TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT (TOD), A COMPREHENSIVE ALTERNATIVE TO A PUBLIC TRANSPORT BASED DEVELOPMENT, CASE STUDY NEW DELHI

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1 TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT (TOD), A COMPREHENSIVE ALTERNATIVE TO A PUBLIC TRANSPORT BASED DEVELOPMENT, CASE STUDY NEW DELHI Martin Kelly Capita Rajat Bose Jacobs Saikat Bose COWI 1. INTRODUCTION The capital city of India, New Delhi, has witnessed a fast growth in car ownership over the last two decades. The economic growth of Delhi has been built around an automobile culture, where steps taken to meet the transport needs have encouraged a growth in number of cars via steps such as wider roads and grade separators. A growing realisation of the lack of sustainability and feasibility of such an approach led to a shift in focus, with significant investment in Public Transport in Delhi such as Metro and BRT systems. As per the Delhi Masterplan, the target is to have only 20% of the model split in favour of personal motorised modes by The intent to achieve that can be seen from the outlay for PT schemes. For the recent phase 2 of the Delhi metro work, the project cost was c billion (rupees 191 billion), with three more phases in the pipeline. Delhi BRT has seen infrastructure cost of c. 1.4 million per km (Hidalgo, 2009). Significant investment has also been made towards modern low floor buses. While this Demand Oriented Transport, i.e. transport system to meet the increased demand, has resulted in some mode shifts, it has not been able to have the envisaged wider impact due to lack of multimodal integration and appropriate connectivity to stations. This has led to a shift in the City s planning and development approach by looking for other solutions such as Transit Oriented Development (TOD). A Transit Oriented Development is a compact mixed used development that is designed to encourage use of public transport (PT). It aims to maximise accessibility and reduce car dependency. The primary goals of a TOD are: Reduce private vehicle dependency and induce public transport use through design, policy and enforcement measures; and 1

2 Provide PT access to the maximum number of people through densification and enhanced connectivity. Widening the scope of provision of infrastructure, there is now an attempt to focus on the mobility of people rather than purely focused on movement of vehicles. This approach integrates transport and land use to undertake the following: Encourage public transport Better and safer access Efficient and reliable system Target all economic strata Promote high density mixed land use within walk/cycle distance Pedestrian facility Cycle and cycle rickshaw facility and Parking Reduce infrastructure investment cost Reduce congestion (economic benefits) Induce private sector investment Save environmentally sensitive land. This paper presents the findings from a study undertaken to address the above issues for the Phase II corridor between Chattarpur and Arjangarh Stations on the Yellow Line of the Delhi Metro system. As the first corridor study of this kind in India, this short but comprehensive study was aimed at setting out the benefits of this approach, and lay the foundation for a more detailed assessment by the policy makers. While the focus of the paper is on the role TOD plays on the transport choices, this being a multi-disciplinary study with significant interdependencies, this will include a review of the design and development of the TOD scheme, an appreciation of infrastructure impacts, as well as touch upon the broad financial impacts assessment undertaken in this study. 2. SITE ASSESSMENT The first part of the study involved a detailed understanding of the study area. This included understanding its nature, opportunities and constraints, its integration with the rest of the city, legislation and plans applicable for the 2

3 area, the drivers of trip making for the current residents, and the potential factors that could guide trip making in the future. 2.1 SITE DESCRIPTION The Study Area is located strategically at the confluence of Delhi and Gurgaon, a key service sector hub on the outskirts of Delhi. National highway (NH) - 236, the spine of the study area, connects Delhi with Gurgaon and NH8. The study area is served by Yellow Line of Delhi Metro. The four stations of this route, which lie in the study area, are Chattarpur, Sultanpur, Ghitorni and Arjangarh. Currently the corridor is flanked by low density development. Chattarpur is currently the key attraction point along the corridor. The rest of the corridor is flanked by urban villages. Figure 1: Locational Profile of the Study Area To further understand the site, a base map was prepared. This was primarily developed using satellite images, verified by site visits and interactions with local officers. This base map (Figure 2) covered a total study area of 24 km 2, based on a walking radius of 500m and cycling distance of 1500m. A further buffer of 500m was taken to facilitate continuity with the adjacent sites. The major observations from the assessment were: There are very clear pocket of developments, with finely grained high density urban villages, loosely grained sprawling farm housing on land parcel, large government land parcels that are almost barren, and 3

4 station yards with large areas of surface parking having developable land (Figure 3). There is no defined hierarchy of road within study area except on the west, where there is, in part a secondary collector and local street system. At other locations, there are only local streets which connect directly to the NH 236. The net result is that all traffic movements, except for very local ones, are concentrated onto the National Highway. The site is surrounded by protected regional green areas, which need to be considered as part of the scheme development. Figure 2: Base Map of the Study Area Figure 3: Typical Morphological Types on the Corridor Finely grained high density compact Urban Villages Loosely grained sprawling farm housing on land parcel up to 2 acres. Large Government land parcels that s are almost barren and are up to 15 Ha. Station yards with large areas of surface parking have developable land up to 2 acres. 4

5 2.2 KEY GUIDELINES As part of the planning process of New Delhi, the key guidelines are provided by: Master Plan for Delhi, 2021 Zonal Development Plan Existing building by-laws These lay out the nature of development planned for this area, and regulations such as developable area, and area required to be under green uses. 3. CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT One of the key challenges of the scheme was to try to fit the proposed TOD development over an already existing urban fabric, while utilising the existing mass transit alignment to guide the direction of development. Based on the above study, a conceptual masterplan was developed, keeping the following factors into consideration: Exiting urban villages in Delhi, the residential areas of the villages which come within the boundary of the city are, to some extent, outside the purview of control of the general city level development guidelines. Retain its green characteristics Creation of non-motorised friendly transport network, including a secondary level of road network. Allow provision for sustainable/renewable utility infrastructure. Top level financially feasible plan. One of the key factors for developing this plan was to look at the stations on the corridor not as stations, but character zones. Taking a cue from the existing land use, it was proposed to develop these with the following primary characters: Chattarpur Cultural and Tourism Sultanpur Commercial Village Ghitorni Retail 5

6 Sarvodaya (proposed new station to bring these stations within walkable distance) Entertainment Arjangarh Institutional This helps tie up peoples need of travel with activities, without requiring a next level, higher-order connector system, taking people to destinations. These stations themselves become potential final destinations. Taking inputs from an assessment of the population expected for a TOD based development, and after undertaking a density analysis, a prototypical area block was developed (Figure 4). Figure 4: Prototypical Area Block OPEN SPACES PROPOSED ROAD NETWORK BUIDING BLOCKS GREEN CORRIDOR PIAZZA EXISTING METRO STATION Within these area blocks, zones were identified (Figure 5), and each were assigned with number of uses that are permissible within that zone (Table 1). The objective of this was to provide high density, mix use activities, which are more reliant on transport, and suited to mass activity closer to the station. Besides maximising ridership of the transit system, if designed properly, this would add to the sense of safety of the transit users. As one moves further 6

7 away from the development, the intensity, and type of activity would also change. Figure 5: Proposed Typical Station Area Zoning Sequence Plan Table 1: Proposed Urban Zones Typology 7

8 Using this, a conceptual layout for the corridor was developed (Figure 6) which was then translated into a conceptual masterplan (Figure 7). Figure 6: Conceptual Site Layout Figure 7: Conceptual Masterplan 4. IMPACT ON POPULATION The Delhi Master Plan, 2021 (MPD 2021) has planned for a population of a density of 250 people per hectare by 2032 for the study area. With the increased density proposed along the corridor as part of the TOD 8

9 proposal, the estimated population was expected to be 65 to 70% higher. This was a core input for the strategies discussed below. 5. TRANSPORT PROPOSAL One of the primary objectives of a TOD is to promote and encourage a sustainable and environment friendly development through design, policy and enforcement. The aim of a TOD is to develop a community which is not reliant on private motorised modes to meet their daily mobility requirements. The aim is to maximise the opportunity for the residents or visitors to opt for walk, cycle or non-motorised modes as the preferred modal choice. To set out the proposal, the existing transport condition on the roads, and the stress on the network was assessed based on the current modal choice. This was followed by a discussion on the impacts of the proposed TOD development on the network and its impact in light of the mitigation measures suggested. Due to the limited time available, a detailed multimodal model could not be built for this analysis. However, a number of studies, both national and international, were used to inform this analysis. 5.1 EXISTING NETWORK SCENARIO Besides the observation noted above, some key features of this corridor were: High number of signalised junctions on the NH corridor. Certain sections of the network operating close to capacity (Figure 8). NMT and pedestrian facilities along the national highway underutilised, encroached, or used by two-wheelers. This is expected due the current nature of development along this road. However, it was encouraging to note that this infrastructure exists. There is limited bus access along the corridor current land use density providing limited role. Currently there is an absence of auto rickshaw/taxi stand, leading to encroachment of right-of-way. 9

10 Figure 8: Base Year Link Saturation 5.2 PROPOSED TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE The proposal for transport was closely linked to the other elements of the study, especially the site layout development. Some key considerations were: Smaller block sizes for residential units to improve connectivity, especially reduce the walking connectivity. Provide safer walking paths by reducing high walls along walkways, and bringing activities to the roads. Focus on segregation of motorised and non-motorised activities, followed by transport provisions for the same. Plan for high density, non-personalised transport based development closer to the mass transit line. Car based activities to be kept on the outer areas. The proposed concept transport network for a typical site within the TOD road network is shown in Figure 9. Within the site, a hierarchy of routes was proposed. A primary road network would provide major access within the site. Keeping with the philosophy of TOD, the primary network connects to the NH236 and the circumventing road at multiple locations. There is also a secondary road network, which acts as a local road. This road is also primarily for circulation of a feeder service, proposed to be designed in a NMT and pedestrian friendly manner. 10

11 Figure 9: Typical Development Area Transport Concept Plan National Highway 236 Circumventing Route Motorised Network Including Bus Routes Non Motorised Network Pedestrian Crossing P P P P Cycle Rickshaw Parking Cycle Parking Cycle Hire Parking Location The area adjacent to the station is proposed to be reserved for pedestrians only. NMT parking is proposed along the whole of the study area. The density of this parking is highest around the station quarter. Parts of these parking areas are meant to be for cycles, or potentially cycle-hire schemes. 5.3 PROPOSED TOD PARKING STRATEGY One of the key features of the concept design, as per the local authority guidelines, was to provide car parking outside the 300m zone from the metro stations. However, it was also felt that there should be a car park within 10 minute walk of all the land uses within the TOD, as not all uses can be activities will be restricted within the public transit catchment area. A key feature of the proposed parking strategy was shared use of those spaces so as to maximise their occupancy; therefore, the same space could be used by residents in the evenings and overnight, and shoppers during the day. The usage were proposed to be controlled by appropriate pricing and issue of car park permits to residents and shopkeepers, for example, by 11

12 introducing charging that discourages long stay parking during the day, and introducing free or low cost parking overnight subject to display of permits. The car park layouts were proposed to have well designed, clear entrances and exits, with access to the parking areas by barrier control. It is recommended that the majority of parking spaces are provided off-street, with on-street parking strictly limited to disabled drivers or drop-off /pick-up areas with maximum of (say) 5 minutes parking permitted. All parking areas would be required to be clearly signed with bay markings clearly identified. The detailed design should include traffic and parking circulation plans with both, pedestrian and car park details, calculations detailing the utilisation of the spaces. There should also be a safety and security plan that follows strict guidelines. Other guidelines suggested were based on good international practices and included suggestions to have Establish minimum standards on lighting, safe design and security measures; Incentivise operators achieving these targets; and Have a programme to continuously monitor and rate these parking spaces. 5.4 IMPACTS OBSERVED ON THE NETWORK The assessment of impacts of this development on the transport network was done using evidence based analysis. Available global evidence on impacts of TOD was assessed, juxtaposed with available information on impacts observed along developments along the Delhi metro routes. From this, the key finding was that with the development proposed as part of the TOD proposal, it was possible for the transport infrastructure to operate at close to the current level of service, even though there is expected to be a significant increase in the total trips. This was compared against a scenario, based on the development proposed as per the Delhi Mastarplan, and it was found to indicate major pressures on the network. This would have required major highway and public transport investment to mitigate the expected impacts. 12

13 Another key finding was the encouragement for non-motorised and public transport modes. In the base year, it was quite clear that majority of activities were performed as walk trips in this area owing to the nature of development in the area. With TOD in place, there was a higher probability of such trips getting further encouraged. Trips by the metro were also envisaged to grow significantly. A three-fold increase could be expected with the TOD, when compared against a without TOD scenario. The proposal also indicated a better utilisation of buses, with a 50% increase in its mode share. 6. OTHER STRATEGIES SUPPORTING TOD One of the key factors to emerge from the study was that if such a scheme was to succeed, it needed to be supported by a clear strategy of supporting infrastructure. This pertains to the availability of and accessibility to the basic infrastructure facilities like social facilities water, sewerage, drainage, solid waste management and power. With the TOD, the project area would see a rapid growth in population and with it, a demand to meet the basic utility services and social facilities. The proposal for TOD envisaged an integrated approach, packaging mutually supportive infrastructure components, i.e. water-sewerage-drainage for recycling, harvesting and optimal use of water, solid waste for power generation etc. through innovative techniques for a sustainable community. From the outset of the conceptual design exercise, the aim was to incorporate social services, water, waste water & storm water, energy/power and solid waste as an integral part of the TOD. To ensure long term sustainability and resource efficiency, the aim of the strategy was to decentralize infrastructure in line with statutory guidance and codes. This included performance standards based on energy conservation management, recycling and solid waste management. The intension of the proposal was to accommodate the social infrastructure and utilities infrastructure within the TOD. It was anticipated that much of the physical infrastructure would be located within the urban fabric, open areas and the green infrastructure corridors. The latter are sizeable areas compromising some 30 hectares each. In addition, there were proposed green corridors within the typical development areas for accommodating utilities. 13

14 In conjunction with the decentralized infrastructure, the proposal also looked at a range of sustainability measures including community energy strategies, sustainable energy sources, ground water management etc. To quantify the requirement, a gap analysis was undertaken for the different infrastructure elements, based on which mitigation measures were recommended. The key findings to emerge from this analysis were: 6.1 STRATEGY FOR WATER, SEWAGE AND STORM WATER With TOD development, there is expected to be a major shortfall in the supply of water for the study area. Even with all the proposed schemes in place, it is estimated that the shortfall in supply could be up to 26%% by To plan for this shortage, a set of proposals were recommended, based on the reduction, reclamation and reuse strategy. As part of this, it was suggested to reduce the water demand from the central water distribution network through reclaiming and reusing sewage (for which reed bed technology or phytorid technology was suggested as an option), and rain water (through storm water harvesting). It was estimated that, if planned appropriate, it could convert the shortage of water into a surplus of up to 10%. Disposing and treatment of sewage generated from such a large development is an important consideration. While partly dealt with as part of the water strategy, the other part was to provide for local, small scale sewage treatment plants within the development as part of the concept. 6.2 STRATEGY FOR ELECTRICITY AND SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL The electricity demand for the study area was estimated to increase from the current 17.5 MW/day to MW/day by 2032 due to the proposed TOD. For the base year, there was a shortfall of 2% during peak loads. Even with all the proposed planned schemes in place, there was estimated to be a significant shortfall in supply once the TOD development came up. The substantial increase in demand necessitated a need to look at alternate sources of generating electricity, such as biogas and solar energy. One option favoured was generating electricity from Biogas. 14

15 However biogas plants need biodegradable organic waste. Therefore this strategy was coupled with the solid waste strategy. Currently the entire solid waste generated in the area goes to the landfills. Based on information available from authorities, it was estimated that about 85% of the solid waste was recyclable, 40% of which was organic waste that can be used in biogas plants to generate electricity. From the study, it was estimated that with the TOD, 409 tonnes per day of organic waste would be generated by This meant a projected requirement of 20 biogas plants would be required to not only generate electricity, but also consume the organic solid waste generated and reduce the solid waste destined for the landfills If able to harness this source in its entirety, the electricity demand was estimated to reduce by approximately by 29% by The supply of additional electricity demand with the electricity generated out of the biogas plants would not only meet the demand, but was also estimated to generate surplus for revenue generation. 7. FINANCIAL FEASIBILITY A key question for any plan is its financial feasibility. For this project as well, this was an important analysis from the perspective of the policy makers. While it was acknowledged that this project could not undertake a detailed financial feasibility analysis due to lack of information such as detailed design inputs, a preliminary analysis was undertaken. The key driver of financial feasibility of this study was real estate. For this, the financial feasibility analysis was needed to encompass various influencing characteristics of development design, land scenarios, construction costs, current land values and population estimate based infrastructure gap analysis and future requirements. Attempt was made to include well justified values for these mentioned parameters. Figure 10 gives a schematic approach to the Financial Feasibility calculations and how each of the aspects of concept master plan, transport analysis and infrastructure gap analysis, along with real time survey data and more importantly the assumptions provided input to the analysis. 15

16 Figure 10: Financial Feasibility Calculation Certain key assumptions were made at the time of the study, especially those related to land assembly. These were made in discussion with planning authorities, and after reviewing the land acquisition act. A key outcome to emerge from this discourse was the need of an Execution Agency, comprising of the stake holders, as well as field experts such as a Master Developer, who brings the expertise to maximise benefits from real estate. A number of scenarios were tested as part of this study. Figure 11 shows the result from this analysis for these scenarios. The internal rate of return calculated for these scenarios varied from 21% to 41%, which were significant enough to consider this kind of development. The key observation from this analysis was that developing a TOD, evidently, earns much higher returns and pays for the infrastructure and affordable housing sufficiently. 16

17 Cash Flow (in 10m rupees) Figure 11: Discounted Cash Flow Years 8. CONCLUSION For any option to be viable, it should firstly be imperative that it meets the need for which the option is being assessed. Following that, it should make practical, economic, financial and aesthetic sense (if applicable). While admittedly the study conducted in Delhi is a preliminary study, requiring further analysis, it still does indicate that TOD is a very viable alternative to affecting a sustainable decision making in urban areas, including transport. TOD not only looks to reduce the need for private mode based travel, it in affect is looking to change the approach to lifestyle in cities. BIBLIOGRAPHY Hidalgo, H., Pai, M., Arpi, E., Schalaikjer, E. (2009), The Delhi Bus Corridor, EMBARQ, India 17