Using public transport only way out of Delhi's traffic congestion

New Delhi, Jan 15 (UNI) Delhi Transport Minister Haroon Yusuf today said the problem of traffic congestion and limited road space in the capital can be solved only if Delhiites use public transport rather than depending on private vehicles.

State government on its part was committed to providing safe and pollution free public transport system, he assured while speaking at the inaugural function of new Zonal Transport Office in Mayur Vihar Phase-I in East Delhi.

The capital had more than 45 lakh vehicles running on its road and about 650 new vehicles were registered every day in Delhi, Mr Yusuf said, adding that over one lakh vehicles from the neighbouring states also entered the capital everyday. This put immense pressure on the city's limited road space and one could not find a long-term solution by only expanding roads or making over bridges, he opined.

Efficient, safe and sustainable public transport system could however, solve the transportation problems, the minister said.

''Besides expanding the metro rail network, we are committed to the High Capacity Bus System. In addition, the Mono Rail option for appropriate parts of the city is also being examined in order to provide world class transportation infrastructure and adhere to global best practices in terms of their user friendliness, safety, efficiency and sustainability.'' The transport department had in the recent past taken several initiatives to achieve a service-oriented approach in its functioning by enhancing efficiency, improving transparency and increasing accountability. Zonal Transport Offices were the most prominent public interface of the department.

There were 12 zonal offices in the city. With the bifurcation of East District Zonal Transport Office and opening of two new Zonal Transport offices today (Mayur Vihar Phase-I and Suraj Mal Vihar) the total number of such offices had gone up to 13. Bifurcation of the existing zonal office was done for the convenience of the people in the respective areas.

Member of Parliament (East Delhi) Sandeep Dikshit, Parliamentary Secretary to Chief Minister Naseeb Singh, MLA Amrish Gautam, Councilor Ratan Singh Pawar and Commissioner (Transport) R Chandermohan were present on the occasion.

UNI