By Our Staff Reporter
Dehradun, 5 Sep: In recent years, the population of Dehradun has increased significantly. Along with this, the number of private vehicles has also seen a massive surge. However, due to a grossly inadequate public transport system and a limited road network, the people of Dehradun are facing many difficulties on the mobility front.
To address this issue, there is a strong need for alternative transportation options like the Metro Neo in Dehradun. This was highlighted at a recent roundtable dialogue organised by the Social Development for Communities (SDC) Foundation in Dehradun on the subject of “Public Transport in Dehradun”. SDC Foundation has now released the report based on the issues and suggestions raised in this dialogue.
Anoop Nautiyal, the founder of SDC Foundation, mentioned that this dialogue was conducted on 7 August. The participants in the dialogue included RTO (Enforcement) Shaillesh Tiwari, DGM (Civil) Arun Kumar Bhatt from Uttarakhand Metro, PRO Gopal Sharma from Uttarakhand Metro, environmentalist Dr Soumya Prasad, Editor aslibharat.com Ajeet Singh, President of the Doon Residents’ Welfare Association and Municipal Councillor Davinder Pal Singh Monty, and senior journalist Sanjeev Kandwal.
According to the report, Dehradun’s estimated population has reached 12 lakh in recent years, with nearly 10 lakh vehicles in the city. Since the roads are congested and public transport is inadequate, the general public is facing many difficulties. People in Dehradun have been hearing about various mobility options over the past few years – metro, neo metro, light rail transit, pod taxis, etc. – but the lack of concrete initiatives has diluted public trust in all these announcements.
The city already has a significant public transport network, including 170 city buses, 30 electric buses of Smart City, 500 Tata Magic, 800 Vikram, 2,500 autos, and 4,500 e-rickshaws. However, considering the city’s population, there is a need for a minimum of 350 buses with 30 seats, each. It must also be borne in mind that the Metro Neo solution, if implemented, will not cover the entire city area. Thus, there is a need to develop various modes of public transport across the city of Dehradun.
The report emphasises that many of Dehradun’s main roads have reached their saturation point in terms of capacity, necessitating the exploration of new options. In this scenario, the Metro Neo offers a significant solution. The project is under consideration by the Central government. In house studies by Uttarakhand Metro Rail indicate that the Metro Neo system could be a significant solution for Dehradun.
Additional points that came up highlighted that government projects in Dehradun are progressing at a very slow pace. There is encroachment on the roads, and so-called “smart roads” have not been constructed in the past four years. It was observed that the government has not paid any attention to public transport in Dehradun in the last 20 years, apart from adding a few city buses. The lack of availability of public transport for the general public, arbitrary fares charged by auto and e-rickshaw drivers, and the need to promote walking and cycling were also discussed in this dialogue.
The participants also stressed that the Metro Neo project needs to be initiated soon, but its status should not finally become like that of the Dehradun Smart City project. For this, political willpower and the involvement of elected representatives were deemed necessary.
Anoop Nautiyal mentioned that ten key suggestions and issues from the roundtable dialogue have been summarised and are being brought forward. He stated that a report on all these points will be shared with the Uttarakhand government, the Chief Minister, Members of Parliament, and other relevant officials and representatives. An appeal and expectation will be made to them to continuously strive at their respective levels to improve the creaking public transport system in Dehradun and do their utmost to initiate the Metro Neo project in the city.
