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tsubba - 6 January, 2008 | Traffic | Bangalore | BMLTA | public transport

For a while we have been discussing the need for an integrated authority to address issues of transportation and traffic. There is a new authority precisely for this. Bangalore Metropolitan Land Transport Authority (BMLTA). If that does not ring a bell, then you are not alone. Chief secretary, A Ravindra, says it is the same with other organizations that ought to be working with it.

His observations about the systemic problems with BMLTA, gave an oppurtunity to consolidate the discussions we have had on this, along with the observations he has made. Read on & opine

        A. Ravindra On BMLTA
(ToI  Jan 5, 2008)
Some observations regarding, Bangalore Metropolitan Land Transport Authority (BMLTA) by Chief secretary A Ravindra, during the presentation of a paper, ‘Existing governance structure for traffic management: Possible alternatives’, at a seminar, ‘Effective Traffic Management in Bangalore city’. The seminar was jointly organised by DPAR and Centre for Public Policy (CPP), Indian Institute of Management (IIMB) to generate policy suggestions on traffic management in Bangalore.
 

The current structure of governance for the transport sector is not adequately equipped to deal with the problems of urban transport. Multiplicity of organizations, independent legislations and inherent conflict in the roles and responsibilities of stakeholders actually impede in the process of planning and implementation of major schemes aimed at development. Government of Karnataka has recently accorded sanction for the creation of State Directorate of Urban Land Transport (DULT) under the Urban Development Department with the intended objective of ensuring integration of transport planning and development of transport infrastructure in urban areas. The government has also sanctioned setting up of Bangalore Metropolitan Land Transport Authority (BMLTA) for BMR. BMLTA will function as an umbrella organization to coordinate planning and implementation of urban transport programmes and projects. All land transport systems (excluding Railways) in the BMR will be brought under the purview of BMLTA. Therefore it is important that BMLTA is established at the earliest with statutory backing and adequate technical staff provided for this organization. It is also important that BMLTA is also given with the power to assign various projects to various organizations. All the finances to the concerned organizations should also be routed through BMLTA in order to make BMLTA effective and to ensure timely completion of projects.
  BMLTA is not clear about the role of stakeholders. There is no clear separation of planning and operation of the authority, making it just a committee of the BMRDA.

There was a pressing need for BMLTA to be awarded statutory powers to work full-time on traffic issues.

The authority needs an independent secretariat with officials drawn from traffic, transport, BBMP, BDA, KSPCB and BMRDA, because BMLTA was not being taken seriously by any stakeholder.

Currently the city police were burdened with several responsibilities and there was a lack of institutional mechanism.

There is a traffic engineering cell in the BBMP and many even do not know about it. This cell should ideally coordinate with other agencies but this is not happening. This is due to weak enforcement, which has posed a major problem.
  
City Police Has No Expertise In Traffic Engineering
In a report in the newindiaexpress on the requirement of a no-objection-certificate from traffic police for new buildings, the fact that the police has no expertise in traffic engineering comes out.

... city police has no expertise in traffic impact study. Additional Commissioner of Police (traffic) K C Ramamurthy told this website's newspaper that the department was relying only on empirical knowledge of his staff.

“Police had always been regulating traffic in the city. They are the best judges as to what impact a new skyscraper would have on the traffic. It does not need specialist advice,’’ he said.

Does it mean traffic management is left to left to empirical knowledge of policemen? Or do they have any team who have background in traffic engineering? Ramamurthy said: “We have none.’’
 
Murali On BMLTA
... Here, they have indeed set up the BMLTA. But, today, it is just full of babu’s. That needs to change. They need to bring in experts from outside, like the other regulatory bodies have done.
Silkboard On The Need For An Integrating Authority
The best I can think is an integrated transportation setup, with a govt body like BMTC to monitor it, and smaller pieces of this integrated setup thrown open to private players. So you would have

- Metro competing with Indian railways or bus operators for long haul city routes
- Separate set of companies competing on short-haul bus routes
- Yet another set of companies competing on very-short local routes: provide autos, Revas or whatever to take me home from my bus stop or train station
- Last, make sure no single player can provide service in all three categories.

After all this, what does a BMTC like regulatory body do? They make sure that these separate pieces of transportation system mesh together really well in terms of schedules, fares and services like sanitation, information, and help for elderly/handicapped folks etc.


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