Where is Equity in our Country? And where is Democratic Media?

Ref: Times of India article dated 07 May 2010: "Pavement *stealing* road space to be razed"


According to the English-based electronic media of our country (not all of course, but mostly), any road infrastructure being constructed for the middle to low income majority population of Delhi - is supposedly a "WASTE OF MONEY"! 
This is what often happens when young reporters with little technical knowledge of the Beat they are covering attack Newsprint space and mislead an entire nation! Sure pathway to disaster, I tell you! Wonder if these reporters have ever heard of what "low carbon transportation" is all about, or are remotely aware of how many people in this City of Delhi actually use public transport, rickshaws and cycles as their only mode of travel!!?
I used to get angry earlier, now I just feel sad, for those who write such articles and the masses who read and get swayed by them due to sheer lack of information. This also has a lot to do with the general lack of transparency in the Government to share crucial data with the people of this city, which could really be eye-opening for all.... 
Anyway, contrary to this article, the NMV (non-motorized vehicle) tracks along this road are still very much built and in use. Some hiccups in design are being resolved progressively. And severe restrictions will hopefully be levied in the area soon to bring down motorized vehicle use, contrary to the dream of our reporter friends and much to the relief of common people like myself who would like to breathe cleaner air and get some physical exercise for a change!


Here is the response email I had sent out below, based NOT on opinion, but Facts:


From: Romi Roy
Date: Fri, May 7, 2010 at 3:25 PM
Email to: Hon'ble Lt. Governor of Delhi
Copy to: Hon'ble Chief Secretary of Delhi, Chief Minister of Delhi, Special CP (Traffic), OSD to LG Delhi, E-in-C MCD, Special Secy. to CM Delhi, Group Editor Times of India, Reporter Hindustan Times, Director UTTIPEC DDA.
Date: 07 May 2010
Subject: Concern + Information on Modal Split Data of Delhi: from 2008-RITES study


Dear Sir:

Ref: Times of India article dated 07 May 2010:: "Pavement *stealing* road space to be razed"

Being gravely concerned about the recent decision to demolish and reduce Footpaths and non-motorized vehicle Lanes in certain stretches of Delhi (where originally facilities for pedestrians and non-motorized modes were severely lacking), I am writing to send you the following data for your reference and information (kindly see attached):

Based on the attached Survey Data by RITES in 2008:

• 13.92% people of Delhi use cars; while 14.72% use cycles & cycle rickshaws. (slide 1)

• 34.67% people indulge in "Walk-Only" trips...... But 40% of total Road length in Delhi has NO sidewalks. (slide 2)

• Rickshaws & Pedestrians are the Major Feeders to Metro & MRTS Systems, as well as short local trips. As shown, 61-78% are pedestrians,  9-12% use cycle rickshaws & 1-3% use private car to access the Metro.  (slide 3)

• VEHICLE OWNERSHIP: 19.4% of people own cars, 43.4% people own two-wheelers, 47.9% own NO motor vehicles, 35% people own bicycles.

Sir, being a "democratic" country, my humble feeling is that we must give due amount of importance and space - as per requirement, to all legitimate road users - irrespective of their social strata, and whether they have an active voice in the decision making of the city or not....

As you have yourself mentioned in the last meeting, it is unfair to have 80% of road space in the city allocated to only car+auto users who comprise less than 20% of the total commuters in the city. (substantiating data attached)

In addition, an issue of gravest concern is the supply of public transportation in the city. As per Supreme Court orders, 11,000 buses were meant to be plying in Delhi by 2010. However, less than 50% of the required amount of DTC buses are currently plying on Delhi roads, possibly for the want of money. However, money in the bracket of 2000 crores (based on my calculations from News articles) seems to be readily available for investment on flyovers, underpasses and cloverleafs. Why cannot these funds be allocated to the purchase or import of high-quality buses? Moreover, not only do these kind of car-based infrastructure INDUCE MORE car use, but they also highly inconvenience people currently using public transportation and non-motorized modes, making them "reverse-shift" to the use of the private car!

Currently, I myself do not own a vehicle and most often use public transport and para-transport modes. But if the infrastructure and transport planning strategies of Delhi continue to prioritize infrastructure in favour of the minority private car users, I fear people like myself will I have no choice but to shift to the use of the private car soon, further ADDING to the congestion problems of our city.... just like many others are regularly doing.

Hoping for your kind deliberation on this issue,

--
Warm regards,
Romi Roy

Sr. Consultant, UTTIPEC DDA Delhi
http://www.linkedin.com/in/romiroy
"Sustainable Urban Design can be the foundation for Social Justice" - Enrique Peñalosa

The above data shows that an equal proportion of people in Delhi use Cars and Non-motorized Transport (cycles/ cycle-rickshaws) as their primary mode of transport. Yet we find that roads are dominantly designed for movement of private cars! And as seen in the above TOI article, road space allocated to NMV users is considered a "Waste of Money"!!

The above data suggests that if the correct incentives are planned, then in terms of journey length - the Metro is a good substitute for the Car; the Bus is a good substitute for a 2-wheeler; and cycle-rickshaws could be a good substitute for auto-rickshaws.  But for this, the latter options would have to be made highly frequent, cheap, reliable and comfortable.

The above data shows that walking and cycle rickshaws are the dominant feeder transport mode used to access Metro stations. Therefore providing car-parking at Metro stations is the most ridiculous idea, more so because it serves only one end of the journey!

This last table expresses the irony of it all! Yet we continue to dedicate all our road space and planning interventions to facilitate only the private car! And even our media campaigns!!!

Hail Democracy!