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New Delhi: For the Indian capital, where two
million car owners use 60 percent of road space but meet
only 20 percent of commuting demand, here comes a smart
decongestion plan - a mega carpool that harnesses the
latest in technology.
The Delhi government plans to launch the Pan City Mega
Carpool Scheme before the Commonwealth Games 2010.
The ride sharing scheme designed in collaboration with
the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (IIT-D), aims
to provide a simple way to encourage car owners to share
their vehicles with other car owners, thereby resulting
in fewer cars on city roads.
“A scheme has been developed to decongest the city roads
before the Commonwealth Games. The proposal has been
accepted by Lt. Governor of Delhi Tejendra Khanna and
some nodal agencies,” A.K. Srivastava, assistant
director, Delhi transport department, told IANS.
The Delhi government has proposed to enrol thousands of
car owners, subject to verification of their
credentials, into a single mega carpool and issue the
members secure, smart identity cards as well.
“The cars of all members will be fitted with a special
hardware device comprising of a card reader, global
positioning system (GPS) and General Packet Radio
Service (GPRS). The device can read the smart card based
photo identity card of a member, sense the location of
the car and transmit this data digitally to a central
agency,” he said.
The rider is only required to tap the smart ID card at
the beginning as well as the end of the ride and all the
information regarding the driver and the rider would be
sent to the central server.
“A member of the carpool scheme may give a ride to any
of the enrolled members who have a common or
along-the-way travel destination. By giving rides, the
member will earn mileage points which can be redeemed as
cash or family members can avail of them by using the
car pools,” said Srivastava.
The scheme plans to reduce traffic congestion and
vehicular pollution by 50 percent or more.
In addition, it supplements the public transport system
and provides significant diversification benefit against
any disruption in public transport due to a terrorist
attack or labour unrest.
The Delhi transport department had conducted an online
survey in May and June this year inviting motorists to
give their suggestions on the issue.
“Nearly 500 motorists have given their opinions and
suggestions regarding the scheme and RITES, a
consultancy organisation working in the field of
transport and infrastructure, has compiled the reports.
We are studying the details before they are
implemented,” said Srivastava.
According to the transport department, almost 50 to 60
percent of the road space is used by an estimated two
million car owners in Delhi, although they meet just 20
percent of the commuting demand.
The scheme also ensures safety of the passengers as a
central server will keep track of all shared rides,
including vehicle number and owner and the time a
particular rider boards the car.
“A web programme and call centre will also be made
available to help members find suitable travel matches
on a day-to-day basis. A central agency registers and
matches members’ travel plans and sets up various
members with one another through phone, SMS and internet
on a dynamic basis with the help of computer software,”
Srivastava said.
A Delhi and national capital region resident commuting
to work in his car usually drives about 60-100 km per
day or 2,000 km a month and can reasonably save at least
50 percent of his driving by the scheme.
“Private cars cause traffic congestion by inefficiently
using the limited road space - the cars are typically
carrying only one to two commuters against a capacity of
five or more. The present scheme, however, treats the
available spare capacity in cars as an opportunity to
provide a transport solution, whereby three to four
motorists, instead of travelling in separate cars,
accommodate themselves in one car, especially during
peak hours,” Srivastava said. (Courtesy: Mid Day)
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