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DTC plans multilevel underground parking

May allow commercial use of ground level area
Last Updated 20 August 2016, 02:35 IST
The Delhi Transport Corporation is planning to build multilevel underground parking facilities at its depots to allow commercial use of the ground level area there for shops and restaurants.

Underground parking facilities will help the public transporter accommodate its existing buses and the ones it plans to buy.  The first of the multilevel parking will come up at Seemapuri depot with the public-private partnership project there also including commercial use of the land for budget hotels and shopping arcades.

The redevelopment of its bus depots under the PPP model on a pilot basis will take place at just one depot now. Initially, the pilot plan was to be tried out at three depots. Officials said the concept of using space at redeveloped depots for shops, restaurants and hotels is aimed at generating more revenue for the DTC.

The DTC earlier had plans to build multilevel parking and commercial spaces while redeveloping six depots to take the parking load off the soon-to-be demolished Millennium Bus Depot near Nizamuddin bridge on Yamuna.

“The plan was to have such dual use of space in all new depots and simultaneously redevelop the existing depots,” an official said. Private infrastructure transaction company SREI Infrastructure Finance was contacted to conduct a study and help DTC with the arrangements related to giving out commercial spaces, said an official.

The proposed commercial spaces in the Seemapuri depot will have easy access from the areas visited by public, for inquiry and getting bus passes, said a DTC official. No decision has yet been taken on sharing the DTC’s parking facilities with private bus owners. The DTC has around 30 bus depots and nearly 5,000 buses and is credited with running the world’s largest fleet CNG buses.

But it remains under constant financial strain due to delays in fare revision, and because of some of the welfare responsibilities like operating rural bus routes that do not yield commercial returns.

The DTC is struggling to generate resources for itself in a situation where its reserves have dwindled to such a level that payment of pension to former employees was disrupted for a few months in the current financial year.
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(Published 20 August 2016, 02:35 IST)

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