[sustran] fwd: Delhi bans old buses

[SUSTRAN Network Secretariat]

Hmmm. I guess a lot of people in Delhi will need to ride bicycles on Monday
if they can, even though Delhi in April is starting to get very hot! 


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BBC World News
Saturday, 1 April, 2000, 18:20 GMT 19:20 UK 
Delhi bans old buses

The Delhi authorities have complied with an order to withdraw from service
thousands of buses over eight years old - half the city's fleet - despite a
plea from transport operators. The old buses, which run on unrefined
diesel, are seen as a major source of pollution. 

They are to be replaced by vehicles using more environmentally-friendly
compressed natural gas. 

The order also affects taxis and auto-rickshaws of a similar age. 
A last-minute bid by the city's transport corporation to extend the
deadline for scrapping the ageing vehicles was rejected by the Supreme Court. 

New measures 

The Delhi transport commissioner, Parvez Hashmi, said measures would be
introduced within a few days to help counter inconvenience to commuters. 

The ruling also affects ageing taxis and auto-rickshaws
 
These would include diverting about 1,000 buses from inter-state services
to serve the city, and issuing tenders to run some 1,500 buses to private
operators. 
In its application to the court on Friday, Delhi's transport corporation
had requested until 2005 to implement the ruling, issued two years ago. 

But the court said it had given fair warning, and told the corporation that
it could not afford to let it continue to pollute the city's air. 

copyright BBC
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