New Delhi: Fate of the Blueline buses, which
went off Delhi roads last month in view of the Commonwealth
Games, will be decided on October 25 by the Delhi Government,
which wants to phase out these private vehicles.
A total of 1,600 Blueline buses, plying in south and
central Delhi and near the venues of the Games, went off roads
in September after a directive from the Delhi Government.
The buses were supposed to back on roads from Monday, but
Transport Minister Arvinder Singh Lovely said the Blueline
buses will not ply on Delhi roads till October 25.
"The Blueline buses which were temporarily withdrawn due
to the Games will not be back till October 25. Any decision on
Bluelines buses will be taken only after that date," Lovely
told reporters here.
The Minister said the government was fully committed to
phasing out the Blueline buses as the state-owned Delhi
Transport Corporation now has adequate number of buses to meet
the requirements of Delhiites.
Delhi Government has been planning for the past couple of
years to phase out the Blueline buses, which are unpopular
among the public for their over-speeding, but was not able to
do in the absence of an alternative plan.
The Delhi High Court had stayed the Government`s move to
phase out the Blueline buses in February this year arguing
that the DTC alone was not capable to meet the requirement of
public transport.
Lovely said the DTC will start inducting the buses, which
were used to ferry athletes and dignitaries during the
Commonwealth Games, in its fleet from tomorrow.
"With this, the DTC will have a fleet of 6,400 buses," he
said, adding that another 250 buses will be procured
gradually.
The Government is also likely to file an affidavit in the
Delhi High Court seeking to phase these out permanently.
Transport Department officials feel the absence of
Blueline buses not only decongested the roads but there has
also been a decline in the number of road fatalities during
the period.
PTI
