(a) whether the Government has evolved any system or action-plan to tackle the continuously increasing traffic in major and small cities of the country including Madhya Pradesh;
(b) if so, the details thereof; and
(c) the further efforts made by the Government to tackle the increasing traffic in major cities during peak hours?
THE MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF HOUSING AND URBAN AFFAIRS
(SHRI HARDEEP SINGH PURI)
(a) to (c): Urban Transport, which is an integral part of urban development, is a State subject. As such, any system or action-plan to tackle the continuously increasing traffic and execution of urban transport systems are taken up by the State Governments/Union Territories/Urban Local Bodies. The Ministry, however, has taken several steps to facilitate cities, including cities of Madhya Pradesh, to improve public transportation system through the following initiatives:
(i) A Metro Rail Policy, 2017 was issued in August 2017, which focuses on systematic planning and implementation of metro rail system in more comprehensive and sustainable manner. The policy is a guide to State Governments desirous of availing Central Financial Assistance for preparing comprehensive proposals for metro rail projects;
(ii) Financial assistance for metro rail projects is being provided in the form of equity and subordinate debt (for part of taxes), subject to an overall ceiling of 20% of the cost of the projects, excluding private investment, cost of land, rehabilitation and resettlement. So far, 657 Kms of Metro Rail is operational and 873KmsMetro Rails/Rapid Rail Transit System (RRTS) are under construction in various cities;
(iii) Under Bus Funding Scheme, 20,300 Intelligent Transport System (ITS) enabled buses have been procured by 157 Cities including Bhopal (225 buses), Indore (175 buses), Jabalpur (119 buses) and Ujjain (90 buses);
(iv) A National Transit Oriented Development (TOD) policy was issued on 01.05.2017. This policy is a guiding document for all States / Union Territories UTs to promote planned and sustainable urban centers with high density, mixed land-use within an influence zone of 500-800 meters of mass transit stations;
(v) Under the Smart City Mission, 73 cities are implementing Integrated Command and Control Centres (ICCC), which include solutions like Integrated Traffic Management System, Adaptive Traffic Signalling System, etc., to tackle the increasing traffic in the cities. 7 Smart Cities of Madhya Pradesh namely Bhopal, Indore, Jabalpur, Gwalior, Ujjain, Sagar, and Satna are implementing Intelligent Traffic Management System (ITMS);
(vi) Non-Motorised Transport (NMT) projects costing Rs.1435.81 crore, including project costing Rs.267.00 crore for Madhya Pradesh, have been approved under State Annual Action Plans (SAAP) of Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT); and
(vii) Under the “Urban Transport Planning & Capacity Building Scheme”, Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs provides central financial assistance up to 80% for taking up Traffic and Transportation Studies, feasibility studies, Comprehensive Mobility Plan (CMP), preparation of Detailed Project Report (DPR) for Mass Rapid Transport System (MRTS)/ Light Rail Transit (LRTS) which are originated by the State Governments/Union Territories/Urban Local Bodies (limited to 50% in case of MRTS). Funds have been released for preparation of DPR of Bhopal & Indore Metro Rail Projects (Rs.3.03 crore) and Traffic Management Control Centre (TMCC) (Rs.53.41 Lakhs) at the said cities.
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