Transport in India

Transport in the Republic of India is an important part of the nation's economy. Since the economic liberalisation of the 1990s, development of infrastructure within the country has progressed at a rapid pace, and today there is a wide variety of modes of transport by land, water and air. However, India's relatively low GDP per capita has meant that access to these modes of transport has not been uniform. Motor vehicle penetration is low by international standards, with only 13 million cars on the nation's roads.[1] In addition, only around 10% of Indian households own amotorcycle.
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At the same time, the automobile industry in India is rapidly growing with an annual

production of over 2.6 million vehicles,[3] and vehicle volume is expected to rise greatly in the future.[4] In the interim however, public transport still remains the primary mode of transport for most of the population, and India's public transport systems are among the most heavily used in the world.[5] India's rail network is the 4th longest and the most heavily used system in the world, transporting over 6 billion passengers and over 350 million tons offreight annually.[5][6] Despite ongoing improvements in the sector, several aspects of the transport sector are still riddled with problems due to outdated infrastructure and lack of investment in less economically active parts of the country. The demand for transport infrastructure and services has been rising by around 10% a year[5] with the current infrastructure being unable to meet these growing demands. According to recent estimates by Goldman Sachs, India will need to spend US$1.7 trillion on infrastructure projects over the next decade to boost economic growth, of which US$500 billion is budgeted to be spent during the Eleventh Five-Year Plan.[7]

[edit]Walking
In ancient times, people often covered long distances on foot. For instance, Adi Sankaracharya travelled all over India.[8] Walking still constitutes an important mode of transport in urban areas.[9] In the city of Mumbai, to further improve the transit conditions for pedestrians, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority, has commenced the construction of more than 50 skywalks,[10][11] as part of theMumbai Skywalk project. Similar Footover Bridge projects have been initiated in other cities, in an attempt to facilitate the movement of pedestrians. The concepts of zebra crossing, footpath and right of way of pedestrians are absent in many urban and semi-urban centres of India, making pedestrians highly prone to accidents and fatalities.

[edit]Palanquin
Palanquins, also known as palkis, were one of the luxurious methods used by the rich and noblemen for travelling. This was primarily used in the past to carry a deity or idol of a god, and many temples have sculptures of god being carried in a palki. Later on, it was

primarily used by European noblemen and ladies from the upper classes of society prior to the advent of the railways in India.[12] Modern use of the palanquin is limited toIndian weddings.

[edit]Bullock

carts and horse carriages

Bullock carts have been traditionally used for transport, especially in rural India. Thearrival of the British saw drastic improvements in the horse carriages which were used for transport since early days. Today, they are used in smaller towns and are referred as Tonga or buggies. Victorias of Mumbai are still used for tourist purposes, but horse carriages are now rarely found in the metro cities of India.[13] In recent years some cities have banned the movement of bullock carts and other slow moving vehicles on the main roads.[14][15][16]

[edit]Bicycles
Bicycles are a common mode of travel in much of India. More people can now afford to own a cycle than ever before. In 2005, more than 40% of Indian households owned a bicycle, with ownership rates ranging from around 30% to 70% at the state level.[2]Along with walking, cycling accounts for 50 to 75 % of the commuter trips for those in the informal sector in urban areas.[9] Even though India is the second largest producer of bicycles in the world,[17] a significant prejudice against bicycle riding for transport exists in some segments of the population, generally stemming from the status symbol aspect of the motor vehicle.[17]In India, the word "bike" generally refers to motorcycle, and "cycle" refers to bicycle.[17] Pune was the first city in India to have dedicated lanes for cycles.[18] It was built for the2008 Commonwealth Youth Games. However, recent developments in Delhi suggest that bicycle riding is fast becoming popular in the metro cities of India. The Delhi government has decided to construct separate bicycle lanes on all major roads to combat pollution and ease traffic congestion.
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[edit]Hand-pulled

rickshaw

This type of transport are still available in Kolkata wherein a person pulls the rickshaw by hand. The Government of West Bengal proposed a ban on these rickshaws in 2005 describing them as "inhuman".[20] Though a bill aiming to address this issue, termed as 'Calcutta Hackney Carriage Bill', was passed by the West Bengal Assembly in 2006, it has not been implemented yet.[21] The Government of West Bengal is working on an amendment of this bill to avoid the loopholes that got exposed when the Hand-pulled Rickshaw Owner's Association filed a petition against the bill.[21]

[edit]Cycle

rickshaw

Cycle rickshaws were introduced in India in the 1940s.[22] They are bigger than a tricycle where two people sit on an elevated seat at the back and a person pedals from the front. In the late 2000s, they were banned in several cities for causing traffic congestion.[23][24]
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Cycle rickshaws have been a feature of Delhi streets since Indian independence in

1947, providing the cheapest way around the capital. The Delhi Police recently submitted an affidavit against plying of cycle rickshaws to ease traffic congestion in the city but it was dismissed by the Delhi High court.[26] In addition, environmentalists have supported the retention of cycle rickshaws as a non-polluting and inexpensive mode of transport.[27]

[edit]Trams
Main article: Tram transport in India The advent of the British saw trams being introduced in many cities including Mumbai and Kolkata. They are still in use in Kolkata and provide an emission-free means of transport. The nationalized Calcutta Tramways Company is in the process of upgrading the existing tramway network at a cost of 24 crore (US$4.79 million).[28] Presently the limited tram system in India is extremely slow and technologically backward, new light rail projects are being proposed rather than tram projects which have one reason or another not been very successful in the country

[edit]Local

transport

Public transport is the predominant mode of motorised local travel in cities.[9] This is predominantly by road, since commuter rail services are available only in the seven metropolitan cities of Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Pune, while dedicated city bus services are known to operate in at least 25 cities with a population of over one million.[29] Intermediate public transport modes like tempos and cycle rickshaws assume importance in medium size cities.[9] However, the share of buses is negligible in most Indian cities as compared to personalized vehicles, and two-wheelers and cars account for more than 80 percent of the vehicle population in most large cities.[29] Traffic in Indian cities generally moves slowly, where traffic jams and accidents are very common.[30] India has very poor records on road safelyaround 90,000 people die from road accidents every year.[31] At least 13 people die every hour in road accidents in the country,also in the year 2007 road accidents claimed more than 130,000 lives, overtaking China.[32] [33] A Reader's Digest study of traffic congestion in Asian cities ranked several Indian cities within the Top Ten for worst traffic.[30]

[edit]Bus Rapid Transit System(BRTS)

The oldest Indian state transport undertaking is North Bengal State Transport Corporation founded by the Raj Durbar of Koch Bihar Kingdom regime in the year 1945, the 1st April. With three buses and three trucks.Is still vibrant and running providing service to hundreds of commuters of North Bengal region of West Bengal. Buses take up over 90% of public transport in Indian cities, [34] and serve as a cheap and convenientmode of transport for all classes of society. Services are mostly run by state government owned transport corporations.[29] However, after the economic liberalisation, many state transport corporations have introduced various facilities likelow-floor buses for the disabled and airconditioned buses to attract private car owners to help decongest roads.[35][36] Bengaluru

was the first city in India to introduce Volvo B7RLE intra-city buses in India in January 2006.[37][38][39] New initiatives like Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) systems and air conditioned buses have been taken by the various state government to improve the bus public transport systems in cities. Bus Rapid Transit systems already exist in Pune, Delhi andAhmedabad with new ones coming up in Visakhapatnam Hyderabad and Bangalore. High Capacity buses can be found in cities like Mumbai, Bengaluru, Nagpur andChennai. Bengaluru is the first Indian city to have an air-conditioned bus stop, located near Cubbon Park. It was built by Airtel.[40] The APSRTC has introduced Buses with two coaches.These Buses are allowed to operate only in the Greater Hyderabad. The city of Chennai houses Asia's largest bus terminus, the Chennai Mofussil Bus Terminus.[41] In 2009, the Government of Karnataka and the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation flagged off a pro-poor bus service called the Atal Sarige. The service aims to provide low-cost connectivity to the economically backward sections of the society to the nearest major bus station.[42][43] Now the Semi low floor buses are in Trivandrum city and Kerala State for comfort Travel. The first bus from the Semi-Low floor Ac & Non Ac fleet of 120 JNNURM buses started service in Trivandrum city. The buses are high standards with air suspension and quality seats for better comfort, LED boards and rear mounted engines. There will be two doors of 1100mm width, one in the front and one in middle which are controlled by driver. This will facilitate easy entry and exit for the passengers. Semi Low floor non A/c buses are painted green (A/c buses are in Orange) will be having JNNURM and KSRTC logos. Besides these buses, the country also have Double Decker Buses.Double Decker Busare found in cities like Mumbai, Chennai and Trivandrum.

[edit]Taxi
Main article: Taxis in India Most of the traditional taxicabs in India are either Premier Padmini or Hindustan Ambassador cars.[44] In recent years, cars such as Chevrolet Tavera, Maruti Esteem,Maruti Omni, Mahindra Logan, Tata Indica, Toyota Innova, Hyundai Santro and Tata Indigo have become fairly popular among taxi operators. The livery of the taxis in India varies from state-to-state. In Delhi and Maharashtra, most taxicabs have yellow-black livery while in West Bengal, taxis have yellow livery. Private taxi operators are not required to have a specific livery. However, they are required by law to be registered as commercial vehicles. Depending on the city/state, taxis can either be hailed or hired from taxi-stands. In cities such as Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Hyderabad,taxis need to be hired over phone,
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whereas in cities like Kolkata and Mumbai, taxis can be hailed on the street. According

to government of India regulations, all taxis are required to have a fare-meter installed.
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There are additional surcharges for luggage, late-night rides and toll taxes are to be

paid by the passenger. Since 2006, radio taxis have become increasingly popular with the public due to reasons of safety and convenience. [47]

In cities and localities where taxis are expensive or do not ply as per the government or municipal regulated fares, people use share taxis. These are normal taxis which carry one or more passengers travelling to destinations either en route to the final destination, or near the final destination. The passengers are charged according to the number of people with different destinations. A similar system exists for autorickshaws, known as share autos. The city of Mumbai will soon be the first city in India, to have an "in-taxi" magazine, titled MumBaee, which will be issued to taxis which are part of the Mumbai Taximen's Union. The magazine debuted on 13 July 2009.[48]

[edit]Auto Rickshaws
Main article: Autorickshaw An auto rickshaw is a three-wheeler vehicle for hire that has no doors and is generally characterised by a small cabin for the driver in the front and a seat for passengers in the rear.[49] Generally it is painted in yellow, green or black colour and has a black, yellow or green canopy on the top, but designs vary considerably from place to place. The color of the autorickshaw is also determined by the fuel that it is powered by, for example Ahmedabad and Delhi have green autos indicating the use of Compressed Natural Gas, whereas the autos of Mumbai,Bangalore have black autos indicating the use of diesel. In Mumbai and other metropolitan cities, 'autos' or 'ricks' as they are popularly known have regulated metered fares. A recent law prohibits auto rickshaw drivers from charging more than the specified fare, or charging night-fare before midnight, and also prohibits the driver from refusing to go to a particular location. Mumbai and Kolkata are also the only two cities which prohibit auto rickshaws from entering a certain part of the city, in these cases being South Mumbai and certain parts of downtown Kolkata.[50] However, in cities like Chennai, it is common to see autorickshaw drivers demand more than the specified fare and refuse to use fare meter
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Airports and railway stations at many cities such as Chennai, Bengaluru, Mysore and Hubballi-Dharwad provide a facility of prepaidauto booths, where the passenger pays a fixed fare as set by the authorities for various locations.

Delhi Metro, operational since 2002

The present suburban railway services in India are limited and are operational only inMumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Delhi and MMTS Hyderabad .[29] The Mumbai Suburban Railway is the first rail system in India which began services in Mumbai in 1867, transports 6.3 million passengers daily and has the highest passenger density in the world.[53] The first rapid transit system in India, the Kolkata Suburban Railway, was established in Kolkata in 1854.[54] Its first service ran between Howrah and Hooghly covering a distance of 38.6 km (24 mi).