Hazards Centre

transport

transport situation in delhi

Buses in Delhi constitute 1.2 % of the total vehicles and carry 60 % commuters.
Cars and two-wheelers constitute 85 % vehicles but carry 25 % commuters and are the major cause of air pollution.
The metro, involving massive costs, is carrying about 20 % of targeted riders.
For the fast moving private vehicles, 40 new flyovers are under construction. But none of the mandated cycling tracks have ever been built.
The public bus service is being privatized and dismantled. Rickshaws are being restricted by extensive zoning laws.

In the overall context of Delhi ’s transformation post the avowed embrace of liberalization, the transport situation in Delhi is gearing to cater to only a privileged minority. Hazards Centre opposes such policy directions by laying focus on transport issues that are directly related to the urban poor in the city.

We question the increasingly shrinking space accorded to public transport and non-motorized systems that majority of city’s population are dependent on, as also the disproportionate investments in metro, which would cater to only a limited population segment. We question the massive thrust on such road architecture and infrastructure (flyovers, expressways, underpasses, footbridges) that is most usable for only fast moving private vehicles, major source of congestion and pollution. And the complete indifference to plans for separate lanes for slow traffic such as cycles, carts, rickshaws, as also walkways for pedestrians.

The many political, economic and social processes that shape choices of transport in urban centres are not captured within the analytical frameworks of planners and policy makers, as they examine such issues largely from the vantage point of choices and development of technology. We hope to plug in such missing links through our research and documentation work in this area.

our work

A preview of some of the related studies done in the past

a study on the accidents at Anandmayee roundabout, Okhla (2002)

Okhla Estate Marg and Maa Anand Mayee Marg meet at Anand Mayee Roundabout. This roundabout caters to the heavy traffic of workers going to Okhla Phase I & II from Tuglakabad and other residential areas. The road carries heavy traffic of pedestrians, cyclists, buses and trucks. Local residents complained of several cases of fatal accidents mostly involving cyclists and pedestrians. HazardsCentre and TRIPP members visited the site, and based on traffic count and observations made certain recommendations. These recommendations were used for advocacy with government traffic departments for better traffic infrastructure in the area.

a study on the autorickshaw drivers in delhi (2003)

After the conversion of public transport into CNG the TSR drivers had been complaining about their working conditions, such as lack of availability of CNG, rise in costs of operating their vehicles. Consequently they were demanding an increase in fares. In addition, they were not happy with the installation of electronic fare meters as this imposed an extra cost without any advantage. Also as the meters are not reliable and did not follow any standards. They even went on a strike to push for these demands to be met but the problems continued to persist. Newspapers also reported on commuters’ complaints regarding TSR drivers. In this backdrop, a study was conducted to get a better understanding of the situation from both perspectives – the commuter and the TSR driver. The aim being to help develop policies that would benefit both the operators and commuters

traffic count at mehrauli badarpur road (Lal Kuan)

In sept 2003, residents of Lal Kuan expressed their concern towards road safety of school children. A site near Mehrauli Badarpur road (Lal Kuan) was reported to have a number of accidents especially involving children studying in a school nearby. This was largely due to the high volume and speed of cars and buses. In order to get the situation in perspective, traffic monitoring was done by Hazards Centre, TRIPP and ASTHA, an organization working in the vicinity. Vehicles were counted in the morning and afternoon at the interval of 10 minutes. On the basis of site observation and traffic count, the following recommendations were made – the road design should be improved immediately, traffic police should be deployed at peak hours, school authorities should deploy volunteers carrying stop signs to help children to cross the road.

a study on waste pickers

In 2003-04, a joint study was undertaken by Hazards Centre and Chintan on the issue of waste picking in Delhi . Chintan works amongst waste pickers. It is estimated that in Delhi itself, there are upto 70,000 persons engaged in such work. They save the municipalities at least 6 lakh rupees daily, picking up between 9-15% of the waste, even while their own situation is worse, to say the least. The study came out with results that that apart from occupational hazards like cuts, beatings, handling toxic chemicals in the waste, breathing ailments etc, the biggest hazard waste pickers face is vehicles hits on roads while they transport their waste from point of collection to point of segregation. The study has initiated the field for further enquiry and had at least provided a basis for making intelligent decisions about what could be done to relieve the distress prevailing within the sector.

paper presentation

In 2004, a paper was presented by Hazards Centre in a workshop organized by Lokayan on issues of Sustainable Urban Transport for the Future: A vision for the Non-Motorised. The paper was titled Choice of Transport Modes in Delhi : Policies, Issues and Implications. In the past two decades, policy interventions in the city’s transport strategy have been ad hoc and lacking in an integrated approach. On the one hand, motorized vehicles have received far more encouragement than ever before, with potentially grave environmental and social consequences. On the other hand, non-motorized vehicles and pedestrians have received indifference and discouragement in the various policy pronouncement of the state. By assessing the choice of transport modes in Delhi , the paper attempted to unravel the many critical issues related to non-motorized vehicles and pedestrians.

Apart from the above-mentioned studies, the Hazards Centre has also undertaken the following:

Involved actively with TRIPP and Lokayan in the preparation of Bicycle Master Plan.
Gave presentation in workshop organized by transport department (GNCTD) on the issue of tackling urban transportation in Delhi (2002).
Gave presentation in transport department (GNCTD) on the problems of autorickshaw drivers (2002).
Provided technical support to the autorickshaw union during their strike in 2002-03
Collaborated with DTC union on several occasions on various transport related issues.
Conducted few workshops on traffic count.

at present, the Hazards Centre is involved with the following studies.

The following are the studies, which are ongoing under transportation research:

Study on the impact of privatization on DTC and DTC drivers (both temporary and permanent). This study examines how the changes in structure influence performance. This study is being done in collaboration with DTC Workers Unity.

Study on issue of transportation of waste in the industrial areas combined with issues of occupational health of industrial workers. This study is being done in collaboration with organizations of waste pickers.

For the past few years there has been massive displacement in Delhi and the process is still on. Currently, the centre is engaged in a study to determine whether those who abandon their allotments in resettlement colonies are doing so because of the costs of transportation to workplaces.

Study on metro rail in Delhi . In this study the centre is trying to unravel the social, economic and environmental impacts of metro project. By doing so it is an attempt to evaluate the viability of metro rail as a mode of public transport.

Documentation of the various development projects in Delhi related to systems of transport, with a view to understand whether these projects actually help decongest the city