Skip to main content

Contrary to World Bank claims, Ahmedabad survey finds BRTS has "no space" for the urban poor, cyclists

A typical BRTS station
Counterview Desk
While a recent World Bank report (click HERE) is all praise for the Bus Rapid Transport System (BRTS) of Ahmedabad for its ability to “shift” nearly 22 per cent of the motorbike users to the transport facility in Gujarat’s business capital, created in 2007, a spot study – carried out on the basis of primary survey about two years ago – has said it has failed to give a helping hand to the poor.
The study, “Low-Carbon Mobility in India and the Challenges of Social Inclusion: Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Case Studies in India” by Ahmedabad’s CEPT University professors Darshini Mahadevia and Rutul Joshi, has said, the place where BRTS became a big success, Bogota, had a “big component” cycling in the entire scheme of things, “which actually led to the betterment of the city’s public transport scenario.”
But, it regrets, “In the case of Ahmedabad, planners did not meet the claims made in their own Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) about creating facilities for walking and cycling.”
While pointing out that half of those who used BRTS walked to get the bus, and 76 per cent of them lived within half a kilometre of the BRTS station, and another 23 per cent lived within half to one kilometre of the BRTS station, the study says, the primary survey found that “no one is cycling to the BRTS station”.
Open gutter on cycle lane next along BRTS 
People do not cycle “not for any other reason than the non-availability of cycle-parking facilities”, the study says. “In the surveyed stretches, bicycle tracks were provided only on 26.2 per cent of the BRTS track and footpaths were provided on 83.7 per cent of the BRTS track.”
Even these tracks, it says, nothing was not obstruction free. Of the available bicycle tracks, “35 per cent were obstructed due to various reasons like unauthorised parking, open manholes, rainwater drainage, electricity poles, etc.” And at one spot, next to the high profile Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) campus, “the excuse of ‘lack of space’ and ‘security concerns” led to cancellation of the bicycle track.
As for the footpaths, the study says, about 52.5 per cent of them are “obstructed” due to “various reasons like signboards, light posts, trees, post boxes, telephone boxes, entrances to buildings, and unauthorised two-wheeler parking.”
As for facilities for the physically challenged, the study says, “Although the bus stops have been designed in a way that they are wheel chair-friendly, access to bus stops is gated by concrete pillars, which makes it impossible for the blind, people with crutches and wheelchairs to reach the bus stations.”
Further: “Entry and exit into a BRTS station is difficult for everyone and discipline along the zebra crossings is not enforced.”
The study also points to the fact that of the total BRTS users, just 13.7 per cent belong to household incomes of up to Rs 5,000 (2009-10 price), but on the other hand, “62.2 per cent of users had monthly household incomes of more than Rs 10,000.” In fact, it adds, “About 30 per cent of the BRTS trips are for purposes related to social, recreational and shopping trips”, suggesting, BRTS has only “made long-distance recreational facilities more accessible for the middle class from western Ahmedabad and has created new demand for transport.”
Slum areas and BRTS
The study says, “Prior to the BRTS, a large proportion (47 per cent) of the current users were taking AMTS (municipal) buses, and because the AMTS services were discontinued on the BRTS corridors they shifted to the BRTS”, and “this group can be termed as the ‘captive users’.” It adds, “Only 12 per cent of commuters have shifted from the private motorized transport (PMT).”
Pointing out that because of its high costs, the BRTS is not being used by the lower income groups, the survey shows that 48 to 50 per cent of the slum-dwellers walk down to their work, 14 to 17 per cent use cycles (mostly males), nine to 12 per cent use the traditional municipal buses (AMTS) because they are cheaper, 14 to 16 per cent use shared auto-rickshaws, just less than 1 per cent use BRTS.
The study says, this is even true of the slum three settlements “Santoshinagar na Chhapara (north, near Naroda), Hanumannagar (east, near CTM) and Sanjaynagar (west, near Sola housing), located within a 200 metres walking distance from a BRTS bus stop.”

Comments

TRENDING

'Enough evidence' in Indian tradition to support legal basis for same-sex marriage

By Iyce Malhotra, Joseph Mathai, Sandeep Chachra*  The ongoing hearing in the Supreme Court on same-sex marriage provides space for much-needed conversations on issues that have hitherto remained “invisible” or engaged with patriarchal locker room humour. We must recognize that people with diverse sexualities and complex gender identities have faced discrimination, stigma and decades of oppression. Their issues have mainly remained buried in dominant social discourse, and many view them with deep insecurities.

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Our Representative Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

Victim of communal violence, Christians in Manipur want Church leadership to speak up

By Fr Cedric Prakash SJ*  The first eleven days of May 2023 have, in many ways, been a defining period of Indian history! Plenty has happened in a rapid-fire stream of events. Ironically, each one of them are indicators of how crimes and the criminalisation of society has become the ‘new norm’; these include, the May Day rallies with a focus on the four labour codes which are patently against the rights of workers; the U S Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released its Annual Report on 1 May stating that conditions for religious freedom in India “continued to worsen in 2022”; the continued protest by the Indian women wrestlers at Jantar Mantar for the expulsion of the chief of the Indian Wrestlers Federation on very serious allegations; the Elections in Karnataka on 10 May (with communalism and corruption as the mainstay); the release of the fake, derogative and insensitive film ‘The Kerala Story’; the release of World Free Press Index on 3 May which places India

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

Unlike other revolutionaries, Hindutva icon wrote 5 mercy petitions to British masters

By Shamsul Islam*  The Hindutva icon VD Savarkar of the RSS-BJP rulers of India submitted not one, two,or three but five mercy petitions to the British masters! Savarkarites argue: “There are no evidences to prove that Savarkar collaborated with the British for his release from jail. In fact, his appeal for release was a ruse. He was well aware of the political developments outside and wanted to be part of it. So he kept requesting for his release. But the British authorities did not trust him a bit” (YD Phadke, ‘A complex Hero’, "The Indian Expres"s, August 31, 2004)

Polygamy in India "down" in 45 yrs: Muslims' from 5.7 to 2.55%, Hindus' 5.8 to 1.77%, "common" in SCs, STs

By Rajiv Shah Amidst All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) justifying polygamy, saying it “meets social and moral needs and the provision for it stems from concern and sympathy for women”, facts suggest the the practice is down from 5.7 per cent of Muslim families in 1961 to 2.55 per cent in 2006.

India joining US sponsored trade pillar to hurt Indian farmers, 'promote' GM seeds, food

Counterview Desk  As many as 32 civil society organisations (CSOs), in a letter to Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal on the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) and India joining the trade pillar, have said that its provisions will allow the US to ensure a more favourable regulatory regime “for enhancing its exports of genetically modified (GM) seeds and GM food”, underlining, it will “significantly hurt the livelihoods of Indian farmers.”

Savarkar 'criminally betrayed' Netaji and his INA by siding with the British rulers

By Shamsul Islam* RSS-BJP rulers of India have been trying to show off as great fans of Netaji. But Indians must know what role ideological parents of today's RSS/BJP played against Netaji and Indian National Army (INA). The Hindu Mahasabha and RSS which always had prominent lawyers on their rolls made no attempt to defend the INA accused at Red Fort trials.

Modi govt 'wholly untrustworthy' on Covid data, censored criticism on pandemic: Lancet

By Rajiv Shah*   One of the world’s most prestigious health journals, brought out from England, has sharply criticised the Narendra Modi government for being “wholly untrustworthy on Covid-19 health data”, stating, the “official government figures place deaths at more than 530 000, while WHO excess death estimates for 2020 and 2021 are near 4·7 million.”

Savarkar 'opposed' Bhagat Singh's, Netaji's dream of India, supported British war efforts

By Shamsul Islam* In a shocking development, the student wing of the RSS put the busts of martyrs Bhagat Singh and Subhash Chandra Bose with Savarkar's on one pedestal at the University of Delhi late in the night on August 20, 2019. Bhagat Singh sacrificed his life for a socialist-democratic-secular republic and Netaji raised Azad Hind Fauj (INA) consisting of people of all religions and regions for armed liberation of India.