[sustran] Bus service monitors arrive in Bhubaneswar

[Vinay Baindur]

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-08-21/bhubaneswar/33302126_1_bus-service-bus-rapid-transit-system-brts




Bus service monitors arrive in Bhubaneswar
TNN Aug 21, 2012, 12.46PM IST
  Tags:

   - transport system<http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/topic/transport-system>
   |
   - Jawaharlal Nehru<http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/topic/Jawaharlal-Nehru>
   |
   - Bhubaneswar bus
service<http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/topic/Bhubaneswar-bus-service>

BHUBANESWAR: Nearly two years after the launch of city bus service in
Bhubaneswar, the Centre has started an "impact assessment" study of the
public transport system.

A two-member team from an independent agency from Ahmedabad reached the
state capital on Monday to collect baseline data about the city bus
service, launched on October 10, 2010, under Jawaharlal
Nehru<http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/topic/Jawaharlal-Nehru>
National
Urban Renewal Mission.

"The assessor would interact with various stakeholders, including
passengers, bus staff and police on how the service is functioning.
Feedbacks of all stakeholders would be taken into account," Bhubaneswar
Municipal Corporation's commissioner Sanjib Kumar Mishra told TOI. "The
agency would conduct the study for the next five to six days here. It will
also carry out surveys of JNNURM projects in five other cities in India,"
Mishra said. Sources said the Centre has granted Rs 4.85 lakh for the
study. At present, as many as 105 buses ply in Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Khurda
and Puri in public-private-partnership mode.

DTS had earlier conducted a survey on its own and received feedbacks from
passengers. Some of them had demanded installation of AC in buses. Others
demanded proper bus bays and route charts for their convenience, sources
said.

The state government is unlikely to get a pat from the visiting assessors
as the former is yet to establish adequate infrastructure in place for
sustenance of the bus service.

The agency is also slated to make a preparatory study ahead of the proposed
implementation of bus rapid transit system (BRTS) in Bhubaneswar. "Parking
places, flyovers, road conditions and traffic arrangements among other
would be discussed with the agency for BRTS project," BMC's city engineer T
B K Shroff said.