Infrastructure - Question of Cities

Can India’s National Clean Air Programme ensure good air and environmental justice?

The ambitious National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), in its framework and practice, missed the idea of people’s participation or ‘atmospheric citizenship’. Despite people’s awareness and lived experience of air pollution, their democratic participation in addressing the issue remains minimal. The…

How most Indian cities moved from public to private transport modes

Public transport, often led by a robust network of cleaner fuel-driven buses, is increasingly seen as the silver bullet in fast-growing cities…

Delhi’s buses hold the key to better public transport and climate action

Between 1981 and 2021, motor vehicles in Delhi increased by a staggering 21 times, showing people’s shift away from public transport. This…

Cycling in Mumbai: Frail and failed transit plans for the masses

The climate-friendly mode of transport has been sidelined in the city’s mobility infrastructure which backs large automobile-centric projects. The absence of dedicated…

The framework for public transport in our cities: Thoughts and suggestions

An efficient public transport system must compete with the convenience and comfort of a personal vehicle. The choice of the public transport…

Kolkata: When the circle of mobility comes back to trams, buses, and ferries

Once served well by its dependable bus system, tram network, and ferries on Hooghly River, the city has seen a predictable shift…

Sorry, but flyovers will never ease Guwahati’s traffic woes

The scourge of metropolitan cities – congested roads, rising motorised vehicles, growth in private transport – is now in Assam’s largest city…

Walk the talk on public transport, invest with sound mathematics

Cities are all about space. Both private and public transport must be seen from this perspective. Private transport is uneconomical for cities, especially like Mumbai, because cars carry fewer people but occupy more comparative space than other modes like buses.…

Mumbai’s last-mile connectivity matters the most, needs an urgent upgrade

Although Mumbai is hailed for its clockwork-like public transport options such as the suburban trains and local buses that are relatively safe,…

‘Move people back into trains and buses, it’s affordable and it’s climate action’

As cities in India see a rise in private transport, the modal share of public transport has declined. This varies from city…