival of buses.

Delhi transport minister Arvinder Singh Lovely said, "These kiosks will help us make our bus service more reliable.
We have planned to set up 60 kiosks initially at locations like ITO, ISBTs, AIIMS, Dhaula Kuan, Raja Garden etc. These kiosks will be put up near CWG venues to facilitate both local and foreign visitors taking public transport."

For a nine-tonne payload between Delhi-Mumbai-Delhi, rentals rose to INR 46,000 per trip as on March 3 from INR 42700 per trip as on February 4 a rise of 7.73%for Delhi-Nagpur-Delhi INR 43,400 from INR 40,200, a rise of 7.96% for Delhi to Kolkata to Delhi INR 44,800 from INR 41,500, a rise of 7.95%, Delhi to Guwahati-Delhi INR 82,000 from INR 77,200 a rise of 6.22%.

According to a compilation made by the Indian Foundation of Transport Research and Training, a non government organization associated with the transport sector, the rise of 6% to 8% in truck rentals is at a higher side compared with the weighted impact of the diesel hike of 3.5% to 4.5%.

Mr SP Singh senior fellow and coordination of the foundation, said that "This disproportionate and concerted hike across the country has come against the backdrop of the booming transport freight market, as manufacturing and import-export trade is growing at double digits and it has improved the cargo offering by 10% to 12% in last four to five months."

Mr Singh further added that truck rentals had already gone up cumulatively by 14% to 16% during October 2009-January 2010 even without the rise in diesel price. He added that "This hike was a cushion to absorb the diesel price rise of INR 2.58 per liter ex Delhi and INR 3 per liter ex Mumbai and Chennai. However, the market forces are in favour of the truck transport industry due to oversupply of cargo and the manufacturing sector willing to pay higher freight due to increased prices of their products."

With the more new low-floor buses being added to DTC's existing fleet, the corporation is now planning to cater to all types of commuters. The need was felt to target office-goers, who are presently using their private vehicles to reach office. By making this category shift to buses, the government felt traffic on the roads can get reduced considerably. ``The new service will run like chartered buses, which pick up people from one colony or catchment area and drop them straight at their area of work. The buses will not stop anywhere on the way as this category of commuters would want to reach in the shortest possible time,'' said a senior official.

The final scheme for the fleet was discussed at a meeting called by transport minister Arvinder Singh Lovely on Wednesday. DTC is planning to start the service on 50 routes, using all air-conditioned buses. The areas which the service will cover will include colonies like Vasant Kunj, Dwarka, Rohini, Pitampura, R K Puram, Shiekh Sarai, and areas where government servants reside. ``DTC is in the process of finalizing routes for the new service, where AC buses will run like chartered buses at 20 minutes frequency during the morning and evening rush hours. The service will start within one month. The buses will run on the special trips in the morning and evening and for the rest of the day, they will be deployed on normal city routes,'' the official added.

To ensure the service is comfortable, only a fixed number of people will be taken in one bus and everyone will get a seat. Also, unlike the rest of the DTC fleet which doesn't adhere to timetables, these buses will be fitted with GPS to ensure they run on time. In addition, sops like a free copy of the day's newspaper to read on the way and tea/coffee will also be made available on board. The buses will have provision for automated ticketing too and the buses will be monitored to ensure reliability.

The fares for the service are yet to be finalized, but officials said these will be nominal as the government wants to promote the use of public transport, especially buses. After checking the response of commuters, more buses and routes will be added in due time.

" Action is taken against drivers and conductors against whom we get complaints from commuters," DTC managing director Naresh Kumar said.

The Delhi High Court had on Friday directed the DTC to ensure the safety of female passengers on DTC and other buses.

The court was hearing the DTC's appeal challenging a labour court order that cancelled the dismissal of a conductor and driver. The labour court had reinstated them with only the stoppage of two increments.

Justice Kailash Gambhir, while upholding the DTC's order dismissing a conductor in a case of eve- teasing in a bus in 1993, came down heavily on conductors and drivers who indulged in such activities.

" It is common knowledge that most women rely on public transport, especially buses, for day- today travel. It is often seen that ( women) feel threatened not only from anti- social elements travelling on a bus but equally from persons manning it," the court observed. " Drivers and conductors who are supposed to act as saviours of the passengers are often found themselves indulging in acts of indecency if they get an opportunity of finding lone female passengers." Referring to the case in question, the court said it exemplified the irresponsible and pathetic behaviour of the employees of the public transport department.

Source: Mail Today DTC Claims Staff Told To Act Against Eve- Teasers

Commuters who take Delhi Metro feeder buses every day were left stranded at Metro stations on Friday evening after the service was suddenly withdrawn from all parts of the city.

Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) terminated the contract of the bus operator on Friday for deficiencies in service. The corporation set a week's deadline to find a new operator to resume the feeder bus service.

According to DMRC, the operator had not met the quality standards set by the corporation. The buses were dirty, they did not follow schedules or set routes and even the number of buses operational were less than the mandated 90% set by DMRC in the contract, said corporation officials.

``There were regular complaints about how the buses did not run on time and were in extremely bad condition. The contractor had also stopped making payments. After repeated warnings, the service was still not up to the mark. DMRC has temporarily suspended all the feeder buses following termination of the contract with the operator. Alternative arrangements are being made and the DMRC expects services will resume after a week,'' said a DMRC spokesperson.

However, the abrupt withdrawal of buses hit commuters hard. As they stepped out of different Metro stations and found no buses, a majority of them were left with no option but to take either autorickshaws which overcharged or cycle rickshaws that took way too long to reach their destinations. Priyanka Sharma, a student, said: ``I will either have to pay a lot extra for an auto ride or wait for hours at the bus stop to get a bus back home. Feeder buses were convenient from Shastri Park.''

Source: Times Of India Metro feeder buses disappear

The updates, to be provided free of cost through Google Transit, an application tool, would provide information not only about bus routes, transit stops and fares but also detail of DTC bus schedules on a real-time basis.

Additionally, for a particular location, information will be made available about surrounding tourist destinations, eateries, historical monuments.

With the other access to Delhi from Faridabad areas, Mathura Road, already choked due to construction of a Metro line and flyover and generally given a wide berth there were massive daylong jams on all the roads. Several office-goers were forced to head back home.

Worse, this is going to be the situation for the next 10 days. ``The Surajkund Road, from Mehrauli-Badarpur Road upto Surajkund (5km), will remain closed from 7am to 6 pm till February 28 in view of security arrangements for the shooting championship. Since security is our paramount concern, commuters are going to face some inconvenience as traffic volumes are very high,'' said Satyendra Garg, Joint Commissioner of Police (traffic). This has left people wondering what's in store during the Commonwealth Games.

When residents of Charmwood Village, Eros Garden, Dayal Bagh and even from other Faridabad sectors went out in the morning, they were diverted to Prahladpur Road. The result was a gridlock with commuters taking three to four hours just to get to MB Road.

Several people returned home. ``I left for work at 8.30 but got caught in one of the worst jams I've ever seen,'' said Nanda Paithankar, a resident of Charmwood Village, who works for WHO. ``I decided to head back home. It took over two hours just to go around the boundary wall and enter the colony from the next gate.''

Source: Times Of India By Megha Suri SinghHyper security: Faridabad areas cut off from Delhi

With the High Court lifting the cap on the total number of cycle rickshaws allowed in the city, Initiative for Transportation and Development Programmes (ITDP) a petitioner in the case is now planning to move the court to seek transfer of control of rickshaws to the transport department from MCD. They feel the need of the hour is a policy on rickshaw operation and design to ensure that this mode of transport is available in all colonies in the city as against the present system where rickshaws are banned in certain areas.

Residents says rickshaws are green, fast and affordable mode of local transport. For them, cycle rickshaws form an effective feeder system to other modes of travel like Delhi Metro, buses and even autos. ``I find rickshaws to be the most convenient mode to get to the nearest Metro station as they are cheap, fast and hassle-free,'' said Harsha Singhal, a resident of Janakpuri. For others, rickshaws are convenient for a brief shopping trip to the local market or till the nearest auto stand. ``I prefer taking a rickshaw than driving to the market as finding parking space is next to impossible,'' added senior citizen RK Sharma, a resident of Karol Bagh.

But in several areas there are no rickshaws. Residents feel the government has been unable to provide any other mode of local transport. ``The only option we have is to walk or use our cars. Rickshaws should be allowed inside all colonies,'' said Suprita Singh, a resident of GK.

Bylaws for rickshaws for Delhi was first formulated in 1960, under which permits for rickshaws were granted by veterinary officers. Rickshaws found plying without permits are crushed or auctioned -- something that is not done to any other mode of transport. ``The policy, so far, has been to discourage rickshaws rather than integrating them with the existing transport system. We need to look at reforms now in the form of better designed rickshaws, training for pullers and special tracks on arterial roads,'' said Nalin Sinha of ITDP.

Source: Times Of India By Megha Suri Singh & Ruhi Bhasin Rickshaws should get free access

A full HC bench created a 'special task force' whose job will be to "explore all questions pertaining to road traffic in Delhi" with focus on reducing congestion and pollution levels. Led by Delhi's chief secretary, the charter of the task force includes review of traffic flow, registration of vehicles, and restrictions on vehicular movement.

"Delhi will not be unique if such measures (restrictions on movement of private cars) are actively implemented. In London a stiff 'congestion fee' is levied on private vehicles in some parts of the city," the bench said.

Crucially, HC has decided to closely monitor progress made by the task force and fixed every second Wednesday of the month to get an update.

The task force, to convene eight weeks from now, will consist of a traffic expert, a DCP nominee of the Delhi Police commissioner, a town planning expert nominated by DDA, two nominees from the private sector or drawn from autonomous institutions, an expert in pollution control and one from the field of environment and urban development. The principal secretary, Delhi transport department, has been made the member secretary of the team.

Source: Times Of India Delhi HC moots congestion fee on cars

The Bench headed by Chief Justice A P Shah and comprising Justices S Ravindra Bhat and S Muralidhar also took exception to the by-law authorising the police, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and other agencies to impound rickshaws. It directed the agencies to do away with any authorisation that was against the law.

But the court refrained from quashing zonal restrictions or the ban on use of rickshaws on arterial roads. The Bench held that the civic bodies have the right to take such decisions in greater public interest.

Expressing concern over the manner in which civic authorities and the police treat cycle-rickshaw pullers, the court said, "It would be important for public authorities, particularly law enforcement agencies, to display sensitivity when exercising coercive powers."

The Bench also differed from an earlier High Court verdict which held that plying rickshaws hurt or offended human dignity, and that the state should eventually eliminate the trade.
The Bench said, "The right of an individual to ply cycle-rickshaw or other forms of transport falls within the legitimate exercise of his freedom guaranteed under Article 19(1) (g)."

The court found no objective criteria that the MCD relied on to fix the limit of rickshaw licences at 99,000. It noted that no such policy was framed to limit the number of motorised vehicles.

Source: The Indian Express By Utkarsh Anand No curb on number of rickshaws: HC

Some months from now, you will be able to travel on a variety of modes of public transport -- buses, local trains, the Metro -- in select cities, using just one smart card.

The common mobility card, called the `One India Card', that the Urban Development Ministry is currently working on, will first be introduced in Delhi on a pilot basis before the Commonwealth Games in October.

It will then be extended to Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bangalore and Chandigarh. With a single card -- and without buying any ticket -- a commuter will be able to access trains and buses in these cities once transport operators modernise their fleet to make them compatible for use with smart cards. "It will be a multipurpose card, valid for all operators -government as well as private -- and on all modes of local travel. It can be extended to taxis at a later stage. In time, it will be possible to buy intercity travel tickets and utility items as well using the card," said M. Ramachandran, urban development secretary.

The funding will be shared by the Centre under its flagship Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission and by respective transport operators in the cities concerned.