Ahmedabad BRTS

[IU]

AC buses doubled in BRTS fleet

Ahmedabad: Here’s some good news for BRTS commuters. Ahmedabad Janmarg Limited (AJL) has sought more air-conditioned buses in the BRTS fleet to beat the city heat. Recently released tenders have called for 25 AC buses as against 10 in the earlier tenders that were scrapped on April 29 for technical reasons.

To start with, AJL wants to market BRTS’s speed and commuting comfort to passengers, especially, to the large number of bikers and, to a certain extent, car users who need to be acquainted with the system. The buses will ply on the RTO-Pirana BRTS stretch, which officials claim, will become operational by November-December this year.



A total of 50 buses are sought for in the tender, 25 of which will be non-AC. Sources add that the number of AC buses was increased as with the available options of fuel technology and bus design, AJL can bargain on a reasonable price with prospective operators for more number of AC buses.

This way the costs of procuring these buses works out to be a bit cheaper than the earlier options—which were ultra-low floor CNG buses. Apart from this the period for Annual Maintenance Contracts (AMC) that each bus operator is supposed to sign with the manufacturer is being reduced from 12 years to 5. The buses are expected to travel an average of 200 km a day as compared to 170 km mentioned in earlier tenders.

“With reduction in AMC period, operators can procure finance easily from banks for the buses. They had complained earlier that the banks did not approve of 12-year AMC contracts as buses have a large depreciation rate value,” said an AMC official. However, the only catch here is that the buses will not have cushioned seats. The manufacturers have used high quality comfortable plastics for the seats. “Cushioned seats often wear off after repeated washes and are a bit unhealthy, especially in AC buses,” the official added.

[TOI]

[Babji]

Originally Posted by IndiansUnite

AC buses doubled in BRTS fleet

... The buses will ply on the RTO-Pirana BRTS stretch, which officials claim, will become operational by November-December this year.
[TOI]

let hope, Amdavadi BRTS sets good example!

[bhopalus]

http://www.itdp.org/index.php/projec...ad_brt_update/

Ahmedabad BRT Update



Development of Ahmedabad’s bus rapid transit system continues apace; national Ministry of Urban Development sponsors workshops on best practices.

Planning for Ahmedabad’s Bus Rapid Transit system started in mid-2005, and remains on schedule to start operations by mid-2008. With the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) responsible for implementing the system, construction started on a pilot corridor of 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) earlier this year and tenders have been awarded for construction of segregated corridors totaling an additional 25 kilometers (15.5 miles), which should start this month. Infrastructure has been carefully designed to make access convenient for everyone, including physically challenged individuals.

Work is also underway to create a service plan for BRT operations. Along with restructuring the existing bus services provided by Ahmedabad Municipal Transport Service (AMTS), the effort would help create an integrated public transit service. Operational efficiency of AMTS, which deteriorated dramatically during the last decade, would be improved through a route rationalization exercise and improved utilization of the current bus fleet. The AMC is also in the process of forming a special purpose vehicle, or agency, for BRT operations management.

CEPT University is the lead consultant to the AMC on the BRT project, which has partial financial support from the national Ministry of Urban Development of India, under JNNURM, and the Government of Gujarat. ITDP, which spearheaded the initial efforts to promote BRT in Ahmedabad through multiple workshops in 2004, has been providing ongoing technical support in planning and design as an advisor since August 2005. Lea Associates South Asia (LASA), which provided engineering support to CEPT University on this project, has been appointed as project management consultant for the construction of the segregated BRT corridors.

So apparantly construction hasn't even started yet! no wonder i couldn't find any consruction pics!

[IU]

That was posted last year.

Ahmedabad BRT Update

Posted: 01 Jul 2007
Related to: Ahmedabad BRT, Developing High-Quality, Low-Cost Mass Transit, India
Contributed by: Shreya Gadepalli, ITDP

[bhopalus]

oh my bad, i just assumed it was 2008. well...where the heck are the construction pics then?!?

[bhopalus]

finally our first UC pics? they're from the WIKIPEDIA. They were taken by Rahul Guhathakurta.



Janmarg Logo



GMDC station

[IU]

Nice find man. Here's another shot of the GMDC station.




According to the description on wiki it will cater to the Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation Office, University Ground and the Physical Research Laboratory

[qwertyasd]

This almost looks complete! Any idea Whats the status?

[bhopalus]

It's still about a year away from completion.

I'm getting some UC pictures soon from someone living there. I should be able to post them after this weekend.

[phaedrus]

cheers!

[Cymen]

Originally Posted by Babji

how did they decide and justify this mode of transport system?
is it really better than a metro in terms of operational cost?
what about usage of already sparce fossil fuels? pollution?
is it convenient for commuters accessing the bus stations?
is the land spared for roads used optimumly?
would it be a profitable venture?

Nobody can answer this questions for you because there are no officials on SSC, but I will give it a try:

how did they decide and justify this mode of transport system?
Free buslanes are used in many parts of the world. The decision has most likely something to do with the Indian government not funding a whole sufficient metro system for Amhedabad

is it really better than a metro in terms of operational cost?
Much better, but it has capacity limits. Dense city centres need metro lines, which have a much higher capacity. In an ideal situation a city has both a metro system and a free buslane system.

what about usage of already sparce fossil fuels? pollution?
If India cares about air pollution they should stop burning everything in city's first. But busses more easily then cars can run on enviro friendly hydrogen.

is it convenient for commuters accessing the bus stations?
Underground (metro) stations can have an A/C and are better accessed. Atleast by putting vents in the busstation you can keep the people of the road

is the land spared for roads used optimumly?
That more of depends on the car drivers...

would it be a profitable venture?
Bus systems are profitble unlike some metro and many train lines in the world. But keeping the people moving is more worth then busticket sales.

[Babji]

Originally Posted by Cymen

Nobody can answer this questions for you because there are no officials on SSC, but I will give it a try:

how did they decide and justify this mode of transport system?
Free buslanes are used in many parts of the world. The decision has most likely something to do with the Indian government not funding a whole sufficient metro system for Amhedabad

is it really better than a metro in terms of operational cost?
Much better, but it has capacity limits. Dense city centres need metro lines, which have a much higher capacity. In an ideal situation a city has both a metro system and a free buslane system.

what about usage of already sparce fossil fuels? pollution?
If India cares about air pollution they should stop burning everything in city's first. But busses more easily then cars can run on enviro friendly hydrogen.

is it convenient for commuters accessing the bus stations?
Underground (metro) stations can have an A/C and are better accessed. Atleast by putting vents in the busstation you can keep the people of the road

is the land spared for roads used optimumly?
That more of depends on the car drivers...

would it be a profitable venture?
Bus systems are profitble unlike some metro and many train lines in the world. But keeping the people moving is more worth then busticket sales.

Thanks many for your response @Cymen.
going by the news so far, BRTS is seems to be a good alternative for some of the Indian metros.

[GJ10]

Birth Pangs: BRTS Caught in Diesel/CNG Dilemma

Will the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system in Ahmedabad meet the same fate as it did in Delhi and Pune? This question has been giving sleepless nights to the implementing officers here, though for a different reason.

The Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority (EPCA) has expressed reservations over the proposal for using diesel buses on the ambitious dedicated corridor. An EPCA team will visit the city some time next week to get first hand details of the proposal.

During the various rounds of working out the nitty-gritty of the project, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) had found that if it went with a complete CNG-run fleet on the BRT route, then it would bleed financially owing to its high cost of maintenance and operations. The difference of running a CNG bus (Rs 46/km) and a Euro III diesel bus (Rs 34/km) is exorbitant, according to Municipal Commissioner I P Gautam.

Gautam said this difference has put a big question mark on the viability of the system. "We have sent details of financial costs of the two alternatives to the EPCA… if one goes by no-option fuel then it will take quite a long time for achieving a breakeven point," he said. The normal life of a bus is seven years and the break-even point in such case has to be arrived at within four years, which does not seem possible in CNG bus operation.

The burden will be more on the AMC because of the tariff parity with buses run by the Ahmedabad Municipal Transport Service (AMTS), which is already under the strain of diesel price hike and dependent on the AMC for its smooth running. Low fares, which is almost compulsory to retain commuter interest, means late break-even that may go beyond the expected seven-year life of a bus.

D Thara, director in-charge of JNNURM projects in the AMC, has said that both the AMC and the Burelal Committee are aware of the matter as the details were sent to it and both think on the similar lines: to provide a smooth and fast public transport system to the city.

She said the CNG operated buses would be costlier compared to Euro III buses in terms of price, operation and maintenance. "Also, this means that more buses could be deployed from the savings made by having a multi-fuel option and this would cater to more passengers," she said.

Tenders have come for Euro III buses also. The members of the committee when they come here will discuss the fuel options in detail and a final decision will be taken in consultation with the Committee members, said Thara.

[rkramesh]

Thanks for the images Bhopalus - Bus stations looks modern and attractive with nice materials knobby tiles, and warm lighting. Any more images from a different angle?

[mailabode]

Originally Posted by Cymen
Nobody can answer this questions for you because there are no officials on SSC, but I will give it a try:
.........................................
what about usage of already sparce fossil fuels? pollution?
If India cares about air pollution they should stop burning everything in city's first. But busses more easily then cars can run on enviro friendly hydrogen.
.........................................

is the land spared for roads used optimumly?
That more of depends on the car drivers...

would it be a profitable venture?
Bus systems are profitble unlike some metro and many train lines in the world. But keeping the people moving is more worth then busticket sales.

Originally Posted by Babji

Thanks many for your response @Cymen.
going by the news so far, BRTS is seems to be a good alternative for some of the Indian metros.

To add to what Cymen said:
1) Apart from regular passengers if 10 cars and 20 two wheelers can be kept off the road(when the trend catches up) by each of these clean, comfortable buses - then carbon emission is reduced. Eventually there will be hybrid buses and emission levels will get even better that just 'better'.
2) From 1) if 10 cars and 20 scooters are kep off the road by the bus - then a lot of space is saved. There will be a lot of such buses. More and more people will gradually start using the high class bus services which use dedicated lanes. The rest will use cars and two wheelers on a separate lane meant for both of them. Even if there is a jam on the car cum scooter lane- you can reach your destination in time by bus.
Traffic jams are not simply the result of more motor vehicles alone - its to a large extent the result of poor traffic management and poor adherence to traffic rules by motorists. If more than half of the traffic is diverted on to the dedicated bus lanes, then the remaining (car and scooter) traffic can be monitored and controlled more easily than before. With time this evolves into an efficient system.
As the venture becomes profitable and gets more patronage- the system will branch out - eventually making it possible to reach any part of the city or outskirts by public transport alone.
3) Its been profitable in many parts of the world.
Anyway its good like Cymen said- if the people can be kept moving, if people can get a reliable public transport system that can atleast pay for itself(leave alone making huge profits). The costs emanating from congestion otherwise would be a lot. With the soaring prices of fuel it makes sense for more people to use a modern public transport system like BRTS.

Even China has adopted this system widely.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...stems_in_China

[bhargavsura]

Finally found this thread...!!!

great!!!

[bhopalus]

Janmarg Transit Map at GMDC BRT Station

[Fusionist]

Originally Posted by bhopalus

Janmarg Logo



GMDC station

looks nice, but why do did they design such a heavy roof ?

[bhopalus]

No AC buses for BRTS
9 Aug 2008, 0455 hrs IST,TNN

AHMEDABAD: Amdavadi's should not expect BRTS buses to ply on Ahmedabad roads before the third week of October. The Ahmedabad Janmarg Limited (AJL) board, the parent company that would govern BRTS operations , on Friday awarded the operations and maintenance of the first batch of 50 buses to Chartered Logistics, headed by Pankaj Gandhi.

However, a major decision AJL took on Friday was that none of the buses will be AC buses, though the tenders floated by AJL had mentioned the requirement for 25 AC buses. The board differed on this at the last moment as they did not find it feasible. AJL will pay Chartered Logistics Rs 34.11 per kilometre for each of the buses as operations cost.

"The AJL board did not find having two different fares, one for AC and the other for non-AC for the first batch of BRTS feasible . We are interested in rolling out the buses in the first stage. All these buses would be diesel buses. The second batch of 150 buses would be CNG and we have assured the Supreme Court appointed Bhurelal committee earlier," says AJL chairman IP Gautam.

Besides this, finding the cost of bus stops leaping up to Rs 42 lakh a costly affair, the AJL and the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) standing committee decided to incorporate certain design changes and have brought down the cost by Rs 5 lakh for each of the bus stops that would come up in various parts of the city.

For instance, the bus stop height has been brought down by 2.25 feet, whereas AJL has reduced the usage of steel in the new bus stops and replaced it with concrete slabs.

Wow what a terrible decision. Good roads, FOBs, nice stations, but no AC??

[irutavias]

Something's gotta give. If this was meant for a display of Gujarat's development, why not follow through and provide AC buses as well?