Author: Puneet Verma

As i am planning my research for Human Center Design project ‘Pollution Control’, i ran a survey on Linkedin, Facebook, Twitter and Wattsapp. This survey was basically to understand why Delhi people love traveling by their personal cars instead of public transport like metro. Here are the responses we have received so far –

1. Sense of elitism
2. No education and awareness on sensible traffic behavior & public civic sense
3. Public transport is a mafia domain! Citizens or the public have very little to say and choose, how they would like to commute
4. Mass Migration of People from other cities to capital of India. To get paid well, study and explore enough job opportunities people are attracted towards Delhi. This increases congestion in public transport and hence force people to buy their personal car. This migration is benefiting migrants in terms of better wages and better lifestyle but this mass migration is somewhere inversely impacting the Capital.
5. Reluctance to change
6. Women generally relocate after marriage to Delhi
7. Air pollution and heat
8. Timing Flexibility, Privacy to do, eat, listen whatever you want to do, drive at own pace sheer driving pleasure
9. Not applicable. We have a strict policy of using public transport, even though we own multiple cars
10. Convenience, single medium of commute (no need to change across multiple types or lines)
11. Not every transport be available at doorsteps
12. I doubt! In public transport you are bound to face problem s/ discomfort/etc
13. Hardly face problem in public transport. It’s the same comfort without the added stress of driving/sitting through traffic. There might be minor glitches but one doesn’t notice after a while. Plus using public transport, including car pools carry lot less guilt. But to each one his own. The answers will be relative, based on the place you stay
14. Public transports are not been adopted by the car owners just because they don’t like to stand in a crowded bus in the peak hour with extra people’s more than its real capacity
15. unlike other country our public transport is over loaded. people crush you during peak hours
    if in Singapore u can easily take a seat in AC bus and as there is less traffic and fix bus route and limited stoppage u reach almost the same time. but in India if it takes 30 min by car it takes 1.30 hours by bus morning and evening metro gets killer crowed. Now i see govt making many roads broad and removing clogging. i am sure due to excitement people will buy more cars and clogg up again
16. May b it’s govt effort in some ways to restrict the sale of vehicle in Delhi, and some better facility for public transport, like metro which have reduced so much of congestion on roads. Imagine if metro was not there
17. There is no simple answer to this. Multiple facts will converge towards a more comfortable and environmentally positive future. It’s a fact that we all travel for work, and want to travel comfortably. Since we spend 9-10 hours minimum in office, it’s hard to embrace the discomfort of spending 2 hours extra on road. This is also complicated by the fact that residences and economic opportunities are not homogenous in distribution, both intracity as well as intercity. Therefore causing compulsory commutes. I think as office operating costs rise, white caller jobs become more enabled for remote operations, companies encourage work from home, and smart cities start shaping up things should improve.

What’s frustrating while commuting by personal car?

1. Stress due to delays:  There is additional stress because of delays to work that are caused by traffic jam in morning.
2. High Fuel Consumption & Pollution: To stop and start in traffic jams burns fuel at a higher rate than the smooth rate of travel on the open highway.
3. Emergency vehicle is unable to respond in an appropriate amount of time because of traffic congestion
4. Road Rage Events: Road rage is a senseless reaction to traffic that is common in congested traffic areas. If someone is not driving as fast as the person behind him thinks he should, or someone cuts in front of someone else it can lead to an incident that is dangerous to the offender and those around him on the road.  It is basically a temper tantrum by frustrated drivers in traffic. Eg- Road Rage by School Cab Drivers and Bus Drivers