Urbanization in India is a very recent phenomenon. The fast trend towards urbanization in the last decade has caused the development of mega cities where industries and population have been concentrated. In the following four mega cities studied, the road passenger transport plays very significant role in urban transportation for a number of reasons: Bombay, Delhi, Calcutta, and Madras. The public transport dominates the scene as it has comparatively inherent advantages. This paper deals with the present urban transportation problems in the four mega cities, critical analyses of performances of existing public transport organizations, and the constraints and restraints for their growth and stability. Travel characteristics of the mega cities, the financial problems faced by transport companies in these cities, the social cost phenomena, the recent privatization also form the topics of discussion in the paper. It is felt that this study and analysis of road passenger transportation would help to understand better the passenger road transportation problems in large cities in developing countries elsewhere. The French title of the paper is: "Transport routier urbain de voyageurs dans les mégapoles indiennes".
Samenvatting