Sena finds fault with PCMC’s Bus Rapid Transit System plan

PUNE: The proposed plan for the implementation of Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) on the highway stretch in Pimpri-Chinchwad has come under criticism from the Shiv Sena. Corporator Seema Savale and Sarang Kamthekar, vice president of the Bharatiya Vidyarthi Sena, pointed out several flaws in the system which would make it unsafe for people.
Savale and Kamthekar, who made an audio-visual presentation for reporters about the proposed BRTS route on the 12-km Nigdi-Dapodi stretch, have demanded that the municipal corporation carry out a feasibility study before implementing the project. Last week, municipal commissioner Shrikar Pardeshi, who presented the draft budget for the year 2013-14, announced that the BRT route on the highway stretch will be made operational from January next year.
Kamthekar pointed out that the BRT buses run through the middle of the roads on dedicated lanes in Ahmedabad as well as other cities of the world like Jakarta, Bogota, Istanbul and others. But PCMC plans to run the BRT service on dedicated lanes which are sandwiched between the central lanes and the service road.
The civic body has provided many points where vehicles can join the central lanes from the service road, and also exit the central lanes to join the service road. In the process, vehicles will have to cross the dedicated BRT lanes, resulting in accidents, he said.
PCMC has provided many underpasses to connect the service roads on both sides of the highway. “If a vehicle, moving on a service road on one side of the highway has to go to the other side of the highway then it will have to cross the BRT lane. This will again lead to major accidents,” he said.
Kamthekar said that the surveys conducted by the civic body have not considered the number and types of private vehicles that ply on the highway. He demanded that a detailed survey be conducted to ascertain the number and type of private vehicles plying on the service roads and central lanes of the highway. “A safety audit must be conducted from government organizations such as the Central Road Research Institute (CRRI) or Central Institute of Road Transport (CIRT) prior to the implementation of BRTS. A feasibility study must be conducted to ascertain the effectiveness and need of the implementation of BRTS on the highway by any of the above government organizations,” he added.
Shiv Sena corporator Seema Savale said that all precautions must be taken by the municipal body to prevent accidents that may occur after the implementation of BRT bus service on the highway, as pointed through the presentation. If the corporation fails to take any such steps then the Shiv Sena will conduct severe agitations against it. The party will also approach courts to seek justice and prevent loss of lives of commuters.
Spokesperson from the engineering department of PCMC Shirish Poreddy said the civic body will be taking all steps to prevent the perceived accidents that may occur on the highway after the implementation of the BRT bus service.

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