Brand new DTC buses before Commonwealth Games

New Delhi, Aug 4: Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) will roll out a brand new fleet of buses before the city hosts the Commonwealth Games four years from now.

''By 2010, the entire fleet of DTC buses will be replaced.

We are working in this regard,'' Transport Minister Haroon Yusuf said while speaking to reporters here alongwith DTC Chairman Anshu Prakash.

The Minister said the government was yet to decide on the ''type'' of the new buses while adding that these would be technically superior to the current fleet of 3462 buses.

The Government would also purchase about 300 new buses for the inter-state routes.

Asked if the nearly 6,500 private blue line buses too would be changed before the Games, Mr Yusuf said the private operators were willing to introduce better buses on the roads provided the fares were increased.

The Government was yet to set up a fare fixation committee to look into the issue.

The DTC would also soon appoint nearly 2500 drivers as part of an effort to infuse fresh blood into the Corporation, where the average age of drivers is 50 years, Mr Prakash said.

UNI