[guyfrmblr]

I used public transport till my college days. My college was around 10 km from my home and everything was perfectly fine. Now my office is situated 40 km from my home. It takes 3 hours one way if I use BMTC bus whereas it takes 50 minutes in my car. In fact my car route is 5 km longer than the bus route but I can save 2 hours per trip. If they introduce buses in my car route, I ll definitely use them. But for the present scenario, it makes sense for me to use car instead of bus so that I can save 4.5 hours in a day.

[noopster]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

Tell me, what mode of transport did you use to achieve this singular feat of 15 minutes between Dadar and Andheri?

I was at Andheri station just after noon. caught the 12.06 Churchgate fast that reached Dadar around 12:22 (may be a couple of minutes off). Even accounting for 4-5 minutes to take the bridge out, I was at my destination a little after half past twelve.
To put things in perspective, if I had started driving outside Andheri station at exactly noon, by 12:30 I doubt I would even have reached the Andheri section of the WE highway.

[ron_9191]

I live very close to TC Palya main road at Ramamurthy Nagar, Bangalore and my office is located at Manyata Embassy Business Park. To start with, I took the Volvo buses a couple of times and the service they offer according to Indian standards elsewhere is 5 stars, no doubt. I really like going in them. But to me the problem that has plagued the BMTC for a while is the last mile connectivity.

For example if I have to take a bus from TC Palya main road to Ramamurthy Nagar overpass, I have to walk almost 3.5 KM. And what do I get after I do that ? A normal BMTC AL or a TATA that is over crowded with people hanging out even from the exhaust pipe. And there are hardly 4 or 5 buses for an area where you have more than, well atleast 30000 people. Autos as usual charge exorbitantly and makes your dream of taking the public transport for good an expensive nightmare. By saying this, I dont mean to demand a bus stop right at my door step but 3.5 KM daily is quite far if you are in a hurry once in a while.

I am one of those who loves to drive, but definitely not one of those who would sit in a traffic jam for hours wasting my time, energy, fuel and money. It just drains you out totally.

Try this, if your office is in MG Road and you live somewhere in the vicinity of a metro station, for a change try parking your car/motorcycle at the station and hop on it to work, see how relaxed you would be when you are at your workplace. I definitely think taking the public transport if you can if you have to commute a kilometre for it is worth the effort. However, never ever try this when it rains in Bangalore.

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by ron_9191

I ding to Indian standards elsewhere is 5 stars, no doubt. I really like going in them. But to me the problem that has plagued the BMTC for a while is the last mile connectivity.

ur office is in MG Road and you live somewhere in the vicinity of a metro station, for a change try parking your car/motorcycle at the station and hop on it to work, see how relaxed you would be when you are at your workplace. .

If last mile connectivity at least involved decent walkways and covered, well lit, safe pedestrian spaces I would walk 2 kms happily.
If our dear baboons in power would at least introduce high quality safe 'park and ride' facilities I would be pleased to use those too.

[F150]

No connectivity to all places. No air conditioning. I was in MILAN for 2 months. I have always used the metro, amazing frequency and connectivity.

When India gets to that level, I will use public transport.

[noopster]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

If last mile connectivity at least involved decent walkways and covered, well lit, safe pedestrian spaces I would walk 2 kms happily.

Absolutely. Bangalore and Mumbai love to compare themselves to Singapore and Shanghai, don't they? Well maybe we should ape their MRT systems. Singapore at least makes the whole concept of taking public transport a joy. We are so far behind it's not funny.

[Mpower]

Originally Posted by F150

No connectivity to all places. No air conditioning. I was in MILAN for 2 months. I have always used the metro, amazing frequency and connectivity.

When India gets to that level, I will use public transport.

I heard Delhi metro is as good as anything in the west. Not sure about last mile connectivity though

[wantarangerover]

It is very simple, really: If the public transport is fast, convenient, comfortable and cheap, people would use it.

In densely populated areas, is makes sense to have public transport in a big way, as it is feasible to operate at low rates. ie, public transport is feasible in metros and densely populated corridors. I was in Hiroshima for sometime, and the public transport there is awesome, in fact it is true for the whole country. The whole of Japan is very densely populated, and the Shinkansens (300kph bullet trains) run like local trains: ie, every 30 seconds or so, there is a bullet train that will take you to another city. It is estimated that the Shinkansens have generated a lot of money fot he economy since it enables businessmen to travel across cities quickly.

I have heard people in the US complain of lack of public transport and the need for a car being essential, unless you happen to be in a metro. This is partly because the cities are far across, and public transport is not feasible, and partly because the road connectivity is superb.

Coming to India, public transport should be hugely popular in cities like mumbai, delhi and b'lore. I suppose it is already so in Mumbai and delhi. B'lore is a bit lagging here I guess, but it should be up and running soon, as it is a city that would suffocate itself if better public transport is not implemented. I know of folks who don't bother attending functions or going out on weekends because of the traffic. It is that bad. In Gujarat, Ahmedabad is a good example of having decent public transport in the form of the bus rapid transport system. But I live in Baroda, where the public transport is almost non existent. And in Kerala, where I grew up, public transport is decent even in far flung places, as in there is some connectivity, maybe not that great, but better than nothing: again it is because the population density is pretty high. At the end of the day, it is all about feasibility, and how effective the govt. is in implementing such projects in a visionary manner. The latter is what we miss in India as we all know.

[amitoj]

Originally Posted by Mpower

I heard Delhi metro is as good as anything in the west. Not sure about last mile connectivity though

Delhi Metro is in fact very good. However, getting into a metro station is not that good, specially during rush hour. I have seen queues in Gurgaon metro that come onto the road because everyone has to go through a metal detector which obviously causes bottleneck.

This was more than a year back. I dont know if things have changed now.

[F150]

Originally Posted by Mpower

I heard Delhi metro is as good as anything in the west. Not sure about last mile connectivity though

Originally Posted by amitoj

Delhi Metro is in fact very good. However, getting into a metro station is not that good, specially during rush hour. I have seen queues in Gurgaon metro that come onto the road because everyone has to go through a metal detector which obviously causes bottleneck.

This was more than a year back. I dont know if things have changed now.

Delhi guys are lucky.Delhi metro is good,they need to ensure last mile connectivity.

But I am in PUNE.

[Jeep]

My office is 28 kms away if i take outer ring road or 22 kms if i go through the city. Either way, it takes about 1.5 hrs.

Company provided transport rocks - Volvo! Just for Rs 2000 a month.

I did not have to think twice!

[pahwa]

I live a couple of KMs away from the IT district of Bangalore. Still have zero connectivity to my workplace or malls/market. The only option is to take a overloaded shared auto to reach the nearest Volvo bus stop.

We are perhaps two decades away from having a reliable public transport network for daily use. I feel bad about driving alone in a car - wasting fuel and polluting the environment but that is the only option available.

A public transport system is successful only when people do not have to struggle to use it.

Cheers
Pahwa

[InControl]

Well, I should now stop sniggering at all the posts.

The company which i work for was in Sanjaynagar and i was earlier put up at RT nagar.A total distance of 5 kms.It was easier to pay 40 rs to Auto rather than change 3 buses(RT Nagar to Mekhri Circle,Mekhri to Sadashivnagar PS and from there to New BEL Road) and save 15 rs by losing 45 minutes.I did not had a bike then.

Guess what i did!

I moved in to MSR Nagar, New BEL road and now walk to Office (500 Metres) since the last 3 years.I have a bike and a car now which is mostly used for weekend trips/casual visits to friends/malls/eat outs etc.And, Yes, I take the public transport(Volvo) when I am going to Airports and Autoricksaw when off to the railway station to catch a train.My brother who stays with me leaves at 7.30 AM to reach his office on Bannerghatta road by bike(16 kms).

[Divya Sharan]

Originally Posted by InControl

Well, I should now stop sniggering at all the posts.

The company which i work for was in Sanjaynagar and i was earlier put up at RT nagar.A total distance of 5 kms.It was easier to pay 40 rs to Auto rather than change 3 buses(RT Nagar to Mekhri Circle,Mekhri to Sadashivnagar PS and from there to New BEL Road) and save 15 rs by losing 45 minutes.I did not had a bike then.

Guess what i did!

I moved in to MSR Nagar, New BEL road and now walk to Office (500 Metres) since the last 3 years.I have a bike and a car now which is mostly used for weekend trips/casual visits to friends/malls/eat outs etc.And, Yes, I take the public transport(Volvo) when I am going to Airports and Autoricksaw when off to the railway station to catch a train.My brother who stays with me leaves at 7.30 AM to reach his office on Bannerghatta road by bike(16 kms).

That's nice but its not feasible for all, thought nothing could be better than living at walking distance from office. Means, more time spent at home.

BTW, do you by any chance work at SLK Software?

[Zinda]

I am presently working in Chennai. Usually I use the office cab with exceptions when I wake up when cab comes to pick me I use my car/bike as per rain God's mood.
I had tried to use the city transport buses, but thanks to the huge crowd, the rough behaviour by Conductor and the PATHETIC buses into operation on 200-feet road (Volvos are there but limited number), I refrained myself!