Hubli-Dharwad Bus Rapid Transit System (HDBRTS) is a bus rapid transit system built to serve the twin cities of Hubali and Dharwad, located in the North-Western part of Karnataka state in India. Hubali-Dharwad BRTS (HDBRTS) project is a Government of Karnataka initiative to foster long-term economic growth in the region. The project promotes fast, safe, comfortable, convenient and affordable public transportation between the twin cities and aims to reduce congestion and air pollution in the region.
The 22.5 km (14.0 mi) dedicated BRT corridor with holistic BRT components connects Hubali and Dharwad. This system will not only transport 17500 (1.75 lakh)[citation needed] daily passengers currently using the buses on this corridor but also provide safe, sustainable & efficient alternative for the private vehicle users travelling on this corridor.
The Hubali-Dharwad BRTS project was implemented as part of the Sustainable Urban Transport Project (SUTP) and funded by the Government of Karnataka, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MHUA), World Bank and Global Environment Facility (GEF). The total cost of the project is ₹970.87 Cr. [citation needed]
The Hubali-Dharwad BRTS Company Ltd, a special purpose vehicle (SPV), is the nodal agency that implemented the BRT System. In addition to the managing director, the company also has four Deputy General Managers (Admin, Finance, Infrastructure, and Operations & ITS) and a Chief Security Officer[citation needed] .
The length of the Hubali-Dharwad BRTS corridor is 22.25 km (13.83 mi) from CBT Hubali to CBT–Dharwad with the width of the cross-sections ranging from 44m to 35m. The BRTS corridor includes segregated bus lanes, access-controlled bus stations, physical and fare integration with BRT feeder services. In addition, there is a system of off-board ticketing through smart cards and bar-coded paper tickets, an intelligent transport system and high-quality buses (Standard AC buses). The corridor has been designed for operating regular and express services. It consists of two lanes for BRTS buses on either side of the median bus station, facilitating overtaking lanes for express services. Foot bridges at six locations, Pelican signals, and synchronized signal management are proposed to facilitate the easy approach of passengers to bus stations.
32 stations have been constructed on the median along the BRTS corridor. Based on the passenger load and interchange opportunity, there are 7 three-bay bus stations and 24 two-bay bus stations.
One hundred "Chigari" (ಚಿಗರಿ, meaning "Black buck" in Kannada), custom-built buses with violet livery, made by UD Trucks, buses division (a subsidiary of Isuzu, Japan), form the fleet of the Hubballi-Dharwad BRTS Company. HDBRTS system is the best of its kind in India, with premium 12 m AC buses to ensure passenger comfort and safety at an affordable rate.[citation needed] The BRT buses are BS-IV compliant, meeting UBS-II specifications, with a provision for wheelchairs and baby buggies. The buses are facilitated with on-board ITS for real-time passenger information, CCTV surveillance for safety and an announcement system. The bus has seating capacity of 37 + 1, with reservation for ladies (12), senior citizens (2) and specially-abled (2).
The BRTS buses run from morning 6 am to 12 midnight. The duty hours of the ticket-issuing staff at the BRTS stations ends at 10 pm, after which, i.e., up to midnight, the passengers have to get the ticket from the conductor in the bus itself.
HDBRTS and NWKRTC started BRTS feeder buses named 'Chigari Samparka' on 16 December 2022. On a pilot basis, NWKRTC has started operating feeder buses between Sutagatti and Navanagar.
HDBRTS commenced trial runs on 2 October 2018. The first trial run was initiated over an 8 km stretch between Hubballi Railway Station and Srinagar. The trial runs were slowly extended over the 20 km stretch between Hubballi and Dharwad. Different types of services were introduced during the trial run, like all-stops, limited-stops and non-stop. The fleet size has been increased, and HDBRTS currently operates a fleet of 100 buses with approximately 1,240 trips per day. Approximately 100,000 passengers travel with HDBRTS every day. The "Chigari" buses operate in "limited-stop" and "all-stop" modes. The travel time for "limited-stop" services is 35 minutes and for "all-stop" services is 55 minutes. Smart Card, Web-portal and Mobile Application were launched on 10 January 2020.
Green BRTS is an initiative of the Hubballi Dharwad BRTS Company Ltd., as a result of which, tree saplings have been planted at various locations in Hubballi and Dharwad. The Hubballi Dharwad BRTS Company Ltd. has planted approximately 27,500 saplings over a period of 5 years in the premises of government offices, schools, colleges and eco-parks.
Approximately 5,000 saplings have been planted along the HDBRTS corridor. An initiative to map the plantation under Green BRTS was started in June 2016 by the Directorate of Urban Land Transport and Hubballi Dharwad BRTS Company Ltd. This mapping initiative supports an online public platform for intimating to the government, or otherwise ascertaining from the government the status of the plantation. This will also help in analyzing the growth, survival rate, etc., of the trees at different stages. In addition, the effective selection of locations and species, maintenance schedule, etc., with public participation are a significant part of future plans.
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