35 years of Global Warming

No. Am not saying that the earth has been warming up for 35 years.

Someone used this term in a research paper in 1975. And we have been thinking, talking and debating ever since. Most of us still disagree about the extent to which man is causing climate change and many of us concede that as an individual we cannot make a change.

If we look at our day to day activities, I am sure that we can identify one thing we could change every month that would have a positive impact on the environment.

In unrelated news the Gurgaon Metro line will open in September. Maybe we can ditch our cars each time we have to go mall shopping :)


cartoon: www.zunal.com

Unpaving roads

The United States is going through a debate where many of their roads are being torn apart. That's right. Their paved roads are being turned into gravel.

Of course the numbers are very small as of now but economist Paul Krugman has chosen to highlight this as the decline of a nation. He says:

We’re told that we have no choice, that basic government functions — essential services that have been provided for generations — are no longer affordable.

Of course, the reason why some roads have been turned to gravel in the US is that they are no longer in use. Highways provide better rides and connectivity and these back roads that were important at some time are no longer used regularly.

Still for most of us in India this system would NOT come as surprise. Here we have been turning paved roads into gravel every year. That way contractors and politicians make money regularly. And they can claim that they have created thousands of jobs each year.

Wonder what Krugman would say about our system?

A shorter line from Gurgaon to Qutub Minar is set to open this week but already there is trouble ahead.

Three words - Parking Not Available.

Yes. You got that right.

They have got the Metro to Gurgaon and solved the problem for the thousands who work in glass cages that pretend to be buildings. But where would the Gurgaon resident park his car if he wants to take a ride?

This has been a problem even in Delhi where most stations do not have any parking. But the explanation for this is that (one) there is no space and (two) people can use rickshaws or walk to the station. In places where a station is serving a large area like Dwarka, Metro has feeder buses.

In Gurgaon too large parts of the city are far away from the metro line and can only be serviced by buses. But metro officials are not planning to start any feeder buses and point out that it is the state officials who are responsible for this. The funny thing is that they've spent thousands of crores of rupees to get Gurgaon connected, but not have the lakhs needed for the buses?

After the success of the Noida line, this was the line that was to be the busiest in the coming year. Looks like for now you will have to walk a mile to catch that Metro.

Mumbai most polluted

This might confuse you. With half the number of vehicles Mumbai has overtaken Delhi as the most polluted city in India. In effect each vehicle in Mumbai is 4 times more polluting than a vehicle in Delhi.

How did this happen? The assumption is that Mumbai's roads are more congested and Delhi has more vehicles running on CNG. However I am not sure whether the building of flyovers has really helped Delhi. The traffic jams still have not gone away and standing vehicles still cause pollution.

The expanding of BRT is going to increase use of public transport, although this will take some time. On the first road modified for BRT connecting Chirag Dilli to Moolchand, one can see how more people prefer the buses since the dedicated lines make for an easier ride.

I think a large part of the reduction in emissions is also because of the Delhi Metro. Today when I took the Metro to Janak Puri, it was normal trip. I did not even have to think - should I take the car or the Metro? When I got off, I remembered the time when it was a long hot bus ride at the end of which you were fighting through the crowds to get down.

In Mumbai there is no respite for someone who wants to avoid using the car. Yes there is the famed suburban train system but it is run down. The trains have to be upgraded and also new routes have to be planned in alignment with directions that people travel to work. With more work shifting away from town, people need options. Maybe the Mumbai Metro has such routes planned for the future. Till then this is a crown it has to wear.

Bicycle ! Bicycle !

America is currently trying to figure out whether it can encourage car users to switch to bikes. And one of the bottlenecks apparently is that there are not enough places to park bikes. What used to be a problem for cars earlier is now a problem with bikes. In some cities, bike usage has increased by almost 150 percent but people have nowhere to park.

However several cities like Portland(US) and Amsterdam have focused on creating exclusive parking spaces for cyclists. One automated location in Tokyo has a capacity for 9000 bikes any one of which can be retrieved with 23 seconds !

Of course any city would benefit if people switch to cycles. Cycles take lesser space on roads and parking areas . So how is Delhi matching up with other cities of the world?

One can see a lot of cyclists in Delhi and many of them tend to park their cycles inside their office compounds. These are not new spaces but mostly extensions of older parking areas which are now overflowing. As a result many people now tend to or in front of the offices/shops they are working in.

But a bigger problem is that unlike most countries in Europe there are no dedicated lanes for cyclists and often they are treated on par with pedestrians. The only time you can see cycles dominating the road is during the rush hour at ITO. When the light changes to green they rush out like they are in some race. Otherwise, car and bus drivers tend to push them out even on the slow lanes. On roads where there is faster traffic flow there is no way a cyclist can enjoy a ride.

Partly this is because we often see cycles as something associated with adolescence. Its only those who cannot afford public transport and/or have to carry their tools with them use cycles as adults. Shifting to cycles only makes sense if roads are safer and you are closer to work. In fact today in Delhi car owners complain about driving long distances and may look for houses closer to work. But cyclists often do not have that choice.

Me want to make more money

That's what the Delhi Metro is now saying.

Yes they are making a profit on day to day operations, but there is a small matter of 16,000 crores that they borrowed for the first two phases of construction.

And how does it propose to do so ? DMRC argues that the only way forward is to follow the Hong Kong model where the metro authorities were allowed to develop real estate on either side of the metro line. This is the only metro system in the world that is running on profit.

But the Delhi Development Authority does not agree since this would throw the master plan in a disarray and would only benefit the builder lobby. Planners point out that this would lead to unplanned commercial centres that may not be viable.

I guess the lesson for other cities in India is to figure out how they will be able to pay for the Metro before they build it.

In the meantime DMRC is now competing with the Railways. At Dwarka a train slipped off its tracks. Maybe the are trying to get Mamta's attention.

Metro = Safe?

This recent article points out that every year almost 4000 people die while commuting on the Mumbai local trains. On the other hand about 1800 people die on Delhi's roads each year. Both are alarming numbers.

This set me thinking that are metros (elevated or underground) safer for commuters? At present Delhi's Metro is about 74 kms long and 200 more will be added by 2010 end. And already there are plans to have another 100 km added in the next phase. Uptill now are hardly any reports of accidents while traveling but there have been some during construction.

While traveling on NYC subways, I would come across ads of legal firms who would offer services to victims who have been injured while traveling. There would also be one or two highly publicized cases in which they had won millions of dollars for their client. However a large proportion of these accidents happen when a traveler trips, falls, or slips on the stairway because they are in a hurry.

What would be interesting is to find out whether public transport systems are safer as a whole? This US study claims that it is, but then what about cities in India ? The problem is that most accidents go unreported or there is no proper study as yet. Maybe the number of accidents are less in the case of a train or a bus, but it might result in more deaths or injuries.

With the Metro expanding and the BRT spreading across several parts of the city, we would need to look at how to make traveling on them safer and convenient. And safety does not mean just accidents. We should also look at how safe it is for older people, women and children to travel on them. This was one of the reasons why many people shunned DTC and private buses. As it grows the Metro should make sure everyone enjoys the ride.

Are we travelling any faster ?

Last week Gurgaon office goers decided to beat the rush hour jam. They reported to office almost an hour earlier. While many companies had been experimenting with this since 2005, I guess in the last year rush hour travel has become impossible.

I remember reading some time back that the average traffic speed in Delhi has reduced by half to 20 km per hour compared to what it was 15 years back. Don't we often complain how it was easier to get to a place in a car and now it takes twice the time. So does having a car any help? Of course on the Noida toll bridge we can zip across but what after you get into the city?

Having lived in Karol Bagh my solutions to jams are different from those who travel from South Delhi. To get to CP you can still leave at 10 and not get any traffic. But to get to Green Park one either leaves at nine or eleven. That will take you 45 minutes. Else if you get caught in a jam then it might take more than an hour.

Is it possible to combine your trip with the metro and beat the traffic? Not really. I once tried getting to Khan market using the metro and then a short auto ride. The other trip I tried was to go to Mayur Vihar. You ride till the end of the IP line and then take an auto. The problem is once you hit the road the slow traffic sets you back and you hardly save time. In that sense while the metro only part of the solution. We need to declog the roads too if we have to travel faster.

There are many solutions - car sharing is one. The other is to let odd and even number cars to use the roads on alternate days. Another one is to shift all office timings in Delhi by an hour. But are we up to the challenge?

My Dentist and the Metro

So I made my infrequent trek to my dentist fearing the worst. As usual it was a small case of cleaning my teeth and fixing a loose cap but I was worried.

So I settle into the chair and she begins by asking why I haven't been regular. That is the one question that I was avoiding. In between her poking around, me spitting and then asking me to shift up a little more, I told her I had shifted to Karol Bagh. You know the standard explanation about how my parents had left the city and shifted back.

There. I said it. The dreaded K word that makes South Delhi people screw up their eyes. (Karol Bagh? Where is that? Isn't that near Rajouri Garden?)

Not this one. She smiled and said - You know pretty soon you can come here by the Metro.

I was stumped. What could I say? Of course with the Metro connecting up South Delhi one could technically travel anywhere on it.

But come to the dentist? That is one ride I will not be taking with a smile on my face !

The Force from the Dark Side

Elsewhen I had written about the story of the Nano - how it was designed and how the team that worked on it went over small details to keep the costs below a lakh (2000 USD as of today) and yet create a world class car.

HOWEVER as a technology innovation it is disaster at a time when we need to encourage people to move to public transport. We have situations where families are planning to buy three or even four Nanos since they are so affordable. This is of course is something that Indians are always craving for. Cars. Cars. And more cars.

Earlier the complaint used to be that we did not have good options in terms of public transport. Now with the Metro and the BRT that excuse is out of the window. Car owners still try to find various excuses even when they could make some of their trips by the Metro. Car owners have convinced themselves that no public transport can be as comfortable as a personal car.So what if we have to wait at traffic jam for twenty minutes?

World over (Paris, NY and San Fransisco) most people use public transport to travel to work. cars are used during weekends, for shopping or when they travel out of the city. In Delhi we use the car for all of the above and everything else. Want to drop your kid to the bus stop? Get in the car? Want some milk? Where are the car keys?

Part of this can be attributed to the publicity and hype over the Nano (and other cars) whereas the Metro still keeps a low profile. Actually very large numbers use the Metro but most of us are not aware of its routes or how we can use it to where we travel. Like most new technologies that we finally get used to this too will take time. Twenty five years of the car revolution (the launch of the Maruti) will be difficult to shake off.

I guess when the initial excitement on this car is over and they have sold their first million it would be 2011. By that time the roads will all be clogged and the Metro would be fully functioning and the BRT would have extended its reach. Maybe at that time car owners will be persuaded to shift to the Metro.

The Nano might still be the symbol of success of Indian design. Just that we may only drive it during weekends.

Auto drivers - Delhi vs Mumbai ?

Freakonomics is debating why there is a huge difference in the way auto drivers in Delhi and Mumbai behave. In Delhi they quote an obnoxious sum to you and then negotiate. Some even refuse to go to certain places unless paid a premium. In Mumbai they are ready to go wherever according to the meter.

Respondents have put forward some reasons:

1. There are too many autos in Mumbai and there is competition between them. In Delhi there is a scarcity of autos and therefore the customers suffers.

2. Mumbai has strong auto unions who ensure that fares are regularly increased according to their demands while in Delhi this process takes a very long time and when the hike put in place it is too late in terms of the running costs of the vehicle.

I agree with both points of view but a major factor is the difference in the working culture of each of the cities. Mumbai is a product of English, Parsis, Sindhi and Gujarati communities that ran businesses over the last 100 years. They have a more practical approach where they do not want to spend time haggling about travel rates. This has taken a strong root and even new migrants find it convenient. The auto drivers are also happy with this system since they are paid well.

In Delhi most people start with an attitude that they are being charged too much and try to reduce the price. In buses many people often lie to the ticket guy about where they have to get off. Even on the Metro I have seen people trying to buy a ticket for an earlier station and then getting caught at the exit.

Also there is a habit of haggling. People actually enjoy the process of negotiating and feel happy when the price comes down even notionally. The shopkeepers and auto rickshaw drivers know this. So they quote a much higher price. If you ever approach an auto guy everyting is negotiated - price, route and even where he will drop you.

However in recent times many auto drivers have started charging reasonably or going by the meter in Delhi. One reason might be stricter enforcement. The other of the coming of the Metro. In many of the routes along the Metro where there has been a drop of people traveling by autos. Therefore they are willing to take you for a reasonable price.

Another trend is that some autowalahs have shifted to parts of Delhi where the Metro is still to reach. This has meant that there are more autos in that area and they are competing for more or less that same number of passengers. So they are again forced to compete thus giving passengers an edge while negotiating.

However come evening most of them still open with a high price and play the negotiating game. Since it the last trip before they head home, they want to make the best of it, they tell you !

Vasant Kunj - missing the Metro ride?

The residents of Rohini - one of the first places to be connected to the Metro - have really taken to using the Metro to travel to CP or the Delhi University on a daily basis. For many years Rohini was a neglected colony towards the west of the city and now it has come alive.

I thought the next logical thing would be to connect up Vasant Kunj. Here was one of the largest colonies with middle class houses and a bad bus service. Also JNU was close by and there would be a large student crowd using the Metro. But no such luck. The metro guys decided on another residential suburb. Dwarka. And they proceeded to make a long chain of stations here. Now that line is the busiest among the three and is running on a profit.

Looking back it made sense. The ideal time to get people to use public transport is when they are shifting to a new place. In Vasant Kunj houses were over 20 years old and most residents had cars. Switching to the Metro would have taken a longer time. But in Dwarka, it is convenient. Public spaces, shops and related activities have now come up along the stations.

In cities like Delhi, Bangalore & Hyderabad how do you get people living in older residential areas to switch to the Metro? In Mumbai and Kolkata it may be easier because a larger propotion already use public transport but what about places where people have gotten used to travel only in cars and do not mind the wait on roads. How do you convince these people?

One positive development can be how businessmen and shop owners in old Delhi have started using the Metro on a regular basis since it is convenient. The other success story is the thousands of students who use the metro to travel to the north campus. Public transport can always be an option if it is clean, safe and convenient. Also once you get off the station you should have rickshaws or buses to ferry you to your final destination.

The next challenge will be when the Gurgaon line opens in 2010. Since it skirts one end of Vasant Kunj will the residents use it connect to the city? Or will it remain untouched by the Metro?

Fun with a GPS

Since I am a big fan of maps, I knew that the first time I encountered a GPS it would be fun. On our trip to San Fransisco, Savita offered to take us to Muir woods. As soon as she pulled up in her car, I noticed a small square object sticking out from her windscreen. She punched in the destination and the thing started speaking back to her.

In India a GPS device is often associated with security and surveillance. But a GPS is a real help when you are new to a city and do not know the roads well. A standard device offers real-time voice support for every road turn and informs the driver about the current location as well as locations to be arrived at. It could also give you nearby points of interest such as ATMs, petrol pumps or restaurants. It is like a knowledgeable grandfather - and it also scolds you when you take a wrong turn or overshoot your destination.

In the grid plan based cities of Amrika this works. In a city like Delhi it can be confusing since the route chosen by the GPS may not be the ideal one - there might be a traffic jam or the road may have been shut down for repairs. I do not know whether there are systems which are updated regularly, but most people in the US use a combination of GPS and Google maps to get to a new place. There is no question of getting off and asking someone - something we do here often.

It does provide with you with entertainment. On our return Savita ended up at Lombard Street which is a the crookedest street in the world. With hair pin bends and twists and turns many times over you can barely control the car. The funny thing was on the GPS it showed up as a straight road !

We had to drop Aditi off at a museum and then wanted to catch up sitting at a cafe. I asked her whether there was a place where we could get good chai. I had not had boiled tea in a long time. On our way we passed a Pakistani joint but Savita did not know the way back. Nor did she know the road. And the GPS did not have the name of the restaurant in its database.

So we used the device in an innovative way. We punched in a destination which would take us away from the museum but in the same direction we came from. Once we had driven long enough, we punched in the museum again. But this time it took us through a different route and we never spotted the restaurant. Driving through the city and looking around we kept laughing at this idea of being dependent on a machine but even the GPS not knowing what we are looking for. It was like being in a video game. We were about to give up when we spotted another franchise of the same restaurant. Now for some desi chai.

Maybe the product could become a hit in India if it was sold as a gaming device...

Exploration 7 - Roshanara Bagh

Last week I had written about the public arts festival set around the metro stations. The one that impressed me was Motornama Roshanara.

This was a trip along the Roshanara Bagh area with the rickshawala acting as your guide. Along the ride we had headphones and an MP3 player. As you hurried along the lanes, you heard songs and interviews related to the trip. The rickshawalas had been trained to talk to the visitors and explain the histories of various places they took them to.

The entire experience was an oral history of the industrial age - its products (machines, factories), its impact on the people, migration, pollution and its decline. From the metro station we traveled many centuries in history. At an ice factory we were told that this technology was brought to India by the Mughals. Babur had complained about India his Baburnama:

.... There are no good horses, meat, grapes, melons or other fruit. There is no ice, cold water, good food or bread in the markets....

Just a few minutes ago we had been shown Palace cinema - one of the first halls to get a license in independent India and now has shut down. A cobbler sitting beside the hall played a film on a laptop stuck onto a tree. The film showed the technology of film projection - the mechanics that have been in use for more than a century.

The entire trip was to make the traveler aware of the technologies that are dying out and with it the skills and jobs. We got into a discussion with the rickshawala about how with each decade even the rickshaw is getting pushed out of the city in favour of cars and other forms of transport.

However with the spread of the metro line I feel that the rickshaw will survive. Many parts of Dwarka and Rohini already have rickshaws plying passengers from the stations to their homes. Their numbers have increased in the last decade. But they feel threatened by the police and transport authorities ban them from entering many areas in the city .

What can be done is that the rickshaw can be used in places where large vehicles are banned. Also the Roshanara trip opens up possibilities where the rickshaws can be used as tour guides for different parts of the city - Chandni Chowk, Mehrauli...

The ice factories and the old cinema halls may shut down but the rickshaw may still survive this century.

Route Plan: Take the metro till Kashmere Gate and then get onto the line to Rithala. Get off at Pul Bangash station. Although the arts festival ends today, the trip through the bylanes is still worth it.

The last time I went to a petrol pump

Must have been two months back...

Of course the entire 2007 was spent experimenting with using the metro as much as possible. I almost contemplated selling my car !

Then a brainwave struck. (Actually it was a friend's example). I decided to try CNG. The initial cash down was the bummer. But since then its almost like I have been transported to the 90's. I mean when was the last time that your fuel bill was a thousand bucks (!) for a month of normal driving.

There was the initial apprehension of not finding CNG and long line sat the pump. But slowly you get used to the idea and figure out solutions (the lines are shortest between 11 and 4) and money you fork out each time -120, 155, 147 (in rupees) - want you to run back to Barista and have another shot of coffee.

Meanwhile no one really catches the smile I have on my face when I pass a petrol pump ...

First you move along the centre...

... and then you steer left.

At least that's what the new improved plan is for the BRT. The stretch that has been built till Moolchand will have buses in the centre and then the buses will have to move to the left lane like the rest of the city.

When I had written earlier that there were problems with the BRT, I did not expect this kind ogf a solution. can you imagine the kind of confusion that would happen at the Moolchand crossing. When the light you will have buses trying to move left and cars cutting across to the right.

As if the roads aren't dangerous enough already !

First Paris and now Washington DC

Somewhen I had written how a unique scheme in Paris had helped encourage citizens to use bikes to travel around the city. These bicycles were to be parked near the Paris Metro stations and could be hired on an hourly basis using credit cards.

Now it seems Washington DC is planning a similar system where bikes will be available for hire at select locations. However pricing is crucial. If hiring the bikes is more expensive than say the shared taxi the system could fail. Therefore those behind this scheme have roped in advertisers to bring down rental costs.

The Metro in Delhi already has a system where you can park your bikes for free at the station if you have a smart card. But I feel the entire city needs to build itself around encouraging bikers so that we can see less cars on the roads. Maybe RWAs can be involved to manage such a system in each colony. That will ensure that the bikes are regularly maintained and they are not stolen.

What the Metro did right....

....and the BRT got it wrong.

Saubhik Chakrabarti has written a good critique of what went wrong with the BRT. Having use the Metro regularly for almost a year I had some observations on why the Metro has shaped up as a good alternative while the BRT seems to be grinding to a halt.

1. Know your customer - When the Metro started it was decided that the initial phase would connect the north, east and west of the city. Conventional wisdom pointed out that most of the bus users were NOT in South Delhi. South Delhi today has two or more cars per family. They are least likely to use a public transport system initially. Could they not have first tried the BRT in another place like Dwarka?

2. Build proper infrastructure. Yes the Metro was expensive compared to buses but look at the sea change in traveling experience both in terms of comfort and safety. In the case of the BRT all you have is a dividing of roads. No space was created for bus travelers to cross the road. The bus stops look like a shade better than earlier ones but how does one get there?

3. Do not change traffic practices suddenly- it creates confusion . This was easy for the Metro. The trains do not interfere much with traffic and in some cases the changes in roads have actually helped smoothen traffic flow. But the BRT is a bus system. Many years ago the courts had decided (although it was the job of the administration) to create dedicated bus lanes on the extreme left of the road. In the BRT system the buses have to travel in the central part. How can we use a new system when the rest of the city is still on another system? Within a city how do you expect a car or a bus driver to change lanes when he leaves the BRT area? Will that not lead to more accidents and jams?

4. If you want people to change give them a choice and let them decide. In the case of the Metro initially it was used by bus users and scooter owners. But later even business men having shops in Old Delhi would get themselves driven to metro stations and then take the train. They realized the hassles of parking their Honda Civics and decided that those cars are better at home.

5. Stick to a deadline but more importantly launch the service only when you are ready. The public expects results and in the case of a Metro line they do see the benefit after many years of traffic congestion due to construction activity. However in the case of BRT, it seems like many of the elements were not in place. Now the public opinion is turning against it with each passing day. If the system was not ready why launch it ?

Lastly never launch a public transport system in summer. If it is good, people will not notice it - they will be complaining about the weather. If it fails they will get angry and demand that it should be scrapped !

BRT - why we should support it

The Bus Rapid Transport started its trial run on the Chiraag Dilli -Moolchand stretch this Sunday and apparently it was huge mess. The BRT is a new system of dividing up roads so that the traffic is smooth. At the core the idea is to separate cars, buses and cyclists. Ever since this system has been launchedseveral parts of the city are witnessing a feverish division of the roads.

In this system, all the present buses will be replaced by low floor high capacity buses which will run in the middle of the road. The bus stops have also been made in the center, well protected and actually easier for the pedestrians and bus users if all of us obey rules.

If all of obey rules that's the key phrase here. Every one has to stick to their lane. Something a dilliwalah never learnt. Apparently on Sunday no one understood which was their lane and kept jumping over dividers and therefore leading to a traffic jam.

When such practices are working in other cities (Istanbul, Paris) why should it not work here? Once you have air conditioned buses connecting upto metro stations, less people will use personal transport and lead to less cars on the road. As it is most of our laws, motor taxes and road planning favours private vehicles. No one bothers about the bus commuters or pedestrians.

Most of the complaints on news channels and newspapers have been from motorists who say it will not work in Delhi since people do not obey rules. About ten years ago many people argued that the Metro was expensive and people in Delhi will not pay for it. But once it has connected up to several parts of the city and made travel easier, most people prefer to use it.

I feel once the BRT system is put in place and people get used to lane driving, this will really ease out problem of traffic in many parts of South Delhi. But then for that the dilliwalah has to stick to his lane. Will that miracle ever happen?

Today is the best day to try the metro

Why?

Well mostly because there are traffic restrictions with the Olympic Torch coming town. Almost reminds me of the times when the roads leading to my school used to be cordoned off because a foreign dignitary was coming to the cathedral. The Torch has become a living thing or a deity.

So you have to go to office. Your boss won't give you leave. And driving a car will be nightmare. Recently while returning late one night I found that all roads leading to the Chinese embassy were shut down. I had to take really long detour. My advice is - junk the car.

Now if your office is in CP its the easiest since all Metro lines lead there. But ITO or Nehru Place is going to be a problem. Get off of Indraprastha station and take a rickshaw. As soon as you get into the train you will realize that it is actually comfortable. The people around you look normal. When you get to your office there is no tension of parking your car. See it was a better ride.

On your return, take your time traveling. Look around the station. Enjoy the view. You may just get used to it.