City that runs on two wheels

Due to the appalling state of public transport in the city, 13,12,213 Puneites prefer travelling on bikes, scooters

Due to the appalling state of public transport in the city, 13,12,213 Puneites prefer travelling on bikes, scooters

With the growth in the city's population, the number of two-wheelers in Pune is also increasing at an astounding rate. This is evident from the data available at the Regional Transport Office.

According to RTO records, 97,542 new two-wheelers have been introduced on the roads of Pune. Lakshman Darade, deputy regional transport officer, said, "This year 1,23,943 vehicles have been introduced on city roads, thus taking the total number of motor vehicles plying onu00a0 city roads to 17,62,730."u00a0 While Prashant Inamdar, president of Pedestrians Association, said, "Out of 1,23,943 newly added vehicles, 97,542 are two-wheelers."

Jugal Rathi, president of PMP Pravasi Sangh, said, "It is not that people are going for two-wheelers by choice. Actually, they don't have any other option as the frequency of Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Ltd (PMPML) buses is low."

He added that on some routes, commuters have to wait for as long as an hour to board a bus. "

However, denying any lacunae in the services rendered by the public transport system, D A Pardeshi, PRO PMPL, said, "The increase in the number of two-wheelers is due to the attraction bikes hold for youngsters."

While Baba Shinde, an RTA member, said, "According to CIRTC statistics, there should be at least 50 buses for a population of one lakh. But in Pune, we have only 1,250 buses in place of the required 2,000 buses."

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