‘Reclaiming the Bus: Campaign for Free, Safe and Reliable Public Bus Transport in Delhi’ wrote to the Chief Minister of Delhi highlighting the key points of the campaign and the urgent need for more public buses in Delhi to serve the needs of the people. The letter also emphasised the importance of better public bus transport in the COVID and post-COVID times and requested the CM to take the necessary and concrete actions in this regard. A copy of the letter is attached below:
[Letter to the Hon’ble CM of Delhi (English)] [माननीय मुख्यमंत्री जी को पत्र (हिंदी)]
Note: Copies of this letter have also been sent to the LG of Delhi, Transport Minister, Environment Minister, Vice-Chair- DDCA, all MLAs, Commissioner of Police (Traffic), Commissioner of EDMC, Commissioner of NDMC, Commissioner of SDMC, Chairperson of Women’s Commission, Divisional Railway Manager of North Railways, and the Director of CRRI.
Dear sir,
The outbreak of COVID19 has highlighted the importance of bus-based public transport to ensure inclusive mobility and accessibility in Delhi. Various measures by Delhi Government, including the fare-free bus scheme for women, have been steps in the right direction. The provision of reliable and safe public bus service is crucial for meeting the mobility needs of citizens in Delhi. The bus has remained popular among transit users despite the uncertainties, fears and challenges posed by COVID19.
Though the Government of NCT of Delhi has taken a keen interest in improving bus services over the last few years, there is still a lot to be done to make the bus transport system safely accessible and reliable for all. According to the study by TRIPP at IIT Delhi, 60 per cent of bus users in Delhi are captive riders (who have no choice but to use buses), and the remaining 40 per cent have their vehicles or access to other modes. If the bus system is not made safe, convenient and reliable soon, this 40% will shift to different modes of transport. In this regard, we demand that a dedicated ‘State-level Bus Policy’ should be adopted with a vision of achieving free, safe and reliable bus-based public transport in Delhi for all.
‘Reclaiming The Bus’ campaign, Delhi Bus Yatri Union and Sustainable Urban Mobility Network (SUM Net) India have been discussing, documenting and campaigning for better buses through extensive grassroots discussions with various stakeholders and experts. We are glad to share with you a list of demands emerging from the discussion over a period of 20 months. Please find the list in the letter attached.
We trust that the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Delhi will sincerely consider our demands and take concrete steps in the direction of making Delhi the first state in India to have a dedicated policy for bus-based public transport.
More information about the campaign is available here: sumnet.in/Delhi-bus-campaign. The campaign team and Delhi Bus Yatri Union will be honoured to respond to any queries.
Thanks and warm regards,
Arjun Singh, Rajendra Ravi and other members,
‘Reclaiming The Bus: Campaign for Free, Safe and Reliable Public Bus Transport in Delhi’;
Delhi Bus Yatri Union (DBYU); and
Sustainable Urban Mobility Network (SUM Net) India