Govt announces scheme to introduce premium buses run by pvt aggregators
New Delhi: In a bid to revolutionise the public transport system in the Capital, the Delhi government on Monday announced its Premium Bus Aggregator Project. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal stated that this initiative aims to encourage people who completely rely on cars to shift towards the public transport network. Once the L-G approves this scheme, the government will table it for public feedback for one month, he added.
Speaking about this new scheme, Kejriwal said that Delhi is the national Capital of the country and it is the endeavour of the state government to have a public transport sector in Delhi that is world-class. He added that the transport sector in Delhi should be on par with the transport sector in some of the best cities in the world.
The CM added that one of the main concerns about the traffic problem in Delhi is that the number of private vehicles, i.e scooters and cars, is on the higher side. “If the state government has to get these people to leave their vehicles behind and use public transport, then we have to make it comfortable, safe and time-bound. The biggest revolution in the transport sector in Delhi arose when Delhi Metro started functioning two decades ago. A lot of people who belong to the middle and upper-middle class began to leave their vehicles behind and travel by the Delhi Metro,” he said.
Speaking about the DTC and cluster buses in Delhi, Kejriwal said that people in the lower-middle class usually use these buses. He said that although there are AC buses as well for the public to use, there is no guarantee of a seat and also the comfort that a middle class or upper-middle class person expects is not there in these buses, and therefore they do not use it much.
He added that it is to cater to this segment of people that the Delhi Government has been working on a scheme to bring the Premium Buses in the city. He said that the plan of bringing such a scheme has been in the works for the last 4-5 years. He also said that this is the first experiment of such a nature in India, and added that Premium Buses within a city in such a way have never been thought of and employed before.
Providing further details, Kejriwal said that the state government has started a scheme named Delhi Motor Vehicles Licensing of Aggregator (Premium Buses) Scheme, 2023. Under this scheme, the Premium Buses that will be run in the city will be air-conditioned, comfortable and will have 2×2 reclining seats. These buses will have WiFi, GPS, CCTV and a panic button. He also added that the booking of seats will be app-based or web-based. The CM made it clear that no standing passengers will be allowed in these buses and the passengers who book tickets in it will be assured of a seat.
Adding that such a scheme is being implemented for the first time, Kejriwal said that the target audience under this scheme is the upper-middle class, who are willing to pay for their comfort.
“These people have the money to own cars and on a daily basis travel in their own vehicles. They pay for their petrol on a daily basis. But if given an option of a bus that is comfortable, we believe that they will leave their cars behind and opt for the bus,” he said.
