Proper policy measures and improvement in the performance of public transport would help draw people away from private transportation and address traffic congestion
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There has been broad recognition of the need for cities to improve public transportation systems for their citizens. There are clear gains that accrue to a city out of it. A reduction in carbon emissions (45 percent reduction in air pollutants) and an improvement of the city’s air quality are few environmental benefits that directly contribute to more significant health benefits for citizens through decreased respiratory ailments. There is also a considerable reduction in noise pollution, apart from substantial efficiency gains in fuel consumption. From a safety viewpoint, public transport is decidedly safer than two-wheelers and cars. According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), in 2021, two-wheelers accounted for 69,240 deaths (44.96 percent) and cars for 23,531 deaths (15.28 percent) out of 1,53,972 fatalities. Besides, personal transport has a high economic cost in constructing roads and allied infrastructure, with heavy diversion of land primarily for private transport. Quite unarguably, public transport is a boon for cities.
Personal transport has a high economic cost in constructing roads and allied infrastructure, with heavy diversion of land primarily for private transport.
However, the claim that public transport reduces traffic congestion is not always borne out. It is logical to expect that public transport allows many car-owning or bike-owning individuals to give up cars or two-wheelers, reduce their personalised trips and move to city rail or bus services. However, that may not necessarily ease traffic congestion as people who have newly migrated to the city and new cars would occupy the vacated space, restoring the congestion status quo. This is already the experience of cities that have built many flyovers and subways but have had only some temporary relief with an eventual return to earlier levels of traffic congestion. In terms of public transport, the first underground railway in the world became operational in London in 1863. The primary purpose behind it, as stated, was to reduce traffic congestion. The London Underground, or the Tube, kept expanding in phases subsequently. Today, it covers a total of 470 kilometres and serves around 5 million passengers per day. London has one of the largest public transport networks in the world and the most extensive in Europe, with integrated underground, train, and bus systems spanning the city. In addition, there are riverboat services, trams, cable cars, and paratransit. Yet, in Tomtom’s index of traffic congestion 2022, of the 390 cities surveyed, London is at the top of the list with the heaviest traffic congestion. The average travel time in London for 10 km is 36 minutes 20 seconds and has worsened since 2021 by 1 minute 50 seconds. The average speed during rush hours is 14 km per hour. The rise in the number of cars further corroborates this. Between 1995 and 2020, the number of licensed cars in the city (2.6 million) rose by 17 percent. Bogotá and Curitiba—cities in South America—drew international attention for running the most efficient bus rapid transit systems (BRTS) and were emulated in many countries. However, that has not helped them get off the TomTom traffic congestion index. They rank 10 and 37 on the list respectively. In these two cities, the average travel time per 10 km in rush hours is 26 mins and 20 seconds and 22 mins, respectively.
London has one of the largest public transport networks in the world and the most extensive in Europe, with integrated underground, train, and bus systems spanning the city.
Among cities in India, Delhi has assigned the maximum road space in its land use plan—more than any other Indian city. It was also blessed with the first metro rail service in 2006. Today, it has an extensive network of rail-based transit systems (more than 400 km), the world’s largest fleet of CNG-powered buses, a BRTS (bus rapid transit system) and various paratransit. Yet, Delhi suffers from traffic congestion and ranks 34th on TomTom’s global list with an average travel time of 22 mins 10 seconds for 10 km and clocking 24 km per hour during rush hours. Pune, another prominent Indian city, has risen sharply in traffic congestion, ranking as the sixth most congested in the world. This is despite the construction and expansion of metro rail services, bus systems, and paratransit. The metro rail began taking shape in Bengaluru in 2011 through the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMTC). Today, 70 km of the rail service has become operational, with a ridership of 485,000 passengers daily. Besides, the city operates 6,000 buses on 2,000 routes, with about 825 of them being air-conditioned. It also has paratransit facilities through Uber and Ola taxi services, auto-rickshaw rides, and motorcycles, scooters and bicycles available for hire. Many of these services are app-enabled, adding to the commuters’ hiring convenience. Despite this rich public and para-transit transport, Bengaluru figures in the TomTom Traffic Congestion Index 2022 as having the second-worst traffic congestion in the world. The average travel time in the city per 10 km is 29 mins 10 sec at an average speed of 18 km per hour in rush hours and has worsened since 2021 by 40 seconds. A study of public transport in the Netherlands revealed that frequent car users did not favour public transport. The car outperformed public transport on several counts. It provided an individual with the satisfaction of freedom, independence, flexibility of time, comfort, reliability and security. Many car owners found driving enjoyable, especially during family rides, and added a status symbol for them, thereby gifting cultural and psychological advantages.
The average travel time in the city per 10 km is 29 mins 10 sec at an average speed of 18 km per hour in rush hours and has worsened since 2021 by 40 seconds.
In recent decades, many of the negatives associated with cars—air pollution, noise pollution, high rate of accidents—have been actively worked on by car manufacturers. The noise levels and emissions generated by yesteryear cars have remarkably come down, and their energy efficiency as well as affordability have soared. Cars, today, carry safety features such as airbags. Road construction globally is increasingly safety conscious. All these factors have contributed to the rise in car use globally. The number of motorised vehicles in the world rose from about 75 million to about 675 million between 1950 and 1990. Of these, around 80 percent were used for personal transportation. Passenger kilometres by private car per capita increased by 90 percent in Western Europe between 1970 and 1990. The story elsewhere is no different. The evidence concludes that public transport is not winning the battle against cars. And while two-wheelers and cars are becoming more environment friendly, the one front on which public transport was projected to succeed—reduction in two-wheelers and cars and traffic congestion—is nowhere to be seen. The option, indeed, is not to move away from public transport. Three very robust arguments continue to back it. They are environment-friendly, provide equity and are a countermagnet to private transport for willing commuters. We have already stated the environmental advantages that public transportation brings to the city. The equity argument is that it serves the poor, non-car and non-two-wheeler-owning citizens who remain the majority of a city’s population. They need reliable and affordable transport, and public transportation makes it available. Thirdly, situations in the city keep changing over time, and more people could decide to switch to public transport. This could especially happen because of congestion, commuting time, stress, cost, and disincentives that the city administration may like to impose, making ownership of personal vehicles more difficult.
The equity argument is that it serves the poor, non-car and non-two-wheeler-owning citizens who remain the majority of a city’s population.
At the same time, cities need to put in serious work on evolving policies targeting the functional, psychological, and cultural values of private cars, as well as increasing the performance of public transport on features that would bridge the gap that attracts individuals to cars and draw people away from public transportation.
Ramanath Jha is Distinguished Fellow at Observer Research Foundation
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Dr. Ramanath Jha is Distinguished Fellow at Observer Research Foundation, Mumbai. He works on urbanisation — urban sustainability, urban governance and urban planning. Dr. Jha belongs ...
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