Neeraj Chauhan; www.dailypioneer.com;
New Delhi; January 17, 2006

The chairman of the Delhi Transport Corporation (D.T.C.), A. Mazumdar, has approved the first ever bus stand meant especially for disabled passengers in India at the Hauz Khas bus terminal in Delhi.

The bus base would be constructed with a cost of around Rs. 1.75 lakh and if it gets a good response then more bus stands would be made in the city before the Commonwealth Games. The bus stand is built on the principles of universal design. The stand would have ‘audio beepers’ so that visually impaired persons can listen to a sound from a distance of 40 to 50 feet. This would indicate that they are close to the bus stand.

The covered bus stand would also have also an audio system, like in Metro trains, which would announce such essential details as, “You are at Hauz Khas bus terminal.” The D.S.I.D.C. (Delhi State Industrial Development Corporation) and P.W.D. (Public Works Department) have been given the responsibility of constructing it. The bus stand would enable disabled persons to get into the bus easily. The pavement ramp would be constructed such that the risk of visually impaired persons falling is minimised. A hydraulic ramp and the base of the shelter at a height of 380 mm would make boarding easy for senior citizens, pregnant ladies and others as well.

The bus stand design is the result of consultations with experts from the Indian Institute of Technology, and the design has been made to suit low floor buses. The bus stand would have three to four priority seats for all and space for two wheelchairs. The low floor buses will run on route number 620, from Hauz Khas to Shivaji Stadium in Connaught Place, New Delhi. They are expected to replace city buses by the Commonwealth Games.

The project for the construction of these bus stands has been initiated by the N.G.O. Samarthya. “The bus stand would help people with disability board the bus easily and would make the system compatible for all users," said Sanjeev Sachdeva, its Managing Director.

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