King of the road: A non-AC, low-floor Delhi Transport Corporation bus. Picture by Prem Singh

One group, scruffy and old, lets out bone-jarring coughs as they drag their rickety bodies along Delhi’s streets. The other group is sleek and stylish, reflecting in their expensive look the country’s new-found economic confidence.

Such a divide has for years been starkly visible on Indian roads. Now it's being mirrored in the gulf between Delhi’s old and new commuter buses.

Every now and then, from between the groaning and grunting old Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) buses, there emerges a cherry-red or parrot-green low-floor bus: swanky and comfortable.

Some 425 new Tata Motors buses — 25 of them air conditioned — have already hit the streets since November 2007. Another 225 are on their way and by the time the 2010 Commonwealth Games arrive, the DTC promises an additional 1,000 AC and 1,500 non-AC low-floor buses.

With each green, non-AC bus costing Rs 55 lakh and a red, AC bus a little more, the government has to spend well over Rs 1,300 crore for the entire fleet. But the returns are good, too: a low-floor AC bus earns Rs 8,000 a day on an average while an old bus makes at best Rs 3,500.

For Delhiites who spend their mornings and evenings running after buses — or haggling with auto drivers if they want to avoid a crammed ride — these new wonders from the DTC are nothing short of a lifesaver.

“In Delhi, no auto will let you in if you even mention the word ‘meter’. So early in the morning, when you are hurrying to work, you have to haggle with them. This is why I always chose to take buses. It’s a one-and-a-half-hour ride and by the time I reached office, I would look as if I had been to a street brawl. But for the last few months, I have been travelling on the new buses and I have been pleasantly surprised,” said Rajneesh Sharma, a teacher.

With the fares ranging from Rs 10 to Rs 20 — compared with Rs 3-10 for the older DTC buses — the new buses have become a hit with everyone from students to professionals to housewives. There’s the curiosity factor as well.

Student Rajashree Thakur, who bought a Rs 15 ticket from Connaught Place to Saket on Route No. 522 on a weekday, said: “I am extremely happy with the new buses. My pocket money doesn’t allow me to splurge on autos and for the last few years I had been travelling on the dirty DTC buses. It was horrifying. I don’t mind paying a little extra to get a comfortable ride on the new buses.”

The low-floor buses are especially comfortable for the old and the disabled. One other advantage is that they are far less crowded. This and the passenger profile means women can feel safe.

Sundar Sharma, an office assistant who travels every day from his home in Ghaziabad to Connaught Place, recalled how he took what he thought would be a “risky” journey only to have his fears proved wrong.

“I was travelling to the railway station since I had to leave for Mumbai and was carrying a lot of luggage. I was told how comfortable these buses were, so I took a chance. There was no jostling at all and no one eyed me with disdain. Had I tried that in one of the older buses, I would have been asked to get off. Then I would be arguing with auto drivers,” Sharma laughed.

Traffic hope

To DTC chairman and managing director Ramesh Negi, these new buses are not just about allowing the middle-class a comfortable journey and relief from having to haggle with auto drivers. His ambition is to eventually persuade the upwardly mobile to get off their cars and travel to a client meeting on a bus, helping solve Delhi's traffic problem.

“Our main aim is to strengthen the public transport system. We plan to have at least 11,000 more buses in the city — 6,000 from the DTC and 5,000 from the private players (who now run the notorious Blueline buses),” Negi said.

“These new buses and the expanding metro will mean commuters can hop from one to the other, letting go of their AC cars and taking rides on AC buses.”

Delhi already has more cars than the other three metros, Mumbai, Chennai and Calcutta, combined. Over 1.4 million of the capital’s 14 million people own cars and 3 million own two-wheelers. Between 2005 and 2007, about two lakh cars were added to the city's traffic while only 5,000 buses joined the fleet.

Chandan Rawat, who works in an advertising firm, has already been persuaded to put off buying a car.

“I was all set to apply for a car loan. I couldn't handle the daily battle of commuting — I had to meet clients and when I reached the venue, I would be the shabbiest person around. But after travelling in the new buses, I have postponed buying a car for now,” Rawat said.

Banker Sudesh Sharma, who bought a Swift six months ago, has decided that catching a bus is, after all, better than negotiating Delhi’s traffic.

“I have stopped using my car since the past two weeks. These new buses are very comfortable and also save me a lot of money. Besides, I am spared the trouble of driving on Delhi's roads.”

Negi said this was becoming a trend in many parts of the world. “We’ll see fewer cars in the future when thousands of low-floor buses, both AC and non-AC, hit the roads along with redeveloped depots that will facilitate multi-storey parking,” he said.

To encourage commuters to park their cars and take a low-floor bus, the Bus Rapid Transit authorities are planning parking lots along the BRT corridor, which has dedicated lanes for low-floor buses, other buses, cars and two-wheelers.

The first parking lot, which will accommodate up to 300 cars, will be built by covering three drains at a cost of Rs 6.5 crore.

Since summer peaked this year, though, there has been one complaint about the new non-AC buses.

“The broken windowpanes of the old buses let the breeze in during the sweltering Delhi summers. The new buses, while providing a nice view from their large glass windows, are suffocating. I think the engine being in the rear end might be the reason. When the weather is cool, these buses are a joy to ride; but as soon as it turns hot, it becomes a different story” said Suranjan Sandhu, an engineer.

“We have received a lot of complaints regarding this,” Negi admitted. “We tried to help by opening the ventilation lids but it didn’t help. We have informed the manufacturers and the new set might have some modifications — maybe they’ll have fans.”

Ventilation apart, even DTC staff are singing the praises of their new workplace.

“The best thing is that we don’t have to handle huge crowds. We don’t have to handle freeloaders. It’s a welcome change and even after a hard day’s work, the air-conditioning ensures that I enjoy my work,” said Munshi Sharma, a conductor.