In Delhi, a Safer Bus Line?

Delhi’s Blueline buses are notoriously deadly, perhaps due to a perverse incentive system that rewarded drivers for speedy progress and discouraged investments in the vehicles. Dave Prager, who investigated the buses last year,?has an update: Delhi has recently reformed its bus system, phasing out the Blueline buses and replacing them with shiny new buses. More importantly, the payment model has changed: “The Delhi government will provide the companies Rs.27-42 as earning per kilometre even when the service runs into losses, but it will take the ticketing amount.” “[F]rom the broader perspective of making the city safer and the commute more reliable, this framework is a huge improvement,” writes Prager. “Especially when one learns that the drivers themselves will be city employees, and the buses will be monitored by GPS.” [%comments]