Lok Sabha Question No. 1540 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-02-13
Subject: Smart Traffic Management System
Ministry: ROAD TRANSPORT AND HIGHWAYS
Asked by: Shri Dilip Saikia, Shri Lumbaram Choudhary, Smt. Kamlesh Jangde

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ROAD TRANSPORT AND HIGHWAYS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1540 ANSWERED ON 13 TH  FEBRUARY, 2025

## SMART TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

1540. Smt. Kamlesh Jangde:

Shri Dilip Saikia: Shri Lumba Ram:

Will the Minister of ROAD TRANSPORT AND HIGHWAYS

सड़क परिवहन औि िाजमार्ग मंत्री

be pleased to state:

- (a)  the  plans  formulated  for  the  maintenance  and  improvement  of National Highways (NHs) during the monsoon season;
- (b) the measures taken to reduce urban congestion and increase the modal share of urban public transport;
- (c) the extent to which the objectives of the Green Highways Policy, 2015 (Plantation,  Transplantation,  Beautification  and  Maintenance) have been achieved;
- (d) whether any specific targets were fixed in this regard and if so, the details thereof; and
- (e) the extent to which the installation of electronic monitoring and road safety under the Smart Traffic Management System have been successful in the major cities in the country including in Chhattisgarh and also on the NHs with high traffic density?

## ANSWER

THE MINISTER OF ROAD TRANSPORT AND HIGHWAYS (SHRI NITIN JAIRAM GADKARI)

(a)  Pre-Monsoon  &  Post-Monsoon  Inspections  and  Maintenance Activities are carried out by the Maintenance/ Construction Agencies as per the provision of Contract Agreement, Maintenance Manual & relevant guidelines issued by  the implementing agencies from time to time for the maintenance and improvement of National Highways (NHs) during the monsoon season .

Authority Engineers (AEs) /Independent Engineers (IEs)) are deployed to ensure maintenance activities in a time-bound manner, including carrying out of pre-monsoon and post-monsoon inspections. Before the onset of monsson, special emphasis on the following aspects is made as part of maintenance requirement;

- i. Cleaning of vent way of bridges and culverts.
2. ii.
3. iii.
4. Cleaning of lined drain.
5. Re-shaping of earthen drains.
- iv. Cleaning of Chutes of approaches of the Bridges/ Flyovers, etc.
- v. Patch repair work, if any, will be attended prior to monsoon.

Additionally,  proactive  measures  are  put  in  place  to  address contingencies  in  flood-prone  and  landslide-prone  areas,  ensuring the  safety  and  durability  of  the  highways  during  adverse  weather conditions. During the monsoon, the following are ensured:

- i. Regular  Inspections  of  the  vulnerable  spots  for  preventive action and installation of warning signs.
- ii. Advance  stocking/  arranging  of  excavators/  backhoe  loaders/ dozers, saw cutters for tree cutting, sand bags, traffic cones & Signages, etc., in required quantities at required locations.
- iii. Alerting  and  instructing  the  concerned  contractors  for  the works  like  bridge  closing,  tree  removal,  landslide  clearance, diversion of roads, etc.

In  case  of  National  Highways  Authority  of  India  (NHAI),  to  ensure timely repair and rectification of defects, NHAI ONE App is used for identification  of  defects  by  AE/IE.  The  action  taken  by  Contractor/ Concessionaire for the rectification of these defects within specified timelines as per Contract/ Concession Agreement is also monitored through NHAI ONE App.

Also, National Highways Infrastructure Development Corporation of India (NHIDCL) through its contractors ensures maintenance of the project road during monsoon season as per their obligations of the contract which includes deploying quick response teams for immediate clearance of landslides, road blocks and proper drainage systems to prevent water logging, filling potholes, repairing damaged  stretches and strengthening embankments  prone to erosion. (b)  The  Government  in  Ministry  of  Road  Transport  &  Highways  is primarily  responsible  for  development  and  maintenance  of  NHs  in the country. The roads other than NHs are the responsibility of the respective State Government  and  other  local authorities.  The Government inter alia takes up development of ring roads, bypasses and  elevated  corridors  in  major  cities/  urban  centers  and  State capitals,  in  consultation  with  State  Governments,  to  decongest traffic and alleviate choke / congestion points on NHs. Decisions are taken  based  on  traffic density,  speed  drop,  number  of  roads entering/ exiting the city, road  condition, inter-se priority  and availability of funds. Further, the State Governments are responsible for planning, initiating  and  developing  urban  transport  infrastructure  including integration amongst various modes of public transport. As per Metro Rail  Policy,  2017,  Government  considers  financial  assistance  for Metro Rail proposals in cities or urban agglomerates based on the feasibility of the proposal and availability of resources as and when posed  by  the  concerned  State  Government.  The  cities  having  a population  of  two  million  and  more  may  start  planning  for  mass transit  systems  including  metro  rail  based  on  the  Comprehensive Mobility Plan. Transit  Oriented  Development  Policy,  2017   serves  as  a  guide  to State  Governments  for  integrated  planning  and  implementation  of urban transport systems in most sustainable and viable manner. The Policy also envisages necessarily inclusion of feeder systems, lastmile connectivity through pedestrian pathways, Non-Motorized Transport (NMT) infrastructure, and induction of facilities for paratransit modes, etc., thereby reducing urban congestion. Ten years back, metro rail system had a route length of 248 km and confined only to 5 cities. In last ten years, 763 km of metro line has been made operational and as of today operational length of metro

system  stands at 1011 km  mark  and  number  of cities with operational  metro  network  has  also  increased  from  5  to  23.  If  we compare budgetary provisions,  the annual  budget outlay  for  metro projects  in  2014  was  Rs  5,800  crore,  whereas  funds  allocation  for the upcoming year 2025-26 is about Rs 34,807.00 crore. Today more than one crore passenger travels on different lines of metro network in  country  as  compared  to  28  lakh  in  the  year  2014.  Indian  Metro Rail  network  is  the  third  largest  metro  rail  network  in  the  world. Presently, metro rail network of 979 km is under construction.

Metro rail system is not only a transport system but transformative project. It is transforming our city or urban agglomeration, wherever it  is  implemented. In addition, the Government has launched PM ebus sewa scheme for deployment of 10,000 air-conditioned e-buses in cities with population between 3 lakh to 40 lakh including capital cities of States and UTs having population less than 3 lakh.

- (c)  Significant progress has been made in achieving the objectives of Green Highways Policy (Plantation, Transplantation, Beautification, and Maintenance), 2015. Achieving of the objectives of the Green Highways Policy 2015 is a continuous process and part of ongoing efforts to promote the greening of National Highways.   Since  the  Policy  was  enunciated  in  2015,  472.91  lakh saplings have been planted in accordance with the Annual Plantation Action Plans.
- (d)  Specific  targets  are  fixed  every  year  by  formulating  Annual Plantation  Action  Plans.  The  targets  are  decided  based  upon availability  of  plantable  land  in  medians  and  on  the  edges  of  the Right  of  Ways  (RoW)  of  the  highways.  During  the  year  2024-25  a target  of  61.86  lakh  saplings  was  fixed  and  achievement  for  the year till 31st January 2025 is 67.14 lakh saplings.
- (e)     In order to strengthen the enforcement of traffic rules in the country,  the  Motor  Vehicles  (Amendment)  Act,  2019  provides  for electronic monitoring and enforcement of road safety. Accordingly,   Government has published rules in August, 2021 for Electronic Monitoring and Enforcement of Road Safety at high-risk and  high-density  corridors  on  National  Highways,  State  Highways and  at  critical  junctions  in  Million  plus  cities  in  India  and  cities covered under National Clean Air Programme (NCAP).

While   Government  formulates  rules  under  the  Motor  Vehicle  Act, 1988, the enforcement of these rules comes under the purview of State Governments / UT Administrations. In new National Highway projects of high traffic density and highspeed  corridors, installation  of  Advanced  Traffic  Management System (ATMS) is generally a part of the project. Further, ATMS is also  implemented  as  standalone  projects  in  already  constructed important  corridors. The  Policy  aims  at  reducing  accidents,  traffic violations and incident response time. The status of ATMS projects is as under:

| Corridor Name                     |   Length (km) | State(s)       | Status               |
|-----------------------------------|---------------|----------------|----------------------|
| Bangalore - Mysore (Augmentation) |           117 | Karnataka      | Completed July, 2024 |
| Dwarka Expressway                 |            58 | Delhi, Haryana | Awarded              |
| Delhi-Agra                        |           180 | Uttar Pradesh  | Awarded              |
| Lucknow Ring Road                 |           103 | Uttar Pradesh  | Awarded              |
| UER-II                            |            75 | Delhi, Haryana | Awarded              |
| Bangalore Ring Road               |            80 | Karnataka      | Under Bidding        |

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