2 seats on every bus; no end to boarding woes
While every bus run by the Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited has two seats reserved for physically-challenged persons,boarding and disembarking the buses remains a problem for many owing to the absence of a level boarding system.
3 min read
While every bus run by the Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited (PMPML) has two seats reserved for physically-challenged persons,boarding and disembarking the buses remains a problem for many owing to the absence of a level boarding system.
PMPML joint managing director Satish Kulkarni said,We have around 20 low floor buses running on the Bus Rapid Transport System (BRTS) corridor in the city. While now the route is functional only on the pilot stretch on the Katraj-Swargate-Hadapsar area,the plan for extending it to 110 km and 22 routes in the city has been sanctioned. Once it is implemented,it will be possible for persons on wheelchairs to even board the bus with the wheelchairs as the buses have been designed with broad doors to help such persons.
However,Arundhati Vishwasrao of Janwani,an NGO of the Mahratta Chamber of Commerce,Industries and Agriculture (MCCIA),has a different take. She said,The basic idea behind getting a BRTS for the city was to ensure that we have system of level boarding and unboarding in our buses. But now despite having low floor buses in the city,our bus stops are built in such a way that there is still a mismatch between the bus floor and the bus stop. So it has not really the helped the cause of the physically-challenged persons,who still need assistance to get into a bus.
She added that boarding and unboarding are not the only challenges faced by such persons. While carrying out a survey earlier for a group that works for the hearing impaired,we realised facilities for such persons or even for the visually impaired are lacking. Our street signs,traffic signals and so on totally ignore the needs of such persons.
Harshad Abhyankar of Save Pune Traffic Movement said,Today,it is quite difficult for a person on a wheelchair or walking with a white cane to cross the roads safely. Our footpaths need to have a dropped curve at the ends. Bus stops also have no arrangements for them. While in Bangalore,there are audio signals for the benefit of such persons,Pune is lagging behind in terms of being sensitive to the needs of the physically-challenged.
You May Like
