Chapter V
The Comparative Cost Analysis (157)
CHAPTER V
Introduction :
It has been already amphasized that the ’bicyclf
as the most convenient and cheapest means of local
transport has comparative advantage over other means of
transport. In this chapter an attempt is made to show how a bicycle enjoys comparative advantage over the means of transport like
(1) Scooter - a two-wheeled power driven vehicle
(2 ) A. moped - (Luna) a two wheeler light vehicle
(3) A Rickshaw - two seater or three seater vehicle
(4) A p. M. T. BUS/ and
(5) A Car.
The above vehicles are chosen for the purpose of comparative cost analysis because they are the alternatives to a bicycle. The following points are taken into consideration for the purpose of comparative cost analysis
(1) Initial investment made at the time of
purchasing a vehicle.
(2 ) The cost of maintenance and repairs* (158)
(3) Depreciation of the vehicle»
(4) Interest on loan if taken for the purchase
of the vehicle.
(5) Oil and petrol; and
(6) Distance covered (average mileage run) for
a particular consumption of oil and petrol.
The analysis reveals that the comparative cost advantage enjoyed by a bicycle over the above mentioned means of conveyance is significant and would continue to increase in future. Thus this comparative cost advantage enjoyed by a bicycle will confer on a cycle- low owner several benefits in terms of/*nonetary costs and the convenience offered- This would go a long way in increasing the impact of a bicycle on mobility of poor population- (159)
THE COMPARATIVE COST ANALYSIS
5.1. THE NATURE AND OBJECTIVE OF ANALYSIS
The comparative cost analysis of the various means of transport is important for two ^reasons i
(1) It is important for finding out the
future trends in demand which result as a
consequence of the comparative cost advantage
resulting from changes in the initial cast of the vehicle, cost of maintenance, repairs,
the interest paid on loan taken for the purpose of purchasing a vehicle and the cost
of fuel, depreciation, wear and tear.
(2) Changes in the costs depend on changes
in the distance travelled. Changes in the
distances travelled reveal changes in the
mobility of population through the vehicle.
In order to know that the comparative cost
advantage from a bicycle is maximum it is necessary
to compare the various types of costs,over a
certain period (minimum one year ) and for a
minimum distance( a Kilometer). In this case the cost of travelling by the following vehicles is
relevant for our consideration. (160)
(1) A Scooter(two wheeled machine driven
vehicle with a capacity of
carrying two persons, •
(2) A moped ( a vehicle with a capacity
, carrying one) (3) A Luna
(4) A Rickshaw( two seater front machine
driven vehicle.
(5) A RickshHw ( three seater rear machine
driven vehicle )
(6) A P.M.T. bus which is the comnon means
of local passanger transport Since a
bus has a carrying capacity of 45 persons
at a time over a particular distance# it
is expected that the average cost per
commuter per kilometer should fall down
in view of the economies of scale enjoyeed
by a PMT bus operation. However, as w®
shall come to know later this observation
is not true.
* In case of P.M.T. the impact of rising costs of operation are reflected in the revised fare rates. (161)
5.2. COST TABLES FOR RICKSHAW,P.M.T. MOPED,CAR AND A CYCLE
5.2.(a) Table showing the cost of travel by a
rickshaw( per kelometer) . TABLE No. 20 ROUTE DISTANCE RICKSHAW FARE CHARGES PER KILO METER AND ABOVE
(1) Sambhaji Park About 3Kms Rs 4,20 1.4
to Wadia College
(2) Budhwar Chowk to Rs 2.80 0.93 Pune Station.
(3) Budhwar Chowk to Rs 3.50 1.10 Nal Stop
(4) Budhwar Chowk About l.SKms Rs 2.50 1.40
to Swargate
(5) Budhwar Chowk Rs 2.50 1.4
to Shivaj i Nagar
5.2.(b) COST INPLICATIONS OF THE TAPERED SCALE OF P.M.T. FARE RATES
Th6 tapered fare scale of the P.H.T. as it exists in 1982-83 is as follows s- (162)
DISTANCE FARE RATE(PAISE) upto First Two Kilometers 40 Paise
For each km after first two kms. an increase of SOP.
Thus
For 0-2 Kms 40 Paise
2t 3 Kms 55 Paise
3-4 km 70 Paise
4-5 km 85 Paise
5-6 Km 100 Paise
6-7 Km 115 Paise
7-8 Km 130 Paise
8-9 Km 14 5 Paise 9-10 Km 1.50 Paise
After 10 kms for each k.m there is an increase of lo paise for each increment of 2 Kilometers upto 36 kms.
10-12 1-60
12-14 1-70
14-18 1-80
18-20 1-90
20-22 2-00
22-24 2-10
24-26 2-20
26-28 2-30 (163)
28-30 2-40
30-32 2-50
32-34 2-60
34-36 2-70
5.2(c) TRAVELLING COST OF GOPED
The model ' Goped' is a machine driver cycle.
The comparative cost is less when compared with the initial price of other vehicles. The manufacturers of Goped claimed that for one litre of petrol the
Goped would run 9 0 kilometers whereas other vehicles they would run 60 kilometers. In any case, the cost of conveyance cannot exceed 10 paise a kilometer.
5.2(d) COST OF A BICYCLE IN INDIA
A bicycle a minus accessories on the Indians market costs betv/een Rs 19 0 and Rs 300. The cheapest bicycle like the " Ambessador", is Rs 195/ while the Hind Cycle.. " Special model ” speedking,'* a light sports machine, costs Rs 310, The standard Roadstar put on the road by most of the leading manufacturers costs betvreen Rs 200 and Rs 22 5. Local (164)
taxes and State duties are extra. These can be extended to 20% of the basic price. Around 19-7 a British- or Japanese made bicycle cost Rs 50/-»
By 1920 the price dropped to Rs 25/--* In 19 3 5 you could get a British cycle for Rs 40/ while a
Japanese one went for Rs 14. In 1960 a standard bicycle in India was worth Rs 200,
In December 19 69 Government almost created a crisis in the industry by announcing, with immediate effect^ an increase in the prices of various categories of steel. The scarcity of steel was already being felt by the cycle makers but the hike in price hit them hard.
During 1970 the industry groaned under the increase in excise duties, higher railway freight, electricity duties and state taxes. It waited in suspense for the next straw.
Once again it put a demand for a Rs 16 increase in bicycle prices . On June 5,1970
Government permitted a rise of Rs 9.50 effective from June 1. What perhaps prompted Government to relent, though reluctantly, was that the 1969-70 profits of the > industry were a niggardly 6,8% (165)
Government's short sighted approach had allowed the situation to deteriorate.
Although there has been no major strike, labour upsets have become frequent both in the cycle factories and the accessory departments. The flow of raw materials even now is inadequate. What
Government has failed to realise is that bicycles are essentially export items^ and more importantly l there is a large potential demand for bicycles in the domestic market.
5.2.(e) LATEST PRICE LIST FOR BICYCLES OF DIFFERENT MODELS(BRANDS) Model/Brand Initial Price * Rs
1) Hero Jet 450
2) Atlas 500
3) Herculus 580
4) Phillips 580
5).B.S.A. 700
6) Raleigh 725
7) Humber 750 8) R.M. I. 450
9) A. I 450
10) Hamilton 500
11) Bajaj(83) 575 These prices are for 1980-81. * Price for all the standard accessories taxes etc Average Price of a bicycle^etween Rs 500 and 560 (166)
5.3. THE COMPARATIVE COST ANALYSIS
The vehicles included in the tables are following^the near substitutes to a bicycle.
Travelling by a PMT bus is also a substitute for a
cycle. However there is no individual owing of a not bus and therefore it has^been ihcluded in the above
table. However/ as the reports of the P.M.T.
undertakings indicate the cost of maintenance and
repairs, depreciation, interest on loans taken for
the purchase of a bus, cost of oil and deesel,
the labour costs have gone up excessively high. As a result of high costs of operation the P.M.T,
Undertaking has been compelled to revise the fare upwards.
Thus for an individual commuter the cost implication is that the fares have doubled over a period of
5 years . For example fare for travelling a distance of about 4 Kilometers ( Sambhaji Park to Poona
Railway Station) a passenger used to pay 35 paise
in 1977 whereas in 1981-82 for the same distance
an individual commute^has^pay 0.7 5 paise. thus
implying an increase in the cost of P.M.T, travel
by 2.1. times. This point is relevant for our
study because it is going to affect individual (167)
nommiatar's choice as to the means of local conveyance.
As a dependable vehicle^ bicycle then happens to be the best choice(alternative to any other vehicle which has been included in the above table.
l^et us now consider the cost implications of each type of vehicle for a common commiater, as revealed in the tables following ; CO (168) E o w n : o o r\) o Q) CM >1 a, H O' i n W >1 (T' CQ (P c W e O fO (-1 : e O >1 c o £ +J ^ 0) -P (0 o_ w 0) O "0 > u T3 C n t7 i 0 ) o o o (fl o (U o (U I (0 m M ro >1 VO 00 a ro ^ a 1-1 0) 0) (0 CO CO I
c ^ I ■H o (Ucn I -P (0 r i 4J I -H C U
CM (170)
c -P 0) CO CO u O -H O (C Oi G (1) O e CO o •H M -P . i n c U iH •H 0) • CO H O £ ft '-H C -P fd O S CO (D P CO CO e CO 0) CU ■P -H c f= Qj ^ e •H > o •H a o o r-< -H CO c T) U CO !-l -H 0) r-| U4 C Q.I e a» ^3 d) *H a, M o u o ft CO 5 -H 90 M o e -P XI 0) 0) 5 M CO a o 5 o (D Q) 0) •H CD ^ T3 CO > ft) >1 (T1 O E a, o ft O O M -p E r!^ o o OJ d) • __ T3 T! > £ o cu o o 0) + f - p M o o +> * to i-l Q) 0) 0 e C -P A' (D !2 C +) O -H to in c e -- V. rH •HOC 0. o CU J rH 0) o VO O H e '• v x 'sf o n — 3 T3 -H (0 c e CD -p o •H ^ !U m + + c 0 > 0) OJ u •H U ^5 > (D e U CD O f t 0 x: 4J Sh ^ 4J to O "0 a; 3 o 0) Q) & O > -P >1 S C'J ■P U o 0 m P ■P CM C JO •H +) iH •H >0 r—I (U CO to 0 OJ -p (tl •rH 0 -o u + + 0 x: w W •M a> Xi T3 tl) QJ •H > a •H •H rH 4-> > fd -o u > u to o V 'O e +J ■H ■ -H tu (0 o (U P O to T) j:: o in Xi m —' to -H c 0) tl) c CO \o u >< -0 -H > -P -H m QJ fO C o a. + + T! 01 fO -r4 >, -p 0 (1) a I—I tn ft >U Q) C 00 CO ifl VD 0 0 t« O rH ro -P Q) e o • 'a to (1) rc) H m in •H to U ip CM CM CM > H in CTi Of 0) o •H ^ r ' • a CM U +) c t/5 CTi 5h -P C II II •H + + tt; rH 3 C 0) ft e o u II 0 -p o o (U o Q) U to o o 00 a £ 0 0) % r - | in tTi -P fO > o CTiin cn ft o 00 m r—t c 00 rHVD m CM H O o VD • M O -.M Ch n CM r—1ro o 0 -p V£) m q u-i & S jj •H 0 li II 1 II C C +J c . 0) o o •H e (t w -p (T1 +J 0) rtl M ^1 m 0) Q) -H TD U -H 0) C -P (t) to -p 0) to c fO Q) to o M 0) rH w i rc) U m CO O U >i r}' U 0) ■p in VD o 2 (172) TABLE No. 22 5.4.(a) COMPARATIVE COST TABLE TPer litre- per KM.per Individual) Vehicle Rs. NP How many times more than the Cost of a bicycle (1) Scooter 0.60 3 times approx. (2) Luna/Moped 0.3 0 2 times approx. (3) Rickshaw 0.74 4 times approx (two seater) (front engine) (4) Rickshaw 0.50 2,8 times approx (three seater front engine) (5) Rickshaw 0.40 2.1. times approx (three Feater) ( rear engine) (6) Car 6.29 3 times more approx. ( 4 seater) (7) P.y..T. Bus 0.40 Minimum distance to start with) 2.5. times approx. ( 40 Paise at the starting point) which is likely to be more by 2.5.times) (8) Cycle 0.19 Note : All these costs are calculated for the initial yr. it is obvious that these costs are going to increase in the successive years of use of the vehicle as nev/ness of the vehicle gets reduced and therefore comparative cost advantage which a bicvcle enjoys over other vehicles is going to increase. (173) 5.5. SOME IMPORTANT CONCLUSIONS DRAWN ON THE BASIS OF INTERVIEW WITH THE RICKSHAW DRIVERS AND RICKSHAW OWNERS IN PUNE The following persons were interviewed with the a view to studying the cost of rickshaw travel to a commuter.. 1 ) Shri Hemant Kamble, Budhwar Peth, Pune 2) Shri Vilas Dhumal, Bhavani Peth# Pune , 3) Shri Ramakant Kate, Ghorpadi Peth, Pune 4) Shri Prakash Joshi, Sadashiv Peth, Pune On the basis of answers provided by them to the questionaire the following important conclusions can be drawn about the cost implications of a rickshaw travel, for the common commuters: (1) All the above mentioned rickdriver cum owners have been in the business of rickshaw driving for the last 7 to 10 years so that they could give their experienced opinion about the. rising costs of the rickshaw travel in the Pune City. (2) All of them unanimously complained that during the twenty year period from 1961 to 1981 the petrol prices have increased 1 Pri m e s (0.85 paise per litre in 19 61 has now gone up to Rs 8.50 (174) per litre in 1981-82) Shortage of petrol has also harrassed the rickshaw driyeis many a time. (3) Rising costs of rickshaw travel has not adversely affected their business. They continue to receive the same patronage from their customers. (4) Three seaters are preferred by the customers, to two seaters because of the rear engine convenience and division of fare among three persons. (5) The prices of rickshaw l^e increased from Rs 11,000 to Rs 12, 000 in 1975-76 to Rs 20,000 in 1982-83. (6) After covering all the expenses (maintenance, repairs, taxes, depreciation a rickshaw driver cum owner earns Rs 40 to 50 per day. (7) Rickshaw business is generally depressed for 6 months and for the reamining 6 months period it experiences a boom. (8) There are about 10,000 rickshaws in the Pune City and are not enough to cope with abnormal demand in busy season of marriages and vacations. (175) (9) All the rickshaw drivers unanimously complained about the bad conditions of roads and the resultant heavy depreciation of the vehicles. Existence of small lanes also adds to depreciation because of high frequency of gear and clutch adjustments. Accident frequency is also high because of the traffic congestion on small roads and lanes. 5.6. RELIABILITY ANALYSIS OF P.M.T.OPERATION Travelling by a P.l'4.T. bus is a very close substitute to bicycle tiding. Reliability of P.M.T. bus as a near substitute to cycle is important because - (1) From 1961 to 1981 the population of Pune City has grown from 7.94 lakhs to 13.11 lakhs. (2) Of the population of 13.11 l^kh about 3 lakhs of people possess cycle which means that 2 5% of the population depend on cycle riding for the purpose of local ransport. (176) (3) About 2.2 5 lakhs of people travel by PMT buses. Thus the rough ratio of reliance on PMT Bus and reliance on a bicycle comes to 3:2 . This ratio is bound to change in favour of a bicycle as the comparative cost advantage of a bicycle i3 increased as a result of the inefficient operations of the P.M.T. undertaking which have increased the cost of P.M.T. Bus travel by 2 to 3 times in the last 7 years( from 1977 to 1982) *(4) During the last 10 years(1971 to 1981) the accident frequency of a P.M.T. has been 3 accidents per two days (average). The number of PMT passengers increased from 3.2 5 lakhs to 3.8 lakhs (daily) only. This shows decreasing reliance on PMT« *(5) Out of 12 3 routes 38 routes outside the PMC area and 44 inside the PMT area ?re running at a loss. If P.M.T. undertaking proposes to increase the bus facility by purchasing new buses the loss in going to increase, (6) As shown below the average distance for which a commuter depends on P.M.T. Bus as a means of Local transport is 11.5 kilometers. This distance can be safely travelled by a cycle at a very low comparative cost. * TARUN BHARAT DT 2 6-12-82 (177) 5.6(a) AVERAGE DISTANCE COVERED BY PMT BUS ROUTES Route No. Distance (kms) Places covered ■ 1 ' 4,8 Swargate to Tanjiwadi 2 8.0 Dattawadi to Poona-Stn, 3 8.0 . Sahakar Nagar to Tanaji wadi. 4 6.0 Swargate to Poona Stn. 5 9.8 Padmavati Temple, Swargate Poona Stn, 6 . 13,5 Poona Station to Poona Station. 7 6.6 Swargate to Po:>na Stn, 8 10.7 Padmavati Mandir to Shivajinagar Station 9 6,2 Swargate to Katraj 10 12.8 Deccan Gymkhana to Hadapsar. 11. 5.6 Deccan Gymkhana to Poona-Station. 12 3.8 D.G, City Post Office to Poona Station 95.8 Total distance of twelve routes average 9 5.8 / 12 = 8.k.m (178) Route No. Pi stance (kms) Places covered 13 9.4 D.G, to Poona Station 14 6.9 D.G. to Poona Station 15 13.9 Poona Station-Mundhwa, Hadapsar. 16 10.4 Poona station to Dapodi 17 12.0 Poona to D.G, 18 7.4 Poona station to Phulenagar Vishrantwadi , 19 11.4 Poona station to Vimannagar Lohegaon. 20 9.0 Pune station to Vimanagar. 21 8.6 Pune Station to Matchwell Factory Wadgaonsheri 22 9.3 Poona station to SRP camp 23 13.6 Poona station to Kondhwa hospital 24 16.5 Mahatma Gandhi Bus stand to Loni 25 12.8 ' M.G. Bus stand to Manjri gaon. 26 13.0 Padmavati to ^eravada. 27 10.7 Bhikardas Maruti Mandir to Dhayari 28 6.1 D.G, to Poona University 29 12.0 D.G. to Aundh Post Office to Sangoi Gaon 30 14.0 D.G. to Pashan(ARDL) 31 14.0 D.G. to Karve nagar. 32 4^0_ D.G. to Ganeshnagar. Total distance 205.0 No of Routes 20 Average distance=10.2kms. (179) Route No Distance(Ems) Places covered 33 8.0 Vishrambaug wada to Gokhale nagar. 34 8.0 Shivaji Housing Soceity to AB Chowk, 35 15.0 D.G. to D.G.(Circular route) 36 12.0 Aundh post office to Vishranwadi 37 15.7 D.G. to Pimpri Rly,Gate 38 8.1 D.G. to Kirkee Bazar 39 9.7 P.M.C. Office to Kirkee bazar. 40 8.0 D.G. to Poona Station 41 8.0 Poona station to Aundh P.O. 42 8.0 Shivajinagar to Vishwarantwadi 43 8.0 Vishrarnbag wada to Poona University 44 8.0 P.M.C. Bhavan to Nigadi 4 5 8.0 Gokhale nagar to Pune Station. 46 3 5.0 Swargate Dapodi 47 6.5 M.G. bus stand to Shivaji nagar station 48 13.0 Padmavati Mandir to Pune Station 49 17.0 Bhikardas Maruti Mandir yo l.A.T.(Grinagar) 50 2 3.6 M.G. Bus stand toTheur Total distance 219.6 Total no of routes. 18 Average distance= 12.2kiTTS (180) Route No, Dlstance(Kms) Places covered 51 17.3 M.G. Bus stand to Phursungi 52 16.1 M.G. Bus stand to Wadkinala 53 20.0 Poona station to Chinchwad Nigadi 54 18.3 Poona station to Bhosari 55 12.5 Poona station to Dight 56 14.6 Poona station to Wagholi 57 20.8 D.G. to N.D.A.Ahiregaon 58 11.7 D.G. to Bhoogaon 59 17.0 P.i'I.C. office to Bhosari 60 11.1 P.M.G. office to C.M.C. 61 18.9 P.M.G. office to Chinchwad 62 3.8 D.G. to Gokhalengagar Janawadi. 63 22.2 Poona station to NDA Total distande 204.3 No of routes 13 Average distance=15.7kms Average of all the 63 Routes= 8+10.2+12.2+15.7 4 =46.1 = 11.5Kms Thus bus service is used by Poona people for an average distance of 11.5 kilometers. (181) PIMPRI CHINCHWAD BUS ROUTES No Distance Place covered 101 10.5 Pimpri Waghere Bhosari 102 18.0 Pimpri Chinchwad Alandi 103 10.5 Chinchwad to Bhosari 104 36.0 Kirkee Ammunition ^’actory to Wadgaon 105 19.0 Kirkee Amun,Factory to Moshi 106 22.0 Kirkee Amn.Factory to Dehu. 107 10.0 Chinchwad gaon to Kirkee 108 22.0 Indrayani to Kirkee 109 21.0 Pimpri Waghere# Dehu, Chinchwad 110 10.0 Padmaji Hills to Bhosari Total distance 179,00 No of routes 10 Average distance = 17.9 or 18 kms, (182) 5.6 (c) DEPENDENCE OF POONA. PEOPL.E ON P.M.T. As the following tables indicates Pune people had a tendency to rely more and more on PMT Buses for local transport. This tendency is however going to decline in future. TABLE ; Showing number of passengers transported 23 by the Poona Municipal Transport undertaking, Year No of Passengers 1957-58 3,07,26,700 1958-59 3,48,27,204 1959-60 3,95, 54,284 1960-61 4,45,61,977 1961-62 4,86,83,474 1962-63 5, 53,95,408 1963-64 6,55,41,795 1964-65 6,74,74,055 1965-66 7,31,97,655 1966-67 8,08,37,459 1967-68 8,30,83,648 1968-69 9,60,90,686 The nijmber of people taking advantage of the Pf4T Bus service increased from about 3.73 crores in 19 57- 19 58 to 9.61 crores in 1968-69. In 1980-81 the number increased to 10.2 3 crores. Approximately (l83) day every/3 lakhs of people take resort to bus travel. Proportion of people relying bus as a medium of travel has increased three times approximately. The following table indicates the increase in the number of buses, in the period 19 51-71. The nuiTiber of buses has increased from 57 to about 300. TABLE 24; Showing increase in population and the number of buses in the Poona Municipal Tpt Year Population %increase No of % increase over previ buses over previous ous year year. 1951 600351 - 57 - 1961 737426 23 140 146 1971 12,00,000 63 299 113 and above For a population of about 12 lakhs the bus capacity was 300 buses. However when the population has increased by 7 lakhs more the addition to the bus fleet should be to extent of 200 additional buses. However the recommendations of the various expert committees appointed to suggest measxires for improvement in the PMT administration have not. been cared for and implemented by the PMT. Integration of Poona Municipal Transport Corporation and (184) Poona Chinchwad Municipal Transport corporation is necessary to solve the probiem, for s'ervdng public traffic along the Bombay Pune Road. * During the period from 1971 to 1981 Bombay grew by 38% Delhi 4 4% and Poona by 50% Thus from 1981 onwards the total number of buses in the fleet of both the Corporations should not be less than 750( 500 X 3/2)|“500 base in 1981.~|However^ as the latest Reports on the working of P.M.T, undertaking foint out P.M.T. undertaking shall never be in a position to meet the ever increasing demand for P.M.T. local transport even at higher costs. This iJould mean that even if people in Pune do not resent a rise in fare,P.M.T, service shall not be adequate and efficient, 5.7. * .MODE OF OPERATION OF P.M.T.BUSES The mode of operation and the distribution of bus depots and stations refers to the spatial aspects of this problem. There are two depots of the Poona Municipal Transport(PMT) Service(PMT) to serve effectively the entire area of the city. The Swargate depot lying on the southern fringe of the old core is more important than the (185) Naravira Tanaji Wadi depot located in nev; developing area in the nothern half of the city. There are four main bus stations in the city.-(l.) Poona railway station (2) Deccan Gymkhana bus station. (3) Swargate bus station. (4) Mahatma Gandhi bus station (Pool gate) . The bus service was introduced in 19 40 when old core of the city was already over corwaded . So the bus stations were established on the fringe of the old core to serve the thicKLy populated wards of the city proper. Three biis stations serve the old core. These are Poona railway station bus stand, Deccan Gymkhana bus station and Swargate bus station. In addition, these bus stations serve suburban areas on north west and south respectively. Eastern suburbs are served by Mahatma Gandhi bus station. There has been a progressive increase in the of route mileage/buses during the last five years as a result of the extension of the city which is to be served by Municipal Transport. The bus traffic or traffic in general is not Toniform at all hours of the day. The fluctuations * Source Annual Report 1981-82 PMT undertaking. (186) in the traffic • are notable. The morning and evening peaks represent an ho\xr of transit for the working population. The morning peak from residence to place of work) and the evening peak (from place of work to residence) are very clear. The bus traffic with its daily morning and evening peaks is almost uniform on all week days except Sundays, when there is a slight decrease in the number of business operations, Sunday morning has the lowest traffic in the week, though evenings are more crowded. Bus services every day start at about six in the morning when both, the number of buses on the road and the number of passengers to be carried are low. Both gradully show an upward trend and both reach the morning peak between 10 a.m. and 11.a.m. After 11.00 am when the number of business is the maximum, the number gradually declines till 2.30 p.m. when the curve again resumes an upward trend and continues to rise till 7p,m. Shortly afterv^ards, the volume of traffic starts thinning down and continues till 11pm when the buses stop operating. In the industrial suburbs the morning peak is reached between 6am and 8 am when shifts in a number of industries begin and in the evening the peak (187) is reached between 4pm and 6pm marking the end of the working day. In the rest of the area (city and residentiaal Suburbs) morning peak is reached between 9,30 am and 11.30 a.m. and evening t>eak between 6 and 8 p.m. Morning is the time for the commuters to go out of the city. People working in the offices near Poona Railway station and in other institutions in the old core of the city move their residences in the suburbs or to the outer residential zone of the city comprising Shivajinagar# Erandavana and ^arvati and unfailingly to the evening transfic rush. This case with the inward journey is different In this case there are two peakS/ one between 9,30 a.m, and 11,30 a.m, and other between 6 8 p.m. Both thtese peaks are explained by two different phenomena. The morning peak is obviously the result of heavy inflow of commuters and the city people from the other areas of the city to the retail trade area located in the central part of the city Old core of the city is the scene of business activity and the centre of many comaercial and (188) government offices(near Poona railway station) which attracts a large number of people. The evening peak which is common to both inward and outward journey, is caused by the evening rush of people outside their homes. In the outward journey it is obviously the result of inverse flow of the morning traffic,whereas the evening peak in the inward journey is caused by people going to movie and other recreation or sports. Apart from the daily and hourly variation there is no noticeable monthly variation in the traffic, it remains almost constant all the year round though there is a very small decrease in the traffic during winter. The whole complex of Poona Region includes now Haveli. Mulshi, and Khed Talukas. An area of about 1,513 sq kilometers, around the Poona City is covered by Poona Region. Of this 61% has been declared as covering the green belt. The green belt consists of Kiwale. Manjri, Budruk, Katraj, Dhankavadi, Dhayari, Khadakwasala, Hingne Khurd, Lohagaon Vadgaon, Sheni Kalas, Dhanori etc. to village. The comprel^nsxve, wide Poona Region around Poona city Row covers an area of about 584 sq.miles, (189) It includes the area of jurisdiction of Poona Municipal Corporation the area admeasurir.g Square miles. People around the Poona city(central part) come from different areas and they require to travel an average distance of 11.32 miles or 18.22 kilimeters Thus the different bus routes cover to the maximum possible extent an average distance of 20 Kilometers. Railway facilities are not adqueately available for people coming from all directions and therefore the Bus service is the only means of transport for the people living around Poona in the area covered by a circle with a radious of 8.2 miles or 13.12 kilometers. (190) 5.8 ADQUACY AND COST OF PxMT BUS SERVICE The bus service provided by P.M.T, is not adequate and has not been keeping pace with the development o f the Poona city. Due to lack of advance planning, the public passanger service in the Poona city has almost broken down due to:- (a) financial shortages (b) utilisation of depreciation provisi'cn ^foi* payment of wages leading to- (c) inadequate funds for the purchase of new buses. As a result,demand for increase in the fare rate has been a constant and permanent phemomeanon. The present fare rates are double the BEST rates in Bombay,still the Transport sub committee of the P.M.C. is required to pass resolutions demanding frequently upward revisions of fare rates. * Recently the Poona Municipal Transport Sub coiTunittee of the Poona Municipal Corporation passed a resolution in its meetings that the rate of minimui.i fare of 40 paise be increased by 50 paise. The resolution awaits sanction from the State Government. Note ; * Sakai 18th May 1982. (191) The argumentput in favoxxr of the Resolution was that the demand for the increase of 10 paise is made in view of the bus fare of 50 paise in Bombay, similarly Municipal Corporations of Sholapur and Kolhapur have demanded an increase in minimum fare fy 15 paise and ten paise respectively. This demand for increase of 10 paise in the minimum fare is made in view of the payment of arrears to the extent of Rs4.51 lakhs to the P.M.T employees. The P.M.T. undertaking would also make a purchase of 7 0 new buses. This increase in bus fare has tremendous cost implications for a layrnan because the main verticle for local transport happens to be the bus. As a result they will have to switch on to comparatively cheap modes of transport vi^. bicycle whose comparative cost of transport per kilometer is almost nil when compared with the cost of transport by bus or any other two wheeled or three wheeled machine vehicle, 5o9. THE PMT BUDGET FOR 1982-83 The Present operations of PMT Undertakings According to the Budget of 1982-83 presented by the Poona Municipal Transport undertaking to Note; ^Reference: Sakai dated 28th I'-ay 1982. . ' (192) the Poona Municipal Corporation<- The P.M.T. has suffered a loss of. Rs 2,72,12,335. This loss has increased from 78,30,815( in the financial year 1980~81) to Rs 2,7. crores. The P.M.T. is on the verge of bankruptcy. In order to make PMT self sufficient it is necessary to get a loan of Rs 8-10 crores for capital expenditure. In absence of such a loan facility the P.M.T. will not be in a position to give satisfactory local bus service to passenger in Poona. Presently the P.M. T. possesses 365 buses of which only 285 ply on streets. 206 buses in the crew having been r\inning in the streets for the last 8 years and they are of scrap value and should be replaced by purchasing new buses. This would mean that almost less than 2/3 rd of the total buses require replacement. The implication would be that local passenger service in Poona will be adversely affected in the future years to come. As it is recently reported * Mr Bongirwar the Municipal Commissioner has sent a letter to the PMT Organisation informing that P.xM.T.has obtained from Pf'lC loans from time to time for (193) meeting expenditure in bus purchases^ D,A, revised pay of the employees and the total amount of loan comes to Rs 0,75 crores(about Rs 7 5 lakhs) . The deplorable financial position of the p P.M.T. undertaking does not permit payment of loan instalments and interest on loans. The loan was given by PMC to PMT (|) 8% interest per anmom. Also P.M.T. is to pay a sum of Rs 25.25 lakhs to the State Government against passenger tax and surcharge Now the P.M.T. Organization has requested the State, Government to treat the amount outstanding as a donation (subsidy) and this request by the P.M.T. has been turned down. There are other bills remaining unpaid to the extent of Rsl.l?lakhs, on account of printing of PMT tickets. As the present state of affairs goes- P.M.T has been suffering a loss of Rs 40,000 every day and therefore cannot meet the daily current expenditure. Under the circumstances efficiency of the service is bound to be adversely affected. Also there is no hope of any reduction in the fare future so that o C that iropoi canc^ P,M,T. travel as an alternative to cycle or any other vehicle is going to be reduced. * Ref: Kesari local newspaper dated 9 Feb 83. (194) 5.10 TR'.FFIC WEEK IN POONA AND DEPENDENCE OF PEOPLE IN PUNE ON CYCLE In Poona the traffic weekis to be celebrated in the first week of first and second week of January 1982. The transport wing or traffic branch consists of 210 polocemen and in the next four or five months 150 policemen will be added to the police squad, such a thing is necessary in view of the increasing niomber of vehicles in the Poona City, Mr, S.M, Mushrif^ the Asstt.Commissioner of Traffic Control Department gave the following figures on the nimiber of vehicles in the Poona City- in a press conference. " In Poona, during last twenty years the number of vehicles has increased three times” The different types of vehicles are i Vehicle Numbers 1. Cycles 3,00,000 approx 2. Scooter and moped 50,666 3. Motor cycles 28,247 4. Cars 16,734 5. Jeeps 4,433 6. Tractors 4,362 10,000 7. Rickshaws 8, P,M,T. and other passenger ’ .3 vehicles 9,492. (195) Vehicle Number 9. Vehicles for goods transport 14,609 10. P.M.T. Buses 206 5.11. TRAFFI.^ PROBLEMS IN THE POONA CITY As a result of heavy traffic of the heavy vehicles like trucks the civilian dwellers in Poona City are suffering from the problem of pollution* When the traffic frequency on the various roads in the Poona city was analysed it was observed that the rush hours of traffic were- From 10.00 am to 12.30am - morning hours From 4.30 pm to 7.30pm - evening hours The load of heavy traffic was such that every hour on a particular route the number of vehicles passing was 74 heavy trucks and buses 97 motor -cars 375 Scooters and motor cycles and cycles Thus -19 vehicles per m i n u t e -is the average. Thus the movement of population on these roads^ assuming full carrying capacity utilisation was 97 - motor cars x 4 passengers = 388 persons (196) 375 motorcycles x 2 persons and = 750 persons scooters 375 cycles x 1 person 375 The cycle as a vehicle covers 33% of the total traffic on roads. In other words broadly 33% of total population which is active and on roads possesses cycle as a vehicle for road riding- Assuming that in 1985 the total population of Pune city would cross 20 lakhs - barriers, about 7 to 8 lakh of people in Poona City would have cyc'le as their vehicle. The heavy traffic in rush ho\irs on important roadways (covering a distance of about 10 to 15 Kilometers) has created several problems. (i) it increases accident frequency. (ii) more traffic control points are necessary. (iii) it creates the problem of pollution for the city dwellers. (iv) Condition of most of the roads in the Poona city is not suitable for heavy traffic/ with the * Source ; SAKAL-Daily Newspapae dt 28.3.82 An article by Mr. T.B.i''lodak on 'Encroachment of Trucks on civilian settlements in Poona City. (197) of result that traffic/heavy vehicles leads to demolition of water pipelines,telephone cables# when ditches are created on roads it leads to heavy depreciation of vehicles and increases cost of maintenance and repairs damage of tyres, additional petrol cost. In many areas the work of widening roads# their repairs has remained pending and this has aggravated the problem of riding heavy vehicles on these roads, Most of the roads are of the width less than 30' They are thus unsuitable for traffic by heavy machine driven vehicles. On important roads, one way traffic arrangements have been implemented e.g on Prabhat road, Bhandarkar Road B.M.C, Road, etc., Garware Bridge is not allowed to be used except by PMT buses and vehicles for school and college students and buses belonging to private companies which carry employees to and fro are not allowed to use the bridge. The daily average run per bus is Table No 25_; Daily average run per bus 1965-66 1966-67 1967-68 Buses in service 178 190 219 Daily average of pass engers carried 2,00,540 2,21,400 2,27,627 Total No,of Kms run 27,000 38,810 32^733 (Daily average for the week) Daily avarage per bus 19 0kms 190kms 19 0kms (198) 5.12. NEW TRANSPORT i^ANAGEMENT The Bombay Metropolitan Regional Development Authority(BMRDA) has suggested to the Central Government to institutea ‘metropolitan transport authority' for all the cities with more than a million population. The proposal was aimed at bringing the local trains service and local bus transport system under the same authority for co-ordinated and better transport network for the cities. The State government has also supported the proposal which was based on the study of com^aunication services in some major foreign metropolitan cities, where a passenger can purchase a single ticket and opt to travel either by local tra in or the city bus, whichever is available. The recent cancellation of 35 local trains out of 845 schedules was a problem in Bombay . The main reason for the cancellation was that adequate number of rakes were not available to replace the old ones. The local bus service system in all metropolitian cities has been facing severe financial crisis and (199) and huge annual deficit for more than a decade. According to BMRDA^ such losses can b e t i e d over if the metropolitan transport authority has a control over the local train s e r v i c e . Now, local trains are available between Pune a n d Lonavla. In future there are possibilities of having a ring rail around Pune for local trains. Such a net work is necessary considering the rapid population growth in Pune. A joint metropolitan transport authority for all civic bodies between and Lonavala would help solve all thecommunication problems mainly for the industrial workers travelling between Piane and Pimpri and Chinchwad industrial belt. The recent plight of Pune Municipal Transport is well known*Instead of any expansion plans,the undertaking will be scrapping 38 routes shortly . It has no funds to replace the out-dated and old buse Proposal for making the PMT an autonor\ous corporation has been rejected by the Pune i'4unicipal Corporation. Time and again the PMT has been raising bus fares to reduce the annual budget deficit. The (200) municipal corporation cannot afford to provide the required finance. This indicates a totally dark future for PMT. A joint metropolitan transport authority seems to be the only solution for Pune city, taking into account that the total population at the turn of the century may exceed over two million , The municipal corporation should seriously study the proposal by BMRDA and impress upon the Central Government,for forming the metropolitan transport authority. 5.13 * PROSPECTS FOR THE FUTURE DEVELOPMENT OF THE POONA CITY AND THE LOCAL PASSANGER TRANSPORT NEEDS. The Poona Municipal Corporation Celebrated its 125th anniversary & reviewed the Corporation's administration of the City. The P.M .C. has a very long good tradition as an able corporation* The P.M.C. ably administred by good administrat has been resheduling the measures to solve the probisn.s of developments of the Poona City and the various suburbs and drawing out plans for its future development. Presently the grave problems faced by the P.M.C. are (201) (1) fall in the income of P.M.C. (2) increasing personal expenditure. (e.g. in 1980-81 of the total expenditure of Rs 10.72 gross of the P.M.C. Rs 9 crores(about 50%) expenditure was incurred on personnel. During the years 1975~1980 the personnel expenditure increased by Rs 1 crore every year. On the other hand there has been a cut to the extent of 20% to 25% in P.M.C. income from toll, excise etc. Expenditiire on account of water supplying, clearing roads, drawings, samitation etc., has been mounting high. This would mean that P.^'^.C. will not have adequate finances to undertake the developments schemes. P -H-C. has in fact been the Second Municipal Corporation ( next to ^elhi) to implement the Town Planning Act. Poona is developing with industries and because of the lack of employment facilities in the rural areas of Maharashtra, the number of residents(domiciles) in the Poona City will continue to increase . During the decad. 1971-81 Bombay grew t- at the rate of 38% , Delhi at the rate of 50% . Poona is not only a District place, it is the Central place for about 7,8 districts. *Note; based on Sakai Daily Newspaper dated Editional 2 5th May 1982. (202) There is tremendous traffic rush created by the motor traffic via Bombay Nasik road to the South . The schemes of road widening have remained unplanne< and un-rmplemented. Out of 4 persons in the Poona city one person lives in slums. There is no scope for new constructions as the lands around Poona have been acquired by the defence department of government since the period of British rule. During the next ten fifteen years the ratio of slum dwellers to city dwellers will come 2;2. There are no concrete schemes of town planning and development of the Poona city during the next 5-10-15 years. What increases is population, the city does not develop proportionately, accordingly. It is necessary for the State Government and the Central Government to help Pune, Pimpri, Chinchwad Corporations and the three Cantonments, to solve problems of house construction, water supply,transport, traffic and health, because Poona City has become the educational industrial and cultural centre for Satara, Nagar, Sholapur, Nasik, Sangamner and Lonawala. Major problem viz. the local commuter transport has not been solved adequately. If the increase in the minimum bus fare continues, crores of people (203) who take recourse to bus travail every year will have to either walk down the distance or to purchase their own vehicle viz. the bicycle. The facility of concessional bus travel to the students has been taken off. There have been many instances of inadequate and untimely bus service ftt vital places in the . thickly populated and industrial areas around* 5.14 * COMPARATIVE PERFORMANCE OF POONA MUNICIPAL TRANSPORT CORPORATION. The public passenger transport service in the cities of Hyderabad/ Madras and Bombay is not provided at a loss. As against this performance the performance of the P.M.T. undertaking is really pitiable. In Calcutta the cost of local passanger transport is Ten Paise for a kilometer (Rs 1 for ten kilometers) where for a distance of two to three kilometers P.M.T. charges 75 paise. This he^vy cost of local transport cannot be borne by the Pune public. People have suggested close supervision over the plying of different buses on different routes having a rush of passengers (commuters)S the numbers of standees in the bus should be increased to twelve and so on. (204) However these suggestions have not been implemented. On the contrary P.M.T, undertaking it is reported, Sakai dated 18/6/82. is thinking of closing important routes - leading to Pimpri, Chinchwad, Bhosari, Gultekadi which are the industrial campuses. ®ut of 66 bus routes,3' routes are to be closedoOut of the total fleet of 400 buses there are 175 oldest buses which are not in an operating condition., 100 Out of 175 buses have only a- scrap value and need replacement. It is suggested by Mr. Uttam Devkar, Chairman of P.M.T. undertaking that if Poona Chinchwad Municipal Transport undertaking is milling to donate 100 buses, plying buses on 38 routes the unremmerative routes could be possible. P«C.M.T. plans to purchase 40 double declear buses. The P.M.T. can increase its revehue only by increase in the rates of fare. Accordingly the minimum fare rate was increased from 40 paise to 50 paise by a resolution which was unanimously accepted. The resultant rate ’ structtire iS minimum 50 paise * 10 paise per k.m till 10 kilometers and after 10 kilometers 15 paise increase per kilometer. Thus the inplication of the increase that fare would be[for travelling a distance of 15 kms Reference; Articles on PMT undertakings Sakai - 6-7-82 and 23 ?4 -6-82 & 18-6-82 (205) the commuters have to pay. 50 paise minimum + 100(for ten kilometers) = 150 paise. + 75( 15 X 5) = 2.25 paise This cost implication is serious for a layman- commuter. As a result of the rising costs reliance on a bicycle is going to increase in the future years to come. This conclusion is supported by the developments which have taken place recently. It is reported that * P.M.T. trip service on 82 routes will remain closed/ between 12.00 noon to3. p.m. The number of bus trips to the various suburban areas has been drastically reduced. Thus bus service in the areas like Alandi/ Bopkhel,Ahire Gaon, Lohagaon,kudje, Somatane Phata, tJrali, which are in the viccinity of about 12 to 15 X-ilometers from the central part of the Pune City will not be thus available. This would cause a great inconvenience to the passengers travelling through the following routes. (1) i'^arket yard to M.G.Bus Stand (2)- Deccan GymKhana to Poona Railway Station * Reference I Kesari dt 16th Feb 19 83. (206) (3) Market Yard to Shivaji Nagar Rly Stn, (4) Vishrambaug Wada to Anand Nagar,Poona University and Gokhale Nagar, Owing to the rise in the price of diesel, P.M.T. undertaking will have to spen 3 Rs 10,000 more daily This has compelled P.M.T. undertaking to reduce the nxjmber of trips along the important routes. , The undertaking has even suggested the complete closure of important routes going through the suburban village areas. The 44 routes in the being Central Part of the Pune City are alscy operated at a loss . The total loss comas to R s 40,000 daily. This has a serious implication from mobility point of view. Mobility of population in the various areas is going to be reduced or even completely stopped if they do not have ; alternative means of trasnport either a bicycle or any other machine driven vehicle . The suburban areas like Sangxar Gaon.Somathne Phata, Chinchwad Gaon, Ahiregaon Peacock Bay, UttamNagar, Vanaj Company,Kudje Gaon Ram Nagar Aundh Post, Malwadi, Bhod Gaon, Wagholi, Dhanori, Bharatiya Agro Industries ,Dighi,Avhal Wadi ,Matchwell Factory, Got Market,Bheema Koregaon Wadgaon Sheri, Alandi, Nigadi Gaon, Mahamad Wadi, Chinchwad ,gaon, Manjari,Kondhwa Hospital .Theur. (207) Wadgaon Budruk, I.A.T Donje Gaon,Dhayri Anand Nagar, Khadki Bazar, Vishrant Wadi. All these are suburban areas which have developed small industries and agriculture. Housing societies have come into existence, in these areas. Therefore a major segment of population of agriculturists,milkmen,vegetable sellers# workers, school going children government and private employees will be deprived of P.M.T. bus service. Thus P.M.T. vindertakings has been operating in the recent past in such a way that mobility of population in the Central Part and in the Suburban areas is going to be reduced. ******* ^ II II II CO M-l -H II II II Q)