Transport in India Transport in the Republic of India is an important part of the nation's economy. Since theeconomic liberalisation of the 1990s, development of infrastructure within the country has progressed at a rapid pace, and today there is a wide variety of modes of transport by land, water and air. However, the relatively low GDP of India has meant that access to these modes of transport has not been uniform. Motor vehicle penetration is low with only 13 million cars on thenation's roads.[1] In addition, only around 10% of Indian households own a motorcycle.[2] At the same time, the Automobile industry in India is rapidly growing with an annual production of over 2.6 million vehicles[3] and vehicle volume is expected to rise greatly in the future.[4] In the interim however, public transport still remains the primary mode of transport for most of the population, and India's public transport systems are among the most heavily utilised in the world.[5] India's rail network is the longest and fourth most heavily used system in the world transporting over 6 billionpassengers and over 350 million tons of freight annually.[5][6] Despite ongoing improvements in the sector, several aspects of the transport sector are still riddled with problems due to outdated infrastructure, lack of investment, corruption and a burgeoning population. The demand for transport infrastructure and services has been rising by around 10% a year[5] with the current infrastructure being unable to meet these growing demands. According to recent estimates by Goldman Sachs, India will need to spend $1.7 Trillion USD on infrastructure projects over the next decade to boost economic growth of which $500 Billion USD is budgeted to be spent during the eleventh Five-year plan. [7] Traditional means Walking In ancient times, people often covered long distances on foot. For instance, Adi Sankaracharyatraveled all over India.[8] Walking still constitutes an important mode of transport in urban areas.[9]In the city of Mumbai, to further improve the transit conditions for pedestrians, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority, has commenced the construction of more than 50skywalks,[10][11] as part of the Mumbai Skywalk project. Palanquin Palanquins also known as palkis, were one of the luxurious methods used by the rich and noblemen for travelling. This was primarily used in the olden days to carry a deity or idol of a god, and many temples have sculptures of god being carried in a palki. Later on, it was primarily used by European noblemen and ladies from the upper classes of society prior to the advent of the railways in India. [12] Modern use of the palanquin is limited to being an ostentatious method for the bride to enter Indian weddings. Bullock carts and horse carriages Bullock carts have been traditionally used for transport, especially in rural India. The advent of the British saw drastic improvements in the horse carriages which were used for transport since early days. Today, they are used in smaller towns and are referred as Tonga or buggies. Victorias of Mumbai are still used for tourist purposes, but horse carriages are now rarely found in the metro cities of India. [13] In recent years some cities have banned the movement of bullock carts and other slow moving vehicles on the main roads.[14][15][16] Bicycles Bicycles are a common mode of travel in much of India. More people can now afford to own acycle than ever before. In 2005, more than 40% of Indian households owned a bicycle, with ownership rates ranging from around 30% to 70% at the state level.[2] Along with walking, cycling accounts for 50 to 75 % of the commuter trips for those in the informal sector in urban areas.[9] Even though India is the second largest producer of bicycles in the world,[17] a significant prejudice against bicycle riding for transport exists in some segments of the population, generally stemming from the status symbol aspect of the motor vehicle.[17] In India, the word "bike" generally refers tomotorcycle, and "cycle" refers to bicycle.[17] Pune was the first city in India to have dedicated lanes for cycles. [18] It was built for the 2008 Commonwealth Youth Games. However, recent developments in Delhi suggest that bicycle riding is fast becoming popular in the metro cities of India. The Delhi government has decided to construct separate bicycle lanes on all major roads to combat pollution and ease traffic congestion.[19] Hand-pulled rickshaw This type of transport is still available in Kolkata wherein a person pulls the rickshaw by hand. TheGovernment of West Bengal proposed a ban on these rickshaws in 2005 describing them as "inhuman".[20] Though a bill aiming to address this issue, termed as 'Calcutta Hackney Carriage Bill', was passed by the West Bengal Assembly in 2006, it has not been implemented yet. [21] The Government of West Bengal is working on an amendment of this bill to avoid the loopholes that got exposed when the Hand-pulled Rickshaw Owner's Association filed a petition against the bill.[21] Cycle rickshaw Cycle rickshaws were introduced into India in the 1940s.[22] They are bigger than a tricycle where two people sit on an elevated seat at the back and a person pedals from the front. In the late 2000s, they were banned in several cities for causing traffic congestion.[23][24][25] Cycle rickshaws have been a feature of Delhi streets since Indian independence in 1947, providing the cheapest way around the capital. The Delhi Police recently submitted an affidavit against plying of cycle rickshaws to ease traffic congestion in the city but it was dismissed by the Delhi High court.[26] In addition, environmentalists have supported the retention of cycle rickshaws as a non-polluting and inexpensive mode of transport.[27] Trams The advent of the British saw trams being introduced in many cities including Mumbai and Kolkata. They are still in use in Kolkata and provide an emission-free means of transport. The nationalized Calcutta Tramways Company is in the process of upgrading the existing tramway network at a cost of Rs. 240 million.[28] Local transport Public transport is the predominant mode of motorised local travel in cities. [9] This is predominantly by road, since commuter rail services are available only in the fourmetropolitan cities of Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, and Kolkata, while dedicated city bus services are known to operate in at least 17 cities with a population of over one million.[30]Intermediate public transport modes like tempos and cycle rickshaws assume importance in medium size cities.[9] However, the share of buses is negligible in most Indian cities as compared to personalized vehicles, and two-wheelers and cars account for more than 80 percent of the vehicle population in most large cities.[30] Traffic in Indian cities generally moves slowly, where traffic jams and accidents are very common. [31] India has very poor records on road safely—around 90,000 people die from road accidents every year. [32] A Reader's Digest study of traffic congestion in Asian cities ranked several Indian cities within the Top Ten for worst traffic.[31] Public transport Buses Buses take up over 90% of public transport in Indian cities,[29] and serve as a cheap and convenient mode of transport for all classes of society. Services are mostly run by state government owned transport corporations.[30] However, after the economic liberalisation, many state transport corporations have introduced various facilities like low-floor buses for the disabled and air-conditioned buses to attract private car owners to help decongest roads.[33][34] Bengaluru was the first city in India to introduce Volvo B7RLE intra-city buses in India in January 2006.[35][36][37] New initiatives like Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) systems and air conditioned buses have been taken by the various state government to improve the bus public transport systems in cities. Bus Rapid Transit systems already exist in Pune, Delhi and Ahmedabad with new ones coming up in Vishakhapatnam andHyderabad. High Capacity buses can be found in cities like Mumbai, Bengaluru, Nagpur andChennai. Bengaluru is the first Indian city to have an air- conditioned bus stop, located nearCubbon Park. It was built by Airtel.[38] The city of Chennai houses Asia's largest bus terminus, theChennai Mofussil Bus Terminus.[39] In 2009, the Government of Karnataka and the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation flagged off a pro- poor bus service called the Atal Sarige. The service aims to provide low-cost connectivity to the economically backward sections of the society to the nearest major bus station.[40][41] Auto Rickshaws An auto rickshaw is a three wheeler vehicle for hire that has no doors and is generally characterised by a small cabin for the driver in the front and a seat for passengers in the rear.[42]Generally it is painted in yellow, green or black colour and has a black, yellow or green canopy on the top, but designs vary considerably from place to place. In Mumbai and other metropolitan cities, 'autos' or 'ricks' as they are popularly known have regulated metered fares. A recent law prohibits auto rickshaw drivers from charging more than the specified fare, or charging night-fare before midnight, and also prohibits the driver from refusing to go to a particular location. Mumbai is also the only city which prohibits these vehicles from entering a certain part of the city, in this case being South Mumbai.[43] In Chennai, it is common to see autorickshaw drivers demand more than the specified fare and refuse to use fare meter [44] Airports and railway stations at many cities such as Bengaluru, and Hubballi-Dharwad provide a facility of prepaid auto booths, where the passenger pays a fixed fare as set by the authorities for various locations.[45] Taxi Most of the traditional taxicabs in India are either Premier Padmini or Hindustan Ambassadorcars.[46] In recent years, cars such as Chevrolet Tavera, Maruti Esteem, Maruti Omni, Mahindra Logan, Tata Indica, Toyota Innova and Tata Indigo have become fairly popular among taxi operators.