[sustran] Fw: Re: Reader's Digest Article

[Kisan Mehta]

Dear Colleagues,

Reacting ot John Ernst's contention circulated on 21 November, it is not
always that all dissatisfied with
deteriorating bus service change over to personal
motor cycles and cars.

Majority of commuters take to bus service due to
higher benefit derived on the principle of marginal utility.   Deleriorating
bus seuuse reduces its marginal utlity hence they walk the distance.
Large number
of commuters become pedestrians walking 3 to 6 km
to reach the destination as they cannot afford to
waste time due to delay. Even a slight increase in the fare reduces bus
commutation considerably.

Daily journeys in Mumbai's BEST buses declined
from 5.1 million to 4.6 following a fare increase
about 2 years ago and this has not recovered since.

There is clearrly marked inelasticity amongst lower income commuters hence
they resort to walking.
What John talks about are smaller numer of
commuters who can acquire pesonal vehciles backed
by considerable incentives, freebies and subsidues.
The poor can not dream of a personal vehicle ever.

By the way it would be interesting to know as to
which public transport of a city carries the largest number of commuters.
Mumbai suburban railway
and municipalised BEST bus serices provide 10 milion
amd 4.6 milliomn jourmneys respectively a day jointly accounting for 88% of
the total journeyts undertaken i
n Mumbai.

Yet the authirutues do not support public transport.
The World Bank while extending massive loan to
the Mumbai Urban Transport Project has granted sustantial loan to highway
construction requiring at
the same time the BEST to run bus services on self fvinancing concept which
would result in 30 to 40 % fare rise by 2005.   Thus Bank has supported the
personal vehicle owners by calling for reduction
of bus services in addition to liberal loan for construcitng expressways.

Having achieved the goal of supporting private vehicles,
the Bank is reportedly now consierting extensive loans for ocnsturction of
sophisticated road infrastructure  for more cars to enter crowded areas.
The Bank last
week rejected the municipal request for a small loan
for construction of paveements. This is how the Bank works for reducing
poverty!

While new systems now emerging are promising,
what is required to be done is to provide adequacy
to public transport by improving existing facilities
and by drastically removing and reducing movement
of personal vehicles on roads. Augmenting hte
existing network is more sutainable than introducing
new technology on some selected areas. Increasing illfiltration of SUVs on
city roads has deepened
the problem and increased hardship to residents.
Best wishes.

Kisan Mehta