Urbanisation and Traffic Jams in India
The fast-growing automotive industry and the lack of needed reforms and correctness is a sweet combination of causing traffic jams in many cities in India, including Mumbai. How to get rid of it?
Public transport on the road means that the bus is now becoming unreliable. This is why people have opted for other modes of transport, namely auto rickshaws, taxis or private two-wheelers and four-wheelers. Overall, the public transport system in many cities in India, including Mumbai, is in disarray. This miserable situation is due to the fast-growing automotive industry and depressed government. According to a report, the share of public transport in passenger transport services in major cities of India has been reduced from 60-80% to 25-30%.
In order to raise the standard of living in Indian cities, there is an urgent need to get out of the vicious cycle of 'traffic jams'. Roads with blood vessels in major cities of India are suffocating due to congestion during rush hour. According to a media report, "The average rush-hour speed of BEST buses in Mumbai has halved from 16km / h in the last decade to 9km / h now." This situation will definitely get worse during rush hour. Over the past decade, 1.7 million passengers have opted for daily bus travel.
Our poor public transport system, the rapidly growing automotive industry and the depressed government have all come to a standstill. This is not a good sign for the future of urban life in all the major cities of India. These cities are in a vicious circle.
Traffic jams, resulting in pollution, increasing number of private vehicles results in increasing traffic jams. This increases greenhouse gas emissions, and other pollutants also contribute to climate change. The seriousness of this problem is definitely increasing in terms of the physical and mental health of the residents.
To find the answer to this situation, we must first find out what causes the current situation. A study by AT Kearney, a global consulting firm, shows that the number of two-wheelers and four-wheelers has increased by 8-10 percent annually from 2014-2017. During this period, the number of buses in India has decreased. While all this is happening, there has been no increase in the length and area of the city's blood vessels. That is why these roads are not enough for the growing number of vehicles.
The above statistics show the seriousness of this question. It is possible to find answers to these questions if you understand the general traveler's mindset. How does a traveler choose the medium of his journey? The priority of every traveler is to reach his desired destination in the shortest possible time. Therefore, the most important criterion for choosing the mode of travel is its average speed.
The next important factor in terms of travel is the frequency of passenger service. It is said that it is not possible to get the first train and it is too late for the second train to arrive. The time between two trains or a bus is, therefore, the most important factor in determining which service a passenger will use. Which service will the passenger use? For this, the frequency of hourly transport service is another important issue. A good frequency of passenger service ensures that,
The third point is the value of passenger service. If the value of the service is not affordable to the passenger, he will give preference to another cheap service, ignoring the comfort. From this, we can say that frugality and comfort are the third and fourth factors in passenger service choice, respectively.
It is possible to find answers to these questions if you understand the general traveler's mindset. How does a traveler choose the medium of his journey? The reason behind the popularity of railway service in the Mumbai suburbs is that it meets the first three criteria of railway service. It is a fast way to travel in the city. The frequency of trains on each route is as good as every three to four minutes. Also, Mumbai's railway service is the cheapest transport service in the world for city travel. So despite the huge crowds, people have no choice but to travel by first or second class.
However, the "best" buses serviced by the Mumbai Municipal Corporation seem to fall short of these criteria. The average speed of the Karan bus service is 9 km per hour during rush hour. It has decreased so much. As a result, passengers are rapidly turning to other modes of transport. According to the latest figures, as mentioned above, 1.7 million passengers opted for other modes of transportation in the last decade. This has put a lot of strain on other means of transport such as railways, taxis, and private vehicles. In the last five years, the combined annual growth rate of four-wheeler registration in Mumbai has increased by 8.18 percent and that of two-wheelers by 9.4 percent. Don't be surprised if this leads to congestion on the streets of Mumbai, even during rush hour.
Given the geographical location of Mumbai, the development of Mumbai is limited by the Arabian Sea on all three sides. Although development is taking place in the north, there are still traffic jams in South and Central Mumbai, making it difficult to travel by road. Only maximum use of public transport can save Mumbai from this problem.
The Government of Maharashtra has undertaken an ambitious project to build a metro railway. It has 12 projects worth Rs 1,25,201 crore. In which 276 km. Metro rail lines will be built in the city. The average cost of these projects is Rs 454 crore per km. That's it.
It will take a few decades for the complete network of metro railways to be built and reap its real benefits. No attempt was made to increase the average speed of BEST buses during this period. The bus service is packed with cars, bikes, black-and-yellow taxis, trespassers, vendors, and sirens. In response, BEST officials searched for the size of the small buses and dropped their weapons as if to fight.
"Given the geographical location of Mumbai, the development of Mumbai is limited by the presence of the Arabian Sea on all three sides." There is an urgent need for local governments to set up separate lanes for buses on important roads in the city. Experiments with the Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) have been successful in many metros around the world. But the experience of its implementation on unruly roads in Indian metros is depressing.
The government, however, is enthusiastically setting up metro rail projects in major Indian cities. These projects are either underground (Metro Line 3, Mumbai) or advanced. If this is the case
If the elevated type of construction is available for bus transport, the cost of construction of civic amenities and train carriages will be greatly reduced. "Elevated Bus Rapid Transit" is the panacea for India's urban transport problem.
On elevated routes, air-conditioned buses easily averaged 40 km. They can run faster than the speed, with a frequency of less than a minute. The system can easily carry 18,000 passengers per hour and yet the system will be relatively inexpensive. On narrow internal roads where only one bus can travel at a time, one-way elevated bus lanes, this solution can be successful in extending the bus network throughout the city. This situation will be beneficial for all.
Therefore, if you want to remove the traffic jam in Mumbai's public transport, "Elevated Bus Rapid Transit" can be a new and beneficial solution.
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