A fine of Rs 2,000 will be levied on people parking and stopping vehicles and obstructing plying of buses in their dedicated lanes.
A fine of Rs 2,000 will be levied on people parking and stopping vehicles and obstructing plying of buses in their dedicated lanes. The AAP government announced on Tuesday that a rule in this regard will be brought into effect within a week.
The Kejriwal government’s decision comes just four days after the odd-even car rationing scheme ended its 15-day trial phase.
“We have decided to impose a fine of Rs 2,000 on those who park their cars in dedicated bus lanes or encroach upon it or cause obstructions to the plying of buses. We will not have any problem if cars and other vehicles are plying in the bus lanes, but if someone obstructs operation of buses in a dedicated bus lane, he or she will be challaned,” Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia said.
The AAP government is aiming to promote public transport and cutting travel time of bus passengers. “If buses get sufficient space, people will reach their destination on time. People who travel by private vehicles may also then think about travelling in buses,” Mr Sisodia said.
A senior official said the AAP government will impose the fine on violators under the Motor Vehicles Act by issuing an order similar to the one issued during the 2010 Commonwealth Games.
City PWD minister Satyendar Jain said that the new rule will come into effect within a week and the Kejriwal government will take strict action against those who park their vehicles in the bus lanes. “As per new rule, you can drive your car or bike in bus lane, but you cannot stop on dedicated bus lane. Parking or obstruction in bus lanes will not be allowed. The new rule will be enforced within one week. The government will not tolerate any obstruction in the bus lanes. If towing vans pick up any vehicle from the bus lane, violators will have to pay Rs 500-700 for this separately,” Mr Jain warned, adding that the problem of traffic was quite big in Delhi and it was the AAP government’s responsibility to solve it.
So far, the AAP government has marked bus lanes on 400 kilometres of roads across the national capital. Mr Sisodia said if the government marks bus lanes on 600-700 km of main roads of the capital, buses will ply at a high speed. “We want buses to ply at a high speed and we also want car users to travel in buses as there is sufficient space for buses on roads,” he added.
