NOIDA: The Confederation of NCR Residents Welfare Association (CONRWA) has sought last-mile connectivity for residential sectors along the Noida expressway. In the absence of public transport, residents of these sectors said they were dependent on their own vehicles or cab aggregators.
“We have written to the Noida Authority CEO to propose routes for the operation of e-buses till they plan a dedicated and mandatory public transport system for the city,” said PS Jain, president of CONRWA. A copy of the letter has also been sent to chief minister Yogi Adityanath, chief secretary Durga Shankar Mishra, and UP infrastructure and industrial development department commissioner Manoj Kumar Singh.
“There are more than 150 sectors in Noida city, of which about 100 sectors are residential. The distance between them ranges from 10 to about 30km. But Noida city still does not have any public transport service of its own,” added Jain.
Jain added that while the metro has made regular travel easier, people still struggle to find conveyance to reach their nearest metro stations. “For this, a person is forced to use an auto or e-rickshaw and sometimes has to change two rickshaws for covering a mere distance of 5-10km. In other cases, people are left with cabs, which adds up to more than the fare charged in the metro,” said Jain.
The association has asked for more e-buses, autos and e-rickshaws to operate in sectors 92, 93, 100, 134, 140, among others, and in sectors like 55, 56, 48, 47, 122, 115, 117, 77, 75, where DTC and private buses do not ply. Some buses travelling from Ghaziabad to Hapur via Noida are sometimes accessible to Noida residents. But given the long travel hours and lack of direct connectivity to several areas, commuters often have to resort to other options like autos, which can charge between Rs 70-100 for a distance of 6-7km.
