Indore's rapid growth rides with BRTS

Indore’s BRTS came at a right time, and with an intelligent transport system to be implemented in new year, it can become a model for rest of India. 

The commercial run of buses began on BRTS corridor on May 10, 2013. Within seven months, the bus rapid transport system (BRTS) of Indore gets nomination for 2014 Sustainable Transport Award of international agency Institute for Transportation and Development Policy.

Competing with Indore are world-class cities- Buenos Aires of Argentina, Lanzhou in China and Suwon of South Korea, which have similar BRTS.

The STA is instituted by US-based Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP) together with an international committee of development experts and organisations working on environmentally friendly transportation. When complete the BRTS will cover 106 km, connecting all major areas in Indore. The phase-I AB Road corridor runs 11.7 km.  

The Indore Development Authority (IDA) had initiated the project by undertaking development of basic infrastructure for the BRTS.

Chandramauli Shukla, ex-CEO of IDA says, “In modern cities, no one can even think of organised and planned development without having a modern public transport system. Indore residents are fortunate that public transport (BRTS) came to existence at the right time when the city started taking rapid strides in growth and development. It will transform the lives of Indore residents. The project will definitely be a key factor in Indore’s growth in the long run.”  

Thus as we enter 2014, the BRTS promises to be a well developed, international quality sustainable mode of public transport in a city, which has been long associated with huge number of vehicles, chaotic traffic and cramped roads.

What you should look for?
With 52 new buses, which would take the fleet of buses to 70 by March-end, boarding a bus at BRTS Corridor would be a matter of few couple of minutes. The commuters could come to BRTS without much hassles as feeder routes from Tejaji Nagar, Vijaynagar, Collectorate and  Regal square would start in 2014. Close to 50 buses would start plying on these feeder routes.  Cycle tracks would not only be made functional parallel to the BRTS corridor but also across the city.

Cycle lanes could use the mixed lanes along with other riders. The BRTS bus stops would witness enhanced passenger amenities in the form of Public Information System, Flap barriers, automatic ticket vending machines, message sing board etc. All these bus stops would be equipped with ATMs and an agreement has been inked with SBI and a private agency involved in the installation of these machines. “The Intelligent transportation systems (ITS) would be completely functional on the corridor. Other amenities like smart card, surveillance system and traffic management centre at AICTSL building would start functioning in 2014,” AICTSL CEO Sandip Soni said.

Advantages of BRTS
Reduced use of private vehicles, reduction of urban sprawl by linking transportation to development, decline in transport related air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.