NEW DELHI: Ridership on buses operated by Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) and the cluster scheme, which are among the cheapest modes of commute in the city, has declined sharply since 2019-20, though the overall fleet has expanded, according to data from Economic Survey 2025-26.In 2019-20, DTC and cluster buses together carried over 51 lakh passengers daily. By 202425, this fell to about 40.8 lakh, a decline of nearly 20%. The drop is evident across both systems. DTC’s daily ridership went down from 33.4 lakh to 25.6 lakh, marking a fall of over 23%. Similarly, cluster buses saw their ridership decline from 17.71 lakh to 15.3 lakh, a drop of about 14%.In contrast, their combined fleet size marginally increased from 6,672 to 6,966 buses over the same period. While the number of DTC buses rose from 3,762 in 2019-20 to 3,819 in 2024-25, cluster buses registered a sharper rise — from 2,910 to 3,147.
Transport experts point out that the trend is counterintuitive, considering Delhi’s growth in population and govt policy interventions aimed at boosting ridership. Delhi govt also introduced free bus travel for women from 2019, a move expected to significantly increase the ridership.Transport expert Anil Chikkara said, “Merely increasing the size of a fleet does not work. Passengers often have to change two or three buses, so interchange points must be designed in such a way that they do not have to wait for long. Earlier, Karol Bagh, Azadpur, Raja Garden, and Jantar Mantar used to be popular terminal points with good connectivity to other routes.Also, providing student passes or making rides free for women are not enough in themselves. The passenger information system is weak — they don’t know when the next bus will arrive. Timing is important to everyone. Even if bus rides are free, it does not matter if people cannot reach their offices on time. Also, we have been talking about modernising bus shelters, but it has not happened on the ground.”Transport minister Pankaj Singh said, “A large number of CNG buses became overaged all of a sudden, but there was no plan by the last govt to counter this by purchasing enough electric ones. Since we came to office (last year), we have increased the number of e-buses.”From just two in April 2021, the e-bus fleet in the capital went up to 1,686 in April 2025 and to 4,338 at present.“Our revenue from DTC has also gone up compared with past years. You will see the ridership increasing in the coming years,” the minister said.Despite the challenges, some DTC indicators show improvement. Accidents involving its buses have declined from 118 in 2019-20 to 73 in 202526. Inter-state connectivity has expanded, with bus routes increasing from seven to 15.On the transport infrastructure front, the number of bus depots in the city has gone up from 35 to 44, largely to support charging and operating e-buses.
