Mohalla buses, dev of ISBTs- Budget's focus on transport sector

A ‘mohalla bus’ scheme to ensure last mile-connectivity, inclusion of more electric buses and development of three ISBTs with airport-like facilities were some of the key announcements made by Delhi Finance Minister Kailash Gahlot for the transport sector.

Gahlot announced an allocation of over Rs 9,337 crore for transport, roads

and bridges, a decrease from last year’s allocation of Rs 9,539 core.

While commencing the announcements for the transport sector, the minister cited the words of former Mayor of Bogota, Gustavo Petro ‘A developed country is not a place where the poor have cars, it is where the rich use public transportation’.

Petro is also a major thinker in the field of sustainable urban development.

“This (Petro’s) statement is very important in relation to the vision of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and the work done in the public transport sector of Delhi in the last eight years. If India is to be developed, we have to modernise the public transport system of all big cities to such an extent that even the rich people feel comfortable and proud to use it,” Gahlot said. The government has plans to construct 1,400 new and modern bus queue shelters (BQS) across the national capital.

“Besides providing a comfortable waiting area for bus commuters, these bus shelters will also have a static display of bus routes and digital screens displaying the arrival time of buses. In view of the G20 summit in Delhi, we will complete this work in a phased manner,” he said.

Gahlot elaborated on the scientific route rationalisation study carried out by the transport department, and how it has laid out extensive set of last-mile connectivity routes that will connect all the major nodes of Delhi’s metro and bus network with residential colonies, commercial complexes and habitations across the city.