Page 26 - TrafficInfraTech Magazine - Linking People Places & Progres

PUBLIC TRANSPORT

Addressing these issues, Shikha
stated that congestion and parking
fees would be enough to take care
of the needs of the STUs. Chennai
Unified Metropolitan Transport
Authority (CUMTA) and Bangalore
Metropolitan Land Transport
Authority (BMLTA) can consider
this. Many people use smartphones
nowadays to access essentials and
digital payment is the way to ensure
total contactless travel. BMTC has
not hiked fares for digital passes
and is in fact working to make it
more affordable. The move to digital
solutions will also help people check government will not give immediate He said the crisis could also be an
the availability of seats on buses as support to private operators opportunity to make the system
well as the estimated waiting time, when public transport is affected. more efficient, and initiatives like
and thereby manage overcrowding. Contracting private buses will be Bus Priority Lanes are a great way
considered if there is an insufficient to reduce the cost per kilometer and
Throwing light on what is capacity of buses while opening up redirect the money saved.
happening in Tamil Nadu, fully. STUs pay Rs.5000 crores to
Dharmendra Pratap Yadav, Principal Original Equipment Manufacturers Going Digital
Secretary, Tamil Nadu Transport through subsidies and concessions
Department, shared that the Tamil in addition to paying a lot of taxes Sandeep Raizada, General
Nadu government has mandated like GST and cess on diesel - and Manager, DIMTS stated that the
hand sanitizers, masks in buses, and it would be good to recover this need of the hour is to go digital with
the disinfection of buses, along with money. OEMs need concessions apps for payment, tracking of buses,
increasing the number of buses. because they provide employment. and information on the availability
Daily coupons with QR codes was a Also, there are issues like pollution of seats considering the shortage
viable short term solution. For the in supply of transportation seats
long term, he suggested dividing and congestion which need to be for the public. DIMTS has created
the e-ticketing into hardware addressed. an app which shows the availability
and software and procuring the Also, Tamil Nadu is trying to push of seats, will allow digital payment
hardware immediately. He added for Bus Priority Lanes that will be and ticketing, and will also have
that transport departments are able to carry the same number of the option of QR codes. In Delhi,
negotiating with banks to create passengers at one-sixth of the cost the government has a budget for
transport funds at cheaper rates of metro or other rail transport. public transport and has been fully
which will be useful, and that the supporting all the initiatives.
Mr. Gerald Ollivier shared that the
World Bank is currently providing
two kinds of fast-tracked support
systems. The first, for Health systems,
amounting to a billion dollars to be
disbursed over three months to scale
up testing, build isolation wards
and to look at infection prevention
and control. The second, for Social
Protection, providing a billion dollars
in two phases for the migrant and
lower-income groups through
food benefits and cash transfers.

26 April-May 2020 / TrafficInfraTech www.trafficinfratech-com-500653.hostingersite.com