On Way: 1,725 DTC buses to take to city roads soon
26 Jun 2013 10:43 PM GMT
The Delhi government on Wednesday decided to include another 1,725 low-floor buses and 400 semi-low floor cluster buses to Delhi Transport Corporation’s (DTC) fleet.
The inductions will be made in a phased manner and the process is expected to be completed by December this year.
Currently, DTC has around 5,481 buses. Out of this, 2,506 are low-floor buses, 1,275 are air-conditioned low-floor buses, while the rest —1,650 — are standard buses.
Phasing out of old DTC buses has led to a shortage of buses in the city. According to a DTC official, ‘Under the existing norms, a bus is removed from service either after eight years or if it has run six lakh kilometers. Till now, almost 1,200 standard buses have been taken out from the fleet.
‘This phasing out of buses comes at a time when the city is already facing a shortage of at least 6,000 public transport buses including the DTC and cluster buses,’ the official said. A senior Delhi government official informed that the new buses will be added in the DTC’s fleet by end of this year.
‘The government has also planned to open four more DTC bus terminals in Bindapur, Narela, Pitampura and Manglapuri areas of Delhi. The land has been allotted for Bindapur bus terminal,’ the officer said.
Standard buses are burning a hole in the pocket of the DTC as their maintenance cost is much higher than that of the new buses. A senior official said that the maintenance cost of these standard buses has increased in recent years.
Estimates suggest that at least 12,000 buses are required in the national capital to meet the requirements of the commuters.
The inductions will be made in a phased manner and the process is expected to be completed by December this year.
Currently, DTC has around 5,481 buses. Out of this, 2,506 are low-floor buses, 1,275 are air-conditioned low-floor buses, while the rest —1,650 — are standard buses.
Phasing out of old DTC buses has led to a shortage of buses in the city. According to a DTC official, ‘Under the existing norms, a bus is removed from service either after eight years or if it has run six lakh kilometers. Till now, almost 1,200 standard buses have been taken out from the fleet.
‘This phasing out of buses comes at a time when the city is already facing a shortage of at least 6,000 public transport buses including the DTC and cluster buses,’ the official said. A senior Delhi government official informed that the new buses will be added in the DTC’s fleet by end of this year.
‘The government has also planned to open four more DTC bus terminals in Bindapur, Narela, Pitampura and Manglapuri areas of Delhi. The land has been allotted for Bindapur bus terminal,’ the officer said.
Standard buses are burning a hole in the pocket of the DTC as their maintenance cost is much higher than that of the new buses. A senior official said that the maintenance cost of these standard buses has increased in recent years.
Estimates suggest that at least 12,000 buses are required in the national capital to meet the requirements of the commuters.
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