BRT in India

In India, the fundamental challenge to creating successful bus rapid transit (BRT) systems is the tendency by some cities to neglect to design BRT infrastructure based on operational needs. With the exception of Ahmedabad, where we are working closely with local authorities to develop a new BRT system, ITDP’s efforts in India are geared primarily at the national level -- disseminating the planning know-how that led to the development of strong systems like TransMilenio in Bogotá, Colombia.

Support from the Blue Moon Fund allowed ITDP to co-sponsor the national conference, “Appropriate Technologies for Public Transit”, led by the National Urban Development Ministry in March of 2006.  This conference, as well as specific ITDP recommendations, led to a new National Urban Transport Policy that strongly endorses BRT and makes BRT projects eligible for funding from the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM).  As a result, projects in cities like Pune, Indore, Jaipur, and Bhopal began, and many have applied and been approved for JNNURM funds for BRT projects. 

Unable to provide technical assistance to all of these cities, ITDP has partnered with the Urban Development Ministry to print and disseminate ITDP’s BRT Planning Guide as well as co-organize training workshops such as the one held in Jaipur in July of 2006.  We also hosted a national delegation of visitors from five cities (Chennai, Pune, Chandigarh, Jaipur, and Hyderabad) to Bogotá in January of 2007.

Questions about this project can be directed to:

Shreya Gadepalli