Mushrooming e-rickshaws growth causing traffic snarls
NEW DELHI: The mush-rooming growth of e-rickshaws are causing traffic snarls across the city. Even Delhi Transport department does not have actual data, how many e-rickshaws are plying on roads and by lanes. During the president's rule in Delhi, then Lieutenant-Governor Najeeb Jung had approved the e-rickshaw policy that the drivers will have to wear uniforms and public transport vehicle badges and get commercial driving licence. The e-rickshaws routes would also be regulated, with curbs on coming on to busy roads, but no any policy has been implemented till now.
The Union Transport Ministry had decided to form a technical committee to look into the designs aspect of these vehicles to find whether these are safe and qualify to fall in the category of motorised vehicles. It was also decided the committee will have members from Road Transport ministry, Delhi government, Delhi Police, vehicle testing agencies and also some e-rickshaw drivers. But the e-rickshaws presently plying on roads are illegal and the city government and police are mute spectators.
Currently, no any e-rickshaw driver follows any vehicle norms and regulations. 90 per cent e-rickshaws are plying without number plates and driving license,while the transport department has given only six months to get permits for driving light commercial vehicles , a driving license and PSV badges.
In fact, AAP government several times had launched campaign for registration as well as driving licenses.According to Delhi Transport department, nearly 25,000 e-rickshaws got registrations. While more than five lakh e-rickshaws are being plied in the Delhi. Delhi government had decided to formulate a policy and e-rickshaws without registration numbers won't be allowed to ply in the national capital .
In way, the eco-friendly e-rickshaws were linked to the need for a cheap and reasonably quick mode of transport which could move around in congested areas such as lanes. Especially , Delhi Metro stations, the e-rickshaws are a boon for users , who face problems in reaching homes within 1-4 kilometers distance from metro stations. The e-rickshaw carries 5 persons per trip on the basis of share. Passengers are charged Rs 10 per trip. While the manual rickshaw puller charges Rs 15- 25 rupee to per person. Eventually, manual -rickshaws have been replaced by e-rickshaws .
Undoubtedly, the vehicles known as major offer employment to migrants who can not afford an auto-rickshaw, each of which costs around Rs 2 lakh apart . The e-rickshaws which run up to 25 km an hour speed, using a 250 Watt motor, will now be brought under the Motor Vehicles Act as these do not quality for any concession under the garb of being non-motorised vehicles, said an official.
