I recently explored the public transportation in Pune after my car met with an unfortunate accident. The occurrence of the accident was not surprising considering we have more cars than square meters of roads in the city. With my car gone away for a good 20 days, I was faced with no option but to consider the public transport options available for my daily commute.
Rickshaws and cabs were the obvious first choice, but the costs, unashamedly touching INR 500 for a ride across the city, were a deterrent for me. I then turned towards the PMT buses and metro options available and was pleasantly surprised at the experience, with AC buses now plying on several routes in the twin cities.
I live close to the starting point of the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, a 10-minute walk from Mukai Chowk, in Pimpri-Chinchwad. On different occasions, I traveled –
1. From Mukai Chowk to MG Road (Camp) for just INR 40
INR 10 for a non-AC bus no. 35 from Mukai Chowk to Dange Chowk
INR 30 for an AC bus no. 204 from Dange Chowk to MG Road
2. From Mukai Chowk to Nal stop for just INR 45.50
INR 10 for a non- AC bus no. 35 from Mukai Chowk to Dange Chowk
INR 25 for an AC bus no. 204 or 36 from Dange Chowk to PMC
INR 10.50 via WhatsApp booking for a Metro from PMC to Nal Stop
3. From Mukai Chowk to Kalyani Nagar for just INR 52.50
INR 10 for a non- AC bus no. 35 from Mukai Chowk to Dange Chowk
INR 25 for an AC bus no. 204 or 36 from Dange Chowk to PMC
INR 17.50 via WhatsApp booking for a Metro from Civil Court to Kalyani Nagar
4. From Kalyani Nagar to Nal Stop for just INR 17.50
INR 17.50 via WhatsApp booking for a Metro from Kalyani Nagar to Nal Stop
To me, this proved that public transport is more accessible than ever in our city and while there is a lot of feedback that I would like implemented, I also feel that will only happen when more people start using the infrastructure and raising our voices against the lack of it.
I got my car back 2 weeks ago, however I still chose to use public transport for a recent expedition to the city (FC Road) because my car’s temporary absence opened my eyes to the following benefits of using public transport options like buses and the metro –
More Savings - I saved approximately INR 240 on a trip to MG Road (Camp), INR 180 on a trip to Nal Stop and INR 255 on a trip to Kalyani Nagar. These savings are compared to the fuel costs that I would bear if I used my own car. The savings would be higher if I would compare with booking a cab. Apart from this, I also saved my car from the long-term costs of wear and tear.
More Time – While the journeys may have taken longer than they would if I traveled by my own car, I still gained productive time as I could now finish off some work like reading / writing / phone calls or even just catch up on some recreation like cricket matches / movies / web series.
Better Health – Using public transport means walking more between bus stops, metro stations to your locations. This made it easier for me to achieve my daily 10000 steps without rushing out for a walk at the end of an already tiresome day.
Reduced Traffic – Every less car on the roads contributes to reduced traffic. Of course, this is like a drop in an ocean, but every drop is what makes an ocean.
Better Environment – However small it may be, the satisfaction of having avoided the emissions of one car being released for a single day was immense. The more days I do this the more satisfaction it gives me.
Due to this, I have now changed my daily commute mode to public transport. I won’t deny that there are challenges to this change in lifestyle. I’ve listed a few below –
Lack of footpaths – With all the talk of Pune becoming a Smart City, one visible change was the quality of footpaths, however this is limited to a few areas. There are still very few neighbourhoods with proper end to end footpaths. The lack of proper footpaths put pedestrians at a higher risk to injury and wear and tear of footwear. Worse, some roads don't have footpaths and half the roads are dug up.
Low Frequency – Due to the unpredictable scheduling of buses in Pune and low frequency of metros, it may become challenging to be precise in your planning to reach a destination. This is much easier to do when travelling by your own vehicle with the accuracy of Google Maps. I’ve tried the “Moovit” app but it is not accurate in the prediction of bus timings.
Crowding – During peak hours the buses can be very crowded, and you’d have to stand uncomfortably close to other people, which is especially unpleasant in the summer. Also, on such occasions when the buses are crowded, conductors and drivers halt the bus mid-route in order to complete ticket collection, which can be annoying if you’re running on a carefully calculated schedule.
Anti-pedestrian BRTS stops – Several BRTS stops don’t have proper facilities for pedestrian crossing, leading to passengers having to dangerously navigate traffic while crossing from the middle of the roads.
Poor BRTS execution – BRTS lanes are dug up in Ravet and have been only partially functional for about a month now. There are hardly any end-to-end BRTS routes in Pune due to poor execution and narrow roads in some portions. Poor enforcement of rules as several other vehicles also proudly enter the BRTS lanes.
No direct transport – I must change to a different medium of transport at least twice to reach Kalyani Nagar or Nal Stop, despite both locations being accessible via Metro. The absence of a direct bus from Mukai Chowk, an important nodal bus stop, to PCMC metro station is quite surprising. The frequency of AC buses from Mukai Chowk into the city is also low and the buses that ply are often filled till the brim, especially at peak hours.
While the administration should be held accountable to overcome the above challenges, increased adoption of public transport and highlighting the woes in the right channels are responsible actions that we can take as residents and citizens. We can choose to either crib about the pains of these challenges and stay in the comfort zone of our own vehicles or take steps towards pushing for the tax collected from us to be put to good use in making our cities livable.
Join me in this quest to make every small impact count and do let me know about your explorations of public transport in your city!