We must focus on public transportation to improve productivity
City governments in India must focus attention on the planning of inclusive, safe and efficient public transportation if they want residents to be healthy and lead economically productive as well as socially active lives. Whether citizens choose to walk, drive or use a train, proper planning is necessary for them to reach their destinations fast and safe. If their needs are met by public transportation, people opt for public modes; otherwise, for private vehicles.
Prosperous cities across the globe have invested in public transportation and adopted policies that make the cost of owning and operating private vehicles significantly higher than public transportation. The reverse is true in India, with its burgeoning middle-class finding it easier to use private vehicles—with insalubrious results: air pollution, noise, wasted productivity due to long commutes on congested roads, and loss of time for recreation. Even Delhi’s 400km world-class Metro rail, which dominates our imagination of public transport, is only achieving 46% of its projected ridership because private two-wheelers are more efficient in servicing the city’s average trip length of less than 10km.
Even if Delhi Metro were run free, it would be short of riders because motorized two-wheelers are owned by a majority of the city’s households. And even if two-wheelers go fully electric, they occupy road space and contribute to congestion. Further, every user of public transport is also a pedestrian, whereas walking in Indian cities can be hazardous.
The objective should be to shift from two-wheelers to buses, rather than leap to metro networks. These are tricky political economy choices, but must be made because our urban policies need significant evolution. Urban
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