To rationalise traffic movement, the Delhi Government plans to establish the Delhi Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (DUMTA) to end the multiplicity of transport agencies. Once approved, bodies such as the Delhi Transport Corporation, Public Works Department, Transport Department, and Delhi Traffic Police will function under a single umbrella.
The Rekha Gupta Government has also announced the creation of a 21-member task force to address the Capital’s transportation challenges by establishing a unified metropolitan transport authority. Headed by the Chief Secretary, the task force will design the structure and governance framework for the proposed DUMTA to tackle pollution and mobility issues across the National Capital Region (NCR). Its key responsibilities include drafting a strategic mobility plan and ensuring effective coordination among transport agencies, with recommendations to be submitted to the Delhi Lieutenant Governor within three weeks.
This is not the first time that the DUMTA has been proposed to handle transport-related issues. In 2010, the then Sheila Dikshit Government had approved a proposal to create DUMTA as an agency for the integrated management of transport affairs. The move followed advice from the then Union Home Minister, P Chidambaram, who had recommended setting up an authority to consolidate all transport-related functions under a single entity.
“The growing population, rising pollution levels, increased pressure on roads, and the heightened demand for a streamlined and organised public transport system in Delhi and the NCR have necessitated the establishment of the Delhi Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority,” a Government notification stated. The proposed DUMTA will prepare a comprehensive strategic mobility plan, ensure effective coordination among various urban transport agencies across Delhi-NCR, and manage the Delhi Urban Transport Fund (DUTF), it added. The task force will also assist in drafting the DUMTA Bill in consultation with stakeholders, including State and Central Government agencies, private and public institutions.
It will hold Board meetings to define and finalise the vision, mission, and objectives of the new transport authority, the notification further stated.
According to the notification, the Additional Chief Secretary of the Urban Development Department will serve as the Member Secretary of the task force. Its members will include the Administrative Secretaries of Transport, Finance, Planning, and the Public Works Department (PWD).
Other members will comprise the Vice-Chairman of the Delhi Development Authority; Commissioners of Delhi Police and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi; the Tourism Secretary; the Chief Executive Officer of the Delhi Jal Board; and representatives from the National Highways Authority of India, New Delhi Municipal Council, Delhi Cantonment Board, and the NCR Planning Board. The divisional manager of Northern Railways, along with the Managing Directors of the Delhi Transport Corporation, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, and National Capital Region Transport Corporation, will also be part of the task force.
The Chairperson of the task force will additionally include two to three subject matter experts in urban transportation, the notification stated. The task force has been directed to submit its report on the formation of DUMTA and DUTF to the Delhi Lieutenant Governor within three weeks.
Sources in the Transport Department said that DUMTA is being established to streamline coordination among various agencies managing different modes of transport - including the metro, buses, and traffic management - to ensure seamless integration and efficient urban mobility.
