DTC's destination buses running in loss due to less passengers

Destination buses run by the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) as per the order of the National Green Tribunal are carrying "much less" passengers than their capacity causing to losses to the state transporter.
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) in April had, directed the Delhi government to introduce destination buses in a bid to help improve the air quality in the national capital.
The DTC started running 20 point-to-point buses on as many routes starting from residential localities in the suburbs and office areas in central, south and northwest Delhi from May 1.
Later, 20 more routes and buses were added to the list, taking the total number of destination buses to 40.

In the two-month period, the operation has proved non-beneficial as the buses are running empty and passengers have demanded more stops for them, a senior DTC officer said.
"The 40 buses deployed for point-to-point travel have carried around 16,000 passengers in the last two months. Whereas, the same number of buses on an average carry about 80,000 passengers per day," said the official.
Also, while the normal buses on average earn Rs 25-30 per kilometer, the destination buses on an average earn "around Rs 7-7.50" per kilometer, he said.
Sources said that the DTC is planning to approach the NGT with a request to allow increasing the number of stops for the destination buses to make them more useful for the passengers and avoid losses.