What Ails Pune BRTS?

Just around six years back, I took my first (and very rare) BRTS ride (see http://siddhesh-k3g.blogspot.in/2006/12/my-first-brts-ride.html) in Pune, and was amazed at the possibilities. Swanky buses, dedicated lanes, smart ticketing.

Six years later though, the only thing BRTS seems to have achieved are eyes sores on the Satara and Shankarseth Road, dozens of deaths, and little else.

So what ails the Pune BRTS, and is there hope?

1) First and foremost, it is the inability to create a truly dedicated high speed corridor for the buses, coupled with the inability and unwillingness/laziness of the traffic police to enforce the dedicated lanes where they do exist. Over time, the khatara lall dabbas started using the same route putting the swanky Volvos in minority, crowding the lanes and leading to backed up traffic. While 90% of the public still respect the lanes (which I find extremely heartening and surprising), even the odd scooter or auto in the lane has a domino impact. And in any case, on small roads, the dedicated lane is just not possible.

2) The BRTS lanes are in the middle of the road, the bus stops are in the middle, and the layout of the lanes, the dividers, the signals, the turns - everything is so confusing at times, that even the most accomplished and alert drivers find it hard to drive on that stretch. For example, when you are trying to take a U turn on Satara road, you are NOT turning from the right most lane - you have to start from the middle, then cross the left BRTS lane (and you have to remember a high speed Volvo might be hurtling down at that time), then cross the right BRTS lane (again, you never know what might be coming at you), and then ease yourself NOT into the first lane, but again, the middle lane. Not only is this bad enough, but the way the lanes are marked out - sometimes with plastic/rubber dividers that have long been trampled, sometimes by cat eyes, sometimes by tiny bricks laid out over the concrete - it cn be a night mare at the best of times.

3) Without effective parking and connecting transport, the BRTS is not commuter-friendly. I hope the Pune Metro doesn't repeat the mistakes and provides serious and ample parking facilities at the stations - without which it will simply not be as attractive as it can be. I would love to take the BRTS, but how do I get to the station and where do I park my car before hopping onto the bus?

4) Finally, the dirty lane dividers - the trampled poles, red and brown with spit from hundreds of callous commuters, the irregularly laid out lanes, the ineffective cycle lanes, the broken footpaths - it's just such an eyesore it makes the city look so pitiable. Compare the sad state of the Satara Road with the beautiful avenues coming into Aundh from University Circle, and you will know what I mean. Add to that the terrible and hideous eye sores called bus stops, and the disaster is complete.

Will our city fathers and planners wake up to the sad state of affairs and fix the problem sooner than later? What the Pune BRTS needs is simplicity. Stop over-engineering. We are not yet ready for cycle lanes. We are not yet ready for dedicated corridors marked off by the stupid lane dividers. Clean up the roads, mark lanes by paint and enforce lane discipline, let people get in the habit of driving with discipline. Give good parking spaces for private vehicles. Deploy the buses on important arterial routes and main roads. Imagine hop on hop off airport-like minibuses with day or month passes taking you around FC-JM, East Street-MG and Laxmi Road.

It's not a difficult problem to solve, we just need someone with the vision to keep things simple.