Insofar as PVs in Delhi-NCR (National Capital Region) are concerned, prescriptive actions ranging from banning petrol/diesel vehicles of certain vintage to the latest one: phasing them out altogether are being considered as a panacea for both, air quality management as well as decarbonisation.
As per recent reports , there are high-level discussions underway to phase out petrol and diesel vehicles wherein the centre is considering restricting registration of all new vehicles in Delhi-NCR to only those that run on EV, CNG or in hybrid mode and a phasing out of Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) to fix Delhi’s air pollution problem.
Timelines to restrict registration of the latter – new cars and two-wheelers to cleaner fuels (EV/CNG/Flexi-Fuel/ blended fuel etc) could be placed between 2030 and 2035. While it is a no-brainer that commercial vehicles and buses must run on clean fuels, what is surprising is the approach towards personal vehicles (PV).
Insofar as PVs in Delhi-NCR (National Capital Region) are concerned, prescriptive actions ranging from banning petrol/diesel vehicles of certain vintage to the latest one: phasing them out altogether are being considered as a panacea for both, air quality management as well as decarbonisation.
Surprisingly, however, a critical prerequisite, namely, a good and convenient public transportation system, including ensuring quality first- and last-mile connectivity, does not get the priority it deserves. In effect, cities appear to be passive players by placing the onus of remedial measures on commuters.
Establishing a seamless and convenient public transportation system across NCR, encompassing not just NCT (National Capital Territory) of Delhi but also the adjoining NCR cities is key to ensuring a sustainable and long-term solution.
The `Functional Plan on Transport for National Capital Region 2032’ focuses primarily on rail and road transport, without sufficiently addressing first and last-mile connectivity. According to this plan, 2,21,575 vehicles (or 3,50,694 equivalent passenger car units) traverse NCR daily. Many of these passenger cars are stuck in traffic for hours owing to lack of viable alternatives.
It is time to keep public transport in the centre of urban transport planning. The holistic mobility plans must be developed around public transportation and non-motorized transport (NMT) e.g., walkways and cycling.
The operating term being `integrated’: rather than implementing public transportation in a piece-meal fashion around preordained mode(s). And in case of NCR, integrated transportation becomes greater than the sum total of state-specific plans. While there have been encouraging initiatives like Namo Bharat high-speed regional rail and Metros, an integrated first and last-mile connectivity remains elusive.
Long-term approach thus also focuses on first-mile and last-mile connectivity wherein each segment feeds into other seamlessly. Indeed, in several instances, a sound pedestrian system could take care of these first-mile and last-mile connectivity challenges as borne out by successful examples of the European cities. While EVs are an important element of decarbonizing the transport sector, it’s the widespread shift to efficient and convenient public transportation that will truly help us achieve our net-zero and cleaner air quality goals. Experiences show that such measures are more effective if accompanied by sustained awareness creation among potential users. But one of the key measures to encourage people to shift to sustainable transportation is to make cities `pedestrian-friendly’ by way of walkable sidewalks along with safe-to-cross roads. Unfortunately, with most energies and resources being allocated to improving infrastructure for motorized transport, the focus on pedestrians’ rights and safety remains another missing piece of the puzzle for sustainable mobility. For upcoming urban development, it would be useful to imagine the development around pedestrians (and not cars) because it changes the conceptual perspective dramatically. Perhaps, a national ranking on `ease of walking’ could be devised on the lines of `ease of doing business’ because ultimately both are closely linked.
Given the complexity of the problem, the Centre and States must work closely with local governments and citizens in a concerted fashion. The role of local governments (or Urban Local Bodies) in this is not that well recognised but the fact remains that actual implementation of any measure rests with them. And for that, they needed to be empowered, in terms of financial resources, decentralized decision-making, and their capacities.
To summarise, while undoubtedly EVs happens to be an important element of clean air and decarbonization action plans, these goals are more likely to be achieved effectively, and in time; when large-scale shift towards clean public transportation – including non-motorized transportation – becomes the overarching policy objective.
Else, we will continue to be in the vicious circle where more personal vehicles will require more roads and flyovers, aggravating congestion. Moreover, even from the point of view of efficient utilization of resources like energy and space, public transport remains a better proposition with lesser emissions to boot.