Public transport system in Delhi has collapsed: Vijay Goel

New Delhi, Oct 18 (UNI) All India General Secretary of the Bharatiya Janta Party and former Union Minister Vijay Goel today said the public transport system in Delhi had collapsed.

''Commuters are not getting buses. Whatever few buses are available run overcrowded. To worsen matters, the drivers and conductors are said to behave in a rude manner with commuters,''Mr Goel said in a first hand experience of his travel on blueline buses across the city today.

To study the ground situation vis-a-vis Blueline buses in Delhi, Mr Goel today boarded a Blueline bus from Shakti Nagar chowk to Super Bazar. From Super Bazar, he boarded another Blueline bus for Shivaji Stadium. After that he boarded a bus for ITO and then came back to Mandi House in a bus on route number 320.

Addressing a press conference after his travel on the Bluelines, Mr Goel said he would send in the next few days a report to Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and Lt Governor Tejender Khanna about his experiences and behaviour of the Blueline drivers and conductors with the daily commuters.

''The Chief Minister and Transport Minister Haroon Yousuf should themselves travel in blueline buses for two-three days to know the factual position of the transport system in Delhi. They should see for themselves how Blueline bus drivers are not stopping buses on the stand and behaving with the passengers in a rough manner,'' Mr Goel said.

Dismissing the claims of the Delhi government of their commitment to phase out the bluelines from the city roads, Mr Goel said,''on one hand the state government says Bluelines should be withdrawn from the city roads. However, when the same Bluelines go on strike, it calls them back on the roads with the threat to impose ESMA.

All this shows that the state Government has no alternative to bluelines.'' Alleging that the position of the DTC had also worsened, he said,''there is need for improvement not only in Blueline buses but also in the DTC.'' ''The DTC too is not operating its buses on all routes, doing so on only profitable routes. Of the 3100 buses in the DTC fleet, only 2700 buses are operating on the morning shift and 1700 in the evening because of a shortage of bus drivers. On the day of the Blueline strike, the DTC earned Rs one crore 85 thousand whereas on routine days they earn only Rs 58 lakh which goes to show that the DTC is not picking up passengers upto their capacity,'' he added.

Mr Goel also demanded that the state Government should prepare a report on the mesaures being undertaken by it to improve the transport system in Delhi.

UNI