Skip to main content

Traffic congestion plan for Delhi

India's capital Delhi looks set to see the introduction of a congestion charging scheme. The city authorities plan to launch the scheme in a bid to tackle endemic traffic congestion.
April 26, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
Delhi has need of some form of traffic control as its vehicle population has doubled to 6.8 million in just five years. PICTURE: Neeraj Singh.
India’s capital Delhi looks set to see the introduction of a congestion charging scheme.

The city authorities plan to launch the scheme in a bid to tackle endemic traffic congestion. The Municipal Corporation of Delhi is aiming to charge INR 150 ($2.87) for cars, motorbikes and even rickshaws entering the centre of the city during peak daytime periods. The city authorities have watched the benefits to traffic control in London and Singapore following the introduction of congestion charging schemes. At this stage it is not clear what technologies will be used but given the experience gained with the schemes in London and Singapore and various other cities (such as Oslo and Stockholm) it seems like that Delhi will benefit from a second generation system that will operate relatively efficiently. Introducing such a scheme in Delhi will see traffic control on a much larger scale than ever tried before however and there will be numerous technicalities to deal with in the process.

Both Beijing and Shanghai are considering congestion charging to help deal with endemic traffic problems at present as well. Delhi certainly has need of some form of traffic control as its vehicle population has doubled to 6.8 million in just five years, despite the introduction of a new metro system and extensive bus transport in the city. Traffic jams and delays have become routine in Delhi and despite the switch to LPG for buses and other diesel powered vehicles some years ago, air pollution is a growing problem.

Related Content

  • Tolling innovation
    January 4, 2013
    Leading European tolling solution companies are involved in a number of innovative tolling projects across the continent and further afield. Guy Woodford looks at some of the latest Siemens Mobility & Logistics (SML) has received orders from Eurotoll and Total, two of France’s largest electronic toll on-board unit issuers, to supply technology for the new French toll collection system. The equipment comprises on-board units for the vehicles as well as the electronic detection system. The SML orders’, worth
  • From managed asset to service provider: the future highway
    May 20, 2019
    Every day we hear about Mobility as a Service (MaaS), but what about Roads as a Service? Geoff Hadwick reports from the ERF in Brussels The familiar physical asset called the road will increasingly be seen as part of an emerging global services sector. Given that, the role of the road is changing, notes Christophe Nicodème, general director of the European Union Road Federation (ERF). We need to think much more carefully about planning highway infrastructure in terms of people’s needs, said Nicodème,
  • Swiss traffic congestion worsens between 2008 and 2012
    March 19, 2014
    The number of hours spent stuck in traffic jams on Swiss motorways almost doubled between 2008 and 2012, according to Credit Suisse. The bank also noted traffic jam concerns in Swiss cities, with Zurich ranked worst for jams, followed by Geneva and Lausanne. Credit Suisse says congestion zones or tolls such as those in London, Stockholm and Singapore are needed in cities like Zurich and Geneva.
  • Kathmandu's road widening project to ease congestion
    May 11, 2012
    The authorities in Nepal’s capital Kathmandu are working on widening the Kathmandu Valley road, a key project that has already seen the demolition of many structures along its boundary. The take-up of land has been eased by The Road Act, Nepal, which secures the roadside area of 25m on either side of the road on the National Highway.