Green public transport in Northeast hill cities

The growing traffic congestion is crippling hill cities in the Northeast, and rising vehicular pollution is also choking the residents. Electric buses can be a sustainable solution to the problem only if they are designed to suit the characteristics of the hilly roads in these cities. Buses rolled out in hilly cities in the region must be designed to navigate narrow, hilly roads and the easy manoeuvring of sharp bends along the slopes. Low ground clearance of buses designed for plain areas is another design constraint in the introduction of electric buses on hilly roads without suitable design modifications. Widening of the roads to accommodate buses designed for plain areas is problematic due to a dearth of space for relocation or reconstruction of residential buildings or commercial establishments. In plain areas of the region, like Guwahati City, road expansion is easier with the government acquiring land by paying compensation to landowners who have the option to restructure their buildings into multi-storey buildings for residential and commercial purposes on reduced space. Because of the soil condition and susceptibility to landslides, constructing high-rise, multi-storey buildings in most areas along the road in hilly cities is not a viable option. Lessons must be learned from problems encountered after the rollout of electric buses designed for cities in plain areas for hilly roads in Shimla and other hilly cities in Himachal Pradesh. Demand for private vehicles in hilly cities in the northeast region is rising due to population growth and increased tourists’ footfall. Due to the expansion of city area limits, office workers, traders, students, and parents are required to travel long distances in hilly cities. This has led to an increase in demand for private mobility solutions like small cars and bikes in these cities. The growth of vehicles with disproportionately limited road width has given rise to the problem of long hours of traffic congestion during the peak hours of office or school hours. Charging infrastructure and driving range are other operational challenges for the introduction of electric buses in hilly cities. The central government has selected eight capital cities in the Northeast under the PM e-Bus Sewa Scheme launched in the country last year. The introduction of 200 electric buses in Guwahati by the Assam government earlier this year is a significant step forward towards improving public transport while also addressing the problem of vehicular emissions in the city. The addition of another fleet of 100 buses under the PM e-Bus Sewa will augment environment-friendly public transport, which is a step in the right direction. This has been possible since the installation of charging infrastructure for these e-buses in the city. Fragile ecology of the hills demands expediting the decarbonisation of the transport sector in the hilly cities and towns before vehicular pollution assumes alarming pollution. These hill cities being major tourism destinations, smooth and convenient travel for commuters is critical to the sustainability of tourism projects and the commercial viability of business investments along the tourism value chain. As cities will be responsible for running the e-buses under the scheme, the operation of the buses being profitable is critical to sustainability. Utilisation of bus service in hilly cities by commuters will depend on smooth operation and reducing travel time. If bus journeys take more time due to difficulty manoeuvring sharp bends on steep slopes due to design constraints, people will prefer to go for their own mobility solutions or continue using four-wheeler taxi services. The problem, however, should not delay other measures for decarbonising the transport sector through the promotion of electric vehicles. Until design-related concerns are addressed to make e-buses suitable for hilly roads and terrains in the region, the installation of adequate charging infrastructure needs to be prioritised to address range anxieties about replacing fossil-fuel-powered vehicles with electric vehicles. Increasing the subsidy component of electric vehicles in hill states can be explored to make electric vehicles popular. Apart from the central government, the states too can contribute towards increasing the subsidy amount to boost electric vehicle use. Parking of vehicles along the roadside further reduces the effective carriageway of already narrow roads in hilly cities and towns. Hill states that addressing the problem by adopting smart parking solutions in these cities and towns has become an urgent necessity. City authorities taking private parking spaces in localities with space constraints can address the problem to some extent and facilitate owners of such parking spaces to augment household income. Finding workable solutions requires engaging consultations and the participation of vehicle owners and commuters as key stakeholders, apart from experts and policymakers. Often, solutions to problems related to urban transportation are articulated without the participation of vehicle owners and commuters in the process, due to which experts are unable to foresee the complexities encountered during application. Apart from issues of vehicle design, green urban transport in hilly cities in the Northeast must address all associated issues.