Two hundred mini-buses may soon start plying on a number of narrow roads in the city's residential hubs where normal MTC buses cannot operate.
The proposal, originally announced in April 2010, seems to be finally taking shape with a feasibility study undertaken by Anna University being submitted to the State government recently. Though the mini-bus operation was supposed to begin within three months, the proposal saw repeated delays. The study was commissioned just a couple of months ago.
The study recommends nearly 100 routes along which such services can be introduced in a phased manner.
A senior Anna University professor, involved with the study, said that the route identification study essentially mapped the coverage of the existing MTC bus routes on top of a population density layer. Any area with a sufficiently high number of residents and without a bus stop within half a kilometre needs a feeder service, he said.
Once the gaps in the existing public transport network were identified, field surveys were undertaken in each locality to identify possible routes along which short-wheel base buses with a capacity of 36 passengers (18 sitting + 18 standees) can operate. “Many areas even within the city are completely cut off from any form of public transport option. Neighbourhoods in Velachery, Nanaganallur, Maduravoyal and Ambattur immediately require feeder mini-bus services,” the professor said.
Owing to the lack of such options, he said, two-wheeler usage has begun to skyrocket in the suburbs when compared to the city.
According to MTC's preliminary study done last year, Red Hills, Tiruvottiyur, Kelambakkam and Tambaram urgently require feeder mini-bus services. Of the 10 City Corporations which went to the polls recently, only Chennai does not permit operation of private mini-buses.
