New Delhi: The Delhi government introduced its premium buses on city roads and urged people to shift to public transport from private vehicles.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal chaired a meeting to put the Delhi Motor Vehicles Licencing of Aggregators (Premium Buses) Scheme in the works. The scheme will encourage car users to shift towards next-generation premium public transport and reduce pollution and intra-city trips by promoting efficient premium bus services.
The Delhi CM said that his government's aim is to encourage all citizens who make intracity trips every day to instead opt for a cleaner, more comfortable and equally efficient mode of public transport. The app-based aggregators will ply the new buses equipped with every modern facility to appeal to those who drive their personal cars.
The scheme will serve those passengers who desire a public transport service that meets their requirements of high quality, comfort, convenience, and efficient transport service. During the meeting, the Chief Minister directed the Transport Department to put the scheme in the works and accordingly draft a policy regarding the same.
The draft policy will then be moved for public opinion post which it will be notified for implementation.
All the buses will be BS-VI compliant Air Conditioned CNG or electric buses and inducted under the scheme after January 1, 2024, will be only electric. All buses will be seating-only, equipped with app support, CCTVs & panic buttons, and integrated with the One Delhi App for booking rides and making digital payments, the CM said.
The tickets of the buses will be available through mobile and web-based applications and the fares and routes of the buses will be highlighted on the app. The buses will be seating-only, there will be no standing passengers to avoid overcrowding and all the buses will be equipped with CCTV cameras to ensure safety and security.
Each aggregator licensed under the scheme will operate and maintain a fleet of minimum 50 premium buses to be operationalised within 90 days.
The aggregator will be able to determine the routes on which the vehicles will ply and intimate the Transport Department when starting any new route or modifying or terminating any route. A prior notice of 7 days will be provided to the Transport Department and to the general public before any changes are made to the existing routes.
All buses will need to have valid insurance, fitness certificate, fire extinguisher, first aid kit, and valid PUC. The aggregator will have to provide proof of adequate overnight parking space for all buses and buses will not be allowed to parked in public spaces. All buses will follow a uniform colour scheme with the GNCTD logo along with the aggregator's logo. The aggregator will be able to advertise outside the buses to create awareness about the premium bus scheme.