Policy Briefs
April 7, 2026
Shared mobility services using small passenger vehicles (share autorickshaws) are commonly observed in urban corridors of Tamil Nadu. However, the legal framework governing these services continues to rely on the traditional contract carriage under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. While […]
February 25, 2026
Photo Credit: Deccan Herald Karnataka has improved transport affordability through subsidies and schemes, yet reliable access remains uneven in rural areas. Using insights from Melukote, this article examines how limited services, regulatory barriers, and weak last-mile connectivity continue to restrict […]
February 20, 2026
Photo Credit: CNBC-TV18 Chennai’s autorickshaws could unlock cleaner, cheaper last-mile delivery for MSMEs, easing congestion, boosting driver incomes, and plugging a critical gap ignored by big-ticket logistics infrastructure. Chennai is often called the automobile capital of India—and for good reason. […]
February 10, 2026
Nearly 80% of traffic at Vyttila moves east–west. D Dhanuraj of CPPR explains why the flyover ignores this reality and how the chaos can be corrected.
February 4, 2026
D Dhanuraj of CPPR raises concerns over digital ‘master boards’ in Kochi, citing pedestrian safety issues, visual clutter, and distraction to motorists.
November 20, 2025
Leveraging idle autorickshaw capacity could transform Bengaluru into a greener, faster, and more inclusive logistics hub. Bengaluru could reach a population of ~25 million by 2035. As a top-five FMCG market and a major e-commerce hub, the city is experiencing […]
June 2, 2025
In his 2025 budget speech, the Finance Minister of Kerala, Mr. K.N. Balagopal, announced the K-Homes scheme, aiming to use unoccupied homes to develop Kerala tourism accommodations. According to the Working Group Report on Housing as part of the 14th […]
September 9, 2024
India has been working towards the ambitious goal of achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2070.1 With the transport sector accounting for 12 percent of energy-related emissions in India2, e-buses offer a sustainable transport alternative to cut back on […]
April 5, 2024
Field visits are fun, especially when you try to study the very core of mobility, which is public transport systems. The structure of a city, housing patterns, real estate values, commercial spaces, etc. are all influenced by the available transport […]
March 11, 2024
In January 2024, an alarming news article shook me to the core, describing the tragic death of a 16-year-old schoolboy in Surat after being hit by a bus. According to the article, prior to this incident, a 23-year-old worker was […]
February 23, 2024
The economic liberalisation in India commenced in the 1990s and had a profound impact on the transportation sector in the country. Post independence in 1947, the government played a dominant role in bolstering the transport sector but the role of […]
September 14, 2023
Transit Advertising refers to the use of advertisement spaces available on various modes of public transit. Buses provide a unique opportunity for companies by acting as mobile billboards and reaching audiences across income classes. This is seen as an extremely […]
August 4, 2023
The Kerala State Transport Department’s recent draft scheme notification dated May 17, 2023, to nationalise a critical route in Vypin, Kerala, disregarded the need for Vypin commuters. Although the draft notification states that the scheme aims to alleviate the lack of public […]
May 9, 2023
The transport sector accounts for one-third of the total crude oil consumed in the country, where 80 percent is consumed by road transportation alone. This sector contributes 142 million tonnes of CO2 emissions, of which 123 million tonnes is released […]
December 15, 2021
Ernakulam RTO has registered 2,030 non-transport vehicles in January this year. But it came down again with the onset of the second wave and took a U-turn by July. In September, 2,013 vehicles were registered in the non-transport category and […]