Road Transport

IntrCity rolls out buses with air purification amid rising pollution

IntrCity said it has begun rolling out a new fleet fitted with air-purification and real-time monitoring systems, aiming to reduce in-cabin pollution on long-distance routes across North India

Operators hail plan to allow over 15-yr-old buses to ply with fitness nod

The association of bus operators on Sunday welcomed the West Bengal government draft notification, which stated that over-15-year-old stage carriers registered in the Kolkata Metropolitan Area will be allowed to ply with bi-annual fitness certificates. The state government presented the draft notification before the Calcutta High Court. The court held that there is no scope for further adjudication in a petition filed by a private bus owners' association, as their grievances were mitigated in the draft notification presented before it by the government. Disposing of the petition on Friday, Justice Rai Chattopadhyay gave liberty to the West Bengal government to publish the draft notification as submitted before the court at the earliest point in time. The draft notification said, "Stage carriage buses registered in Kolkata Metropolitan Area (KMA) only shall be allowed to ply beyond 15 years of age from the day of initial registration." Welcoming the order, the Secretary of Joint ...

Phalodi accident case: SC seeks response from NHAI, Road Transport ministry

The Supreme Court on Monday sought responses from the National Highways Authority of India and the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways in a suo motu case in connection with an accident in Rajasthan's Phalodi area that claimed 15 lives. A bench of Justices J K Maheshwari and Vijay Bishnoi issued notice to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and the ministry, seeking their replies in two weeks on the cause of the accident. It also asked them to conduct a survey of the area and file a report on the number of dhabas on the highway passing through Phalodi. The bench also sought a specific report on the condition of the highway and the norms followed by the road contractor for road maintenance in Phalodi. The top court recently took suo motu cognisance of the November 2 road accident in Phalodi, in which 10 women and four children died when a tempo traveller rammed into a stationary trailer truck. The incident occurred near Matoda village on the Bharat Mala Highway when

Blue Energy Motors launches battery-swap e-truck, plans ₹3,500 cr plant

Blue Energy Motors unveils India's first heavy-duty electric truck with two-minute battery-swapping tech and signs MoU for a Rs 3,500-cr EV plant in Maharashtra

Delhi traffic diverted on outer ring road due to rising Yamuna water level

The Delhi Traffic Police on Wednesday announced traffic diversions in view of the rising water levels in Yamuna river at Vasudev Ghat, which has affected vehicular movement on the Outer Ring Road stretch from Majnu Ka Tila to Salimgarh bypass. According to police, traffic will be diverted at Wazirabad-Signature Bridge and Chandgi Ram Akhada-IP College red light through alternate routes as heavy congestion is expected on the Outer Ring Road and adjoining stretches. Vehicles will not be permitted on the affected stretches and will be diverted accordingly. Commuters have been advised to avoid the impacted routes and plan their journeys in advance. Police have also urged motorists to avoid roadside parking as it obstructs the traffic flow. "Emergency vehicles will be given free passage at all times," the advisory stated, adding that commuters should follow the instructions of traffic personnel deployed on the ground. Motorists were also requested to remain patient, adhere to traffic r

Flash-charging 135-seater bus to cut costs by 30%: Union minister Gadkari

Gadkari highlighted that the bus is one of the most ambitious projects aimed towards building a transport system of the international standard

AI key to India's infrastructure future: Nitin Gadkari at BS Infra Summit

Speaking at the BS Infrastructure Summit, Union minister Nitin Gadkari said the govt is building green highways using bio-bitumen, waste plastic, rubber and 8 million tonnes of municipal garbage

Uttar Pradesh cancels 8,322 transport permits in road safety crackdown

In a sweeping enforcement action, the Uttar Pradesh State Transport Department on Friday said it has cancelled over 8,000 transport permits and suspended over 700 for violations ranging from expired validity to breach of statutory conditions. The move, aimed at tightening compliance and improving road safety, also saw three permits linked to fatal crashes -- each involving four to five deaths -- revoked with a one-year ban on fresh issuance to the operators concerned, it said. According to an official statement, the decisions were taken at a meeting of the State Transport Authority (STA) held on August 7, where members reviewed permit matters, clean-fuel compliance in the National Capital Region (NCR), school vehicle safety, and the functioning of Accredited Driving Training Centres (ADTCs). "A total of 8,322 permits were cancelled to ensure strict compliance with age limits, expiry and other statutory conditions... It was decided to suspend 738 permits for 45 days," the statement .

Mumbai's RTO seizes around 78 bike taxis for illegal transport activities

The transport office has also taken action against 123 vehicles in Mumbai, Thane, Vasai, Vashi, and Panvel

Free power, subsidised rail transport fail to benefit the poor meaningfully

But the problems remain at the distribution end, where state-owned distribution companies or discoms dominate

Govt proposes green-blue number plates for hydrogen fuel vehicles

The transport ministry has proposed a new category of registration number plate for hydrogen fuel operated vehicles. According to a draft notification issued by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways on Friday, in case of a hydrogen fuel operated commercial vehicle, the top half of number plate will be green and bottom half blue, while the figures on plate will be in yellow. In case of private vehicles, the number plate's top half will be green and bottom half will be blue, while figures will be in white. In case of cabs on rent, the top half of number plate will be black and bottom half will be blue while figures on plate will be in yellow.

MSRTC's accumulated losses rise to ₹10,324 cr in FY24, reveals white paper

The state-owned transport corporation's accumulated losses surged to Rs 10,324 crore in FY 2023-24 from Rs 4,603 crore in 2018-19, as per the MSRTC's white paper

Maha govt forms task force to prepare integrated bus transport plan for MMR

The Maharashtra government has formed a 12-member task force to prepare an integrated bus transport plan for the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) with an aim to provide commuters with a seamless travel experience through a single-ticketing system. According to a government resolution (GR) issued by the Urban Development Department on Tuesday, the general manager of the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) will head the task force, while the chief of the transport and traffic department of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) will serve as its secretary. Municipal commissioners of Thane, Navi Mumbai, Kalyan-Dombivli, Vasai-Virar, Mira-Bhayandar, Bhiwandi-Nizampur, Ulhasnagar and Panvel will be part of the panel, along with additional municipal commissioners from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and the MMRDA. The task force was formed following directives issued during a meeting of the Growth Hub Regulatory Board chaired by Chief ...

Indian roads will match US standards in 2 years, says Nitin Gadkari

Gadkari stated that better road infrastructure has lowered logistics costs, thereby enhancing the competitiveness of Indian exports

One for the roads: Sustainable transport needs policy recalibration

This sub-sector accounts for 87-90 per cent of the emission from the transportation sector, and for about a third of urban air pollution

Rs 10 trn to upgrade 30K km of 2-lane roads to 4-lane highways: Gadkari

Union minister Nitin Gadkari on Thursday said that infrastructure development is key to making India a strong economic power, and the highways ministry has taken a decision to convert 25,000-30,000 km two-lane highways into four lanes at an investment of Rs 10 lakh crore. Addressing an event here, Gadkari further said that the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) will now encourage the Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT) model to raise money for highway projects from Indian investors. "To make India a strong economic power, infrastructure is key... We have taken a decision to convert 25,000-30,000 km two-lane highways in the country into four lanes for Rs 8-10 lakh crore," he said. The road transport and highways minister further said his dream is to complete road projects worth Rs 5-6 lakh crore every year. National Highways are developed under different modes of execution, including Build-Operate-Transfer(BOT or toll, BOT (Annuity), Engineering, Procurement and ...

Delhi's Barapulla Road shut 12-5 am till Apr 24; NCRTC urges Ring Road use

The Barapulla Road to Maharani Bagh Interchange stretch, along the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut Namo Bharat Corridor, will remain closed to traffic from 12 am to 5 am until April 24 due to ongoing construction work, authorities said on Wednesday. The National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) in a statement urged commuters to take alternative routes. Commuters travelling from ITO, NH-24, NH-9, Sarai Kale Khan, and DND towards Maharani Bagh, Sundial, or Siddharth Extension, or on their way to Lala Lajpat Rai Marg or AIIMS, are advised to use the Ring Road instead, it stated. Similarly, those coming from AIIMS or Lodhi Road and heading towards Sarai Kale Khan, Greater Noida, or DND can also take the Ring Road via Lala Lajpat Rai Marg to reach their destination, it added.

Traffic growth moderation may have implications for toll road entities

Toll collection growth is expected to slow down to 5-8 per cent in FY25 from 10 per cent in FY24

At just 14%, Delhi has the lowest recovery of traffic e-challans in India

The government is reportedly planning to suspend the driving licence of the individuals who haven't paid their challans within the three months of it being issued

Gadkari blames poor road designs, faulty DPRs for rising accidents in India

India recorded 1,80,000 deaths due to road accidents in 2023, said Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari, during a meeting with transport ministers from all states and UTs