Designing shorter public transport routes offers numerous benefits. It can improve service quality, reduced waiting times, increase ridership and facilitate a shift towards using public transport. For cities with existing long-distance routes, a strategy known as 'route curtailment' can be utilised.
Recognising the need for shorter routes entails assessing demand, studying travel patterns, and modifying the current network through 'route rationalisation'. This aligns the route structure with efficient public transport network planning principles. Consequently, cities can offer more convenient and reliable transportation options, promote public transport usage, and develop a more efficient and sustainable urban transit system.
In April and May 2023, the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) conducted an experiment to evaluate the performance of a route by shortening its service length. For this purpose, DTC chose the Teevra Mudrika Seva (TMS) route due to its significance and length.
The objective of the exercise was to enhance the efficiency of bus transportation in the city, taking into account that most bus trips in Delhi are under 10 kilometres (according to the 2011 Census) and under 14.3 km according to a study by the Delhi Integrated Multi-Modal Transit System Ltd (DIMTS) study. Moreover, around 40 per cent of the existing bus routes exceed 30 km.
Around 35 per cent of the bus routes in Delhi are operating for more than 30 km and 9 per cent of routes are operating for beyond 40 km, which are considered long and exceptionally long respectively, according to a report Route Rationalization and Last Mile Connectivity Update Study submitted by the DIMTS to the Transport Department of the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi. The average route lengths of DTC is of 27.24 km, the longest operated route spanning around 110 km.
TMS route is one of the most popular bus routes in Delhi, covering 51 km. It originates and ends at Kashmiri Gate ISBT and runs through the entire inner ring road of Delhi.
The route passes through various key nodes, including transport nodes (ISBT Kashmiri Gate, ISBT Sarai Kale Khan, Hazarat Nizamuddin Railway Station), commercial pockets (Lajpat Nagar, South Extension, Azad Market), medical service nodes (AIIMS & Safdarjung hospitals) and residential pockets (Maharani Bagh, Punjabi Bagh, Model Town).
It meets the daily public transport needs of the residents, while also catering to visitors connecting them with railway heads such as the Hazarat Nizamuddin station for transfers, AIIMS and Safdurjung Hospital for medical needs, and Azadpur market for commercial visits, among others.
To determine the suitable point for curtailment of the route, a passenger count survey on the bus was conducted to understand the boarding and alighting patterns along the route. This was necessary because DTC issues only manual tickets to the commuters. Through the survey It was observed that Kashmere Gate, Sarai Kale Khan, Maharani Bagh and Lajpat Nagar were high passenger boarding stops at the halfway point of the route (up direction).
The passenger count dropped by half at the AIIMS stop, and started to increase again after Dhaula Kuan, the findings showed.
The survey indicated that a potential point for route curtailment can be at the Dhaula Kuan stop. TMS route bus conductors confirmed that this can could be beneficial, albeit with considerations for passengers traveling from AIIMS to regions beyond Dhaula Kuan.
Based on the survey results and feedback received from TMS route conductors, it was decided to partially curtail service on the route from Dhaula Kuan instead a full curtailment. This means, every alternate bus on the route would be curtailed from Dhaula Kuan, while the other bus would continue on its full route.
Impact of exercise on the route
The service curtailment exercise on TMS route carried out from April 1, 2023 made significant impacts on the route performance. These included:
Improved frequency: Buses between Kashmiri Gate and Dhaula Kuan in both up and down directions became more frequent — going from one every 20 minutes to one every 10. The service frequency beyond Dhaula Kuan remained the same at 20 minutes. This halved wait time of commuters on that route.
Increased trips: The number of trips on the route in a day increased to 248 (124 each on up and down) from 168 (84 each on up and down), enhancing the route's capacity to handle passenger volume.
Higher ridership: Within two months, ridership rose by 8 per cent, adding 36,000 commuters on the route. Of this, 70 per cent increase ( 25,000 people) was observed in the second month — May 2023 — alone.
More women passengers: It was observed that a higher number of women rode the buses on this route, especially in non-peak hours, indicating different needs of women passengers.
Increased earnings: Ticketed earnings saw an increase of over Rs 7.5 lakh in the two months of the exercise. This included the Rs 10 "pink tickets" given to women which they can later get a refund on.
The route curtailment exercise on TMS route by DTC has proven to be an effective approach in improving route performance. Research in urban transport highlights the positive impact of shorter routes; improved frequency of bus services and user satisfaction reflects in increasing ridership.
Reliable service frequency plays a crucial role in attracting more passengers. Therefore, implementing measures such as reducing wait times and improving service frequency is essential for mega and metropolitan cities operating long routes.
Further, monitoring the performance of the routes and rationalising the routes accordingly is great way of improving public transport system. These efforts benefit both the organisation and commuters, encouraging the adoption of sustainable modes of transportation and fostering the development of Delhi's transport system.
Caleb Philip is deputy programme manager, APC unit, CSE. Shilpa Shinde is MD, DTC.