DTC's better track record

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI, AUG. 5. The much-maligned Delhi Transport Corporation has, over the past few years, quietly performed better, at times its performance level surpassing cities of developed countries.

Though it was still far behind in providing quality service, compared to the West, the DTC now has the distinction of being much ahead in terms of recovery (over investment) from commuters.

Insiders in DTC said the recovery ratio -- the percentage of money collected through the ticketing system from the passengers over its expenditures -- in the last fiscal year of 2000-2001 was as high as 83.39 per cent. When compared, the city bus services of New York has a recovery ratio of 47 per cent, Sydney 50 per cent, while it is 38 per cent for Montreal, 36 per cent for Paris and a mere 32 per cent for Los Angles. Even after being cross- subsidised by its electricity wing, BEST of Mumbai has a recovery ratio of only 65 per cent.

This comparative figures of recovery ratio -- which in real terms means the self-finance generating capacity of corporations -- officials said, implies that DTC is far less subsidised than these city bus service companies. ``We seek far less money from the Government for our sustenance when we compare it with those in New York, Sydney, Paris and Los Angles,'' officials claimed.

The major jump in the recovery ratio, officials said, has been achieved in the last few years. While it was 60 per cent in 1990 and could increase to 61 per cent in 1997, the next year it was recorded at 68 per cent and in 1999 it was 72.3 per cent. Despite the fact it was forced to shed a large fleet of its old buses due to the Supreme Court order, the recovery ratio jumped by 11 points to 83.39 per cent in 2000. ``We hope to take this recovery ratio to nearly 90 per cent,'' they said.

As for quality of services and comfort level, officials conceded: ``Certainly these cities are much ahead of us and we can not compete. But for most of the Asian, African and Latin American countries we are better placed, except for a few countries like Brazil which has a fleet of Volvo buses.''

Pointing out to the fast upcoming Metro rail and decisions to have one-fifth of the fleet as low-floor urban buses and reintroduction of electric trolley buses, officials said: ``In the next few years, we will have a public transport system which can compete with the best in the world.''

Officials also claimed to have improved other parameters as well in the last few years. ``People now feel more confident in a DTC bus compared to private buses.'' While a high of 1.49 accidents per lakh km was recorded for the DTC in 1989-90 it drastically come down to a mere 0.26 last year. As for frequent breakdown it has recorded a sharp drop from 1.58 times per 10,000 km to 0.22 times last year, while in April and May this year as was the same. Its income per km has increased from 878 paise in 1995-96 to 1,367 paise in 1999-2000 and in May this year it was 1,822 paise.

For the operational ratio, though there has been marked improvement, it has not been able to sustain it mainly because of the CNG crisis. The operational ratio which was 49.28 per cent in 1995-96 increased to 79.94 per cent in 1997-98 but since then it has been dropping to 77.4 in 1998-99 and 75.81 per cent the next year. But it increased to 82.8 per cent in May this year.

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