This document summarizes key issues and proposed solutions related to road transport in India. It discusses: 1) The modal mix in India's transport system is dominated by road transport which accounts for 90% of total energy demand. 2) Road accidents impose significant costs, with over 490,000 accidents and 140,000 deaths annually primarily due to driver fault and overloading. 3) Taxes and subsidies aim to balance revenue generation, economic efficiency, income distribution and environmental sustainability but India's transport intensity is higher than other countries. 4) Proposed solutions include streamlining taxes, strengthening institutions to develop plans and policies, promoting safety, and investing in public transport, technology, multimodal integration and research.

1. Road Transport in India
B.N. Puri
CEO & Director
Former Principal Advisor, Planning Commission
Asian Institute of Transport Development
22nd April 2016

2. Modal Mix: Overview
Transport System in India
comprises distinct modes
such as
• Road
• Rail
• Civil Aviation
• Coastal Shipping
• Inland Water Transport
Freight Traffic Share
Passenger Traffic Share

3. Economic
development leads
to
• Increase in share of high value and low volume commodities.
• Increase in passenger traffic intensity.
• Demand for quality transport.
Increase in
productivity
• 10 per cent increase in travel speed labour market expands by
15 per cent and productivity by 3 per cent.
Significance of Road Transport
• (about 3 per cent and Rs. 2000 billion).
Favourable impact on
education and
medical facilities
• Participation rate in schools education increases by 100 per
cent for girl and 33 per cent for boys
Significant
contribution to GDP
and government
revenue
Highly employment
intensive.
• Only next to IWT

4. Issues, Diagnosis and Solutions

5. Externalities
Energy
and
Environment
Significance Life
Cycle Analysis
Except one no oil producing country can balance their budget at price less than US$ 100
per barrel.
• Transport sector accounts for nearly 18 per cent consumption of total
energy.
• Share of road transport is 90 per cent.
• 98 per cent of total energy demand is met through petroleum products
which represent half of consumption of petroleum products.
• CO2 emission of road transport sector is 206.4 million tonnes which is
92 per cent of total emission of transport sector.
• Consider Full life cycle energy and Co2 impact of transport modes

6. Safety
Road accidents in
2014
Accidents impose
significant costs
Major causes of
accidents
• Accidents 4.9 lakh (1 every minute)
• Deaths 1.40 lakh (one death every 4 minutes)
• Injured 4.63 lakh
Accidents on NH
(2014)
• 3 per cent GDP for India
• 28.2 per cent of all accidents
• 34.1 per cent of persons killed
•29.9 per cent persons injured
• Drivers’ fault – 78.8 per cent of total accidents in India
•Overloading/overcrowding of vehicles caused 20 per
cent of total accidents

7. Fiscal Issues
1. Generation of revenue 2. Economic efficiency.
3. Income distribution. 4. Environment sustainability.
Taxes, user charges and
subsidies serve :
i.e. transport input required to produce 1 unit of output is
• 11 per cent higher than South Africa,
• 14 per cent more than China and
• 38 per cent higher than Brazil.
Transport intensity in
india
Tax per unit of output
in India
• more than 40 per cent higher than South Africa.
• Introducing efficiencies under various scenario the
economy gains 0.042 to 0.0148 in GDP under various
scenario.
Impact of less efficient
usage transport
services
• through a mechanism akin to that used for transforming the
complex state-level sales taxes to the simplified state VAT
system.
Simplify the
multiplicity of state
level taxes

8. Institutional Strengthening
Development of lead institution supported by institutions at
state, metropolitan and municipal level.
Formulation of plan, policies and strategies covering all aspects
including fiscal.
The lead institutions initiated /promoted variety of
improvements in
• Design of vehicle
• Operating Environment and Infrastructure (Traffic engineering and
management)
• Enforcement of safety regulations and standards
The positive outcome starting in1960s and 1970s are the result of many
years of institutions and capacity building.

9. Trend of Road Traffic Fatalities in Selected Countries,
in Numbers

10. Road Traffic Fatalities in India
in Numbers

11. Public Transport
Market can determine role of
private and public transport,
provided there is
• perfect competition
• No significant indivisibilities
• No unpriced externalities.
Training a donkey..
(Gwilliam)
• Selection of appropriate modes and technically and
economically efficient development of these modes- (The
Carrots).
• Action to restrain competing private mode with uncharged
externalities (The Stick).
Institutions • A capable public transport regulatory and management
authority is highly desirable.
Integration • Effective physical coordination through ticketing between
modes critical to the attractiveness of public transport.
Role of Buses • Even in cities with mass transit system the majority of trips
will taken by ordinary buses

12. Technology
Improvement
in productivity
• One-third of fleet (freight) does 300 to 400 kms.
• 12 per cent of trips are empty.
• Use of information technology.
• Route rationalisation.
• Fleet deployment.
• Rationalisation of maintenance practices.
• Maximisation of revenues.
Innovative
Technologies
• Determine the way companies develop and build vehicles.
• Promote electric and fuel-cell vehicles offer lower energy and
emissions.
•Introduction of autonomous vehicles.
- Personal mobility consumption on pay-per-use rather than
upfront purchase of a capital asset.
- Leading to fall in the cost
Car sharing
and rider
sharing (35%)
New age of accessible
autonomy. (67%)
Driver less
revolution (50%)
Business
Models

13. Integrated Multimodal Transport System
Modes of Transport differ in terms of capital intensity and technical and
operational capability
Setting of specialised organizations
Let to undermining the significance of multimodal integrity and intermodal
articulations within the transport sector
High Logistics Cost
Assess the demand and cost.
Policies to develop multimodal transport system.
Institutional set up.

14. R&D and Capacity Building
Absence of apex institution.
Need to improve skills and increasing the knowledge of transportation
workforce and decision making.
Knowledge gaps exist in all areas of activities
Initiate process to set up a variety of research institutions.
Set up centers of excellence in selected universities and research institutes
in each transport sector.

15. Summing Up

16. Thank You