,
Chennai As per 2024 estimates, the total road length in India is ; making the Indian road network
the largest road network in the world. At 0.66 km of highway per square kilometre of land the density of India's highway network is higher than that of the United States (0.65) and far higher than that of China's (0.16) or Brazil's (0.20). Although India has large network of four or more lane highways of international quality standards, but without access control (entry/exit control), they are not called as expressways but simply highways. As per the
National Highways Authority of India, about 66% of freight and 82% passenger traffic is carried by the roads. The National Highways carry about 40% of total road traffic, though only about 2% of the road network is covered by these roads. In recent years construction has commenced on a nationwide system of multi-lane highways, including the
Golden Quadrilateral connecting four important metropolitan cities of India (
Delhi-
Kolkata-
Chennai-
Mumbai) and
North-South and East-West Corridors which link the largest cities in
India. In 2000, around 40% of villages in India lacked access to all-weather roads and remained isolated during the monsoon season. To improve rural connectivity,
Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (Prime Minister's Rural Road Program), a project funded by the
Central Government with the help of the
World Bank, was launched in 2000 to build all-weather roads to connect all habitations with a population of 500 or above (250 or above for hilly areas). The
Mumbai Trans Harbour Link is the longest sea bridge in India. It was inaugurated on 12 January 2024, by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It connects Mumbai with Navi Mumbai.
Bus Buses are an important means of public transport in India. Due to this social significance, urban bus transport is often owned and operated by public agencies, and most state governments operate bus services through a state road transport corporation. These corporations have proven extremely useful in connecting villages and towns across the country. However, a majority of smaller cities still lack a public bus system. Only 63 out of 458 Indian cities with populations exceeding 1 lakh have established formal city bus networks. Alongside the public companies there are many private bus fleets: As of 2020, there were about 150,000 publicly owned buses in India, and around 2,190,000 buses owned by private companies. However, the share of buses is negligible in most Indian cities as compared to personalised vehicles, and two-wheelers and cars account for more than 80 percent of the vehicle population in most large cities. Buses take up over 90% of public transport in Indian cities, and serve as an important
mode of transport. Services are mostly run by state government owned transport corporations. In 2010, the
Ahmedabad Bus Rapid Transit System won the prestigious
Sustainable Transport Award from the Transportation Research Board in Washington.
Rainbow BRTS in Pune is the first BRTS system in the country. Mumbai introduced air conditioned buses in 1998. Bangalore was the first city in India to introduce
Volvo B7RLE intra-city buses in India in January 2005. Bangalore was the first Indian city to have an
air-conditioned bus stop, located near
Cubbon Park. It was built by
Airtel. The city of
Chennai houses one of Asia's largest
bus terminus, the
Chennai Mofussil Bus Terminus.
Motor vehicles Two-wheelers Motorised two-wheeler vehicles like
scooters, motorcycles and
mopeds are very popular due to their fuel efficiency and ease of use in congested roads or streets. The number of two-wheelers sold is several times to that of cars. There were 47.5 million powered two-wheelers in India in 2003 compared with just 8.6 million cars. Manufacture of motorcycles in India started when
Royal Enfield began assembly in its plant in
Chennai in 1948. Royal Enfield, an iconic brand name in the country, manufactures different variants of the British
Bullet motorcycle which is a classic motorcycle that is still in production.
Hero MotoCorp (formerly Hero Honda),
Honda,
Bajaj Auto,
Yamaha,
TVS Motors and
Mahindra 2 Wheelers are the largest two-wheeler companies in terms of market-share. Manufacture of scooters in India started when
Automobile Products of India (API) set up at
Mumbai and incorporated in 1949. They began assembling
Innocenti-built
Lambretta scooters in India. They eventually acquired a licence for the Li150 series model, of which they began full-fledged production from the early 1960s onwards. In 1972,
Scooters India Limited (SIL), a state-run enterprise based in
Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, bought the entire manufacturing rights of the last Innocenti Lambretta model. API has infrastructural facilities at Mumbai,
Aurangabad, and
Chennai, but has been non-operational since 2002. SIL stopped producing scooters in 1998. Motorcycles and scooters can be rented in many cities, Wicked Ride, Metro Bikes and many other companies are working with state governments to solve last-mile connectivity problems with mass-transit. Wearing
protective headgear is mandatory for both the rider and the pillion-rider in most cities.
Automobiles Private
automobiles account for 30% of the total transport demand in urban areas of India. An average of 1,800 new vehicles are registered every day in Delhi alone. The number of automobiles produced in India rose from 6.3 million in 2002–2003 to 11 million (11.2 million) in 2008–2009 and 28.4 million in 2023-2024. This reflects different levels of urban density and varied qualities of public transport infrastructure. Nationwide, India still has a very low rate of car ownership. When comparing car ownership between
BRICS developing countries, it is on a par with China, manufacturing plant at
Sriperumbudur,
Chennai,
Tamil Nadu Compact cars, especially
hatchbacks and
compact SUVs predominate due to affordability, fuel efficiency, congestion, and lack of parking space in most cities.
Chennai is known as the "Detroit of India" for its automobile industry.
Maruti,
Hyundai,
Mahindra and
Tata Motors are the most popular brands in the order of their market share. The
Ambassador once had a monopoly, but is now an icon of pre-
liberalisation India. The
Maruti 800 launched in 1984, created the first revolution in the Indian auto sector because of its low price and high quality. It had the highest market share until 2004, when it was overtaken by other low-cost models from Maruti such as the Alto and the Wagon R, the Indica from
Tata Motors and the
Santro from
Hyundai. Over the 20 years since its introduction, about 2.4 million Maruti 800s were sold. However, with the launch of the
Tata Nano, the least expensive
production car in the world, the Maruti 800 lost its popularity. India is also known for a variety of
indigenous vehicles made in villages out of simple motors and vehicle spare parts. A few of these
innovations are the
jugaad, maruta, chhakda, and the
peter rehra. In the city of
Bangalore,
Radio One and the Bangalore Traffic Police, launched a
carpooling drive which has involved celebrities such as
Robin Uthappa, and
Rahul Dravid encouraging the public to carpool. The initiative got a good response, and by the end of May 2009, 10,000 people are said to have carpooled in the city. There have been efforts to improve the energy efficiency of transport systems in Indian cities, including by introducing performance standards for private automobiles or by banning particularly polluting older cars. The city of Kolkata, for example, passed a law in 2009/10 phasing out vehicles over 15 years old with the purpose of reducing air pollution. However, the effects were mixed. On the one hand, poorer urban residents are more likely to see public health improvements from better air quality, since they are more likely to live in polluted areas and work outdoors than richer urban residents. On the other hand, drivers of such vehicles suffered from losing their livelihoods as a result of this environmental regulation.
Utility vehicles The first
utility vehicle in India was manufactured by
Mahindra. It was a copy of the original
Willys Jeep and was manufactured under licence. The vehicle was an instant hit and made Mahindra one of the top companies in India. The
Indian Army and police extensively use Mahindra vehicles along with
Maruti Gypsys for transporting personnel and equipment.
Tata Motors, the automobile manufacturing arm of the
Tata Group, launched its first utility vehicle, the
Tata Sumo, in 1994. The Sumo, owing to its then-modern design, captured a 31% share of the market within two years. The Tempo Trax from
Force Motors until recently was ruling the rural areas.
Sports utility vehicles now form a sizeable part of the passenger vehicle market. Models from Tata, Honda, Hyundai, Toyota and other brands are available.
Taxis Taxicabs in Mumbai and Kolkata were traditionally either
Premier Padmini or
Hindustan Ambassador cars. Currently, taxi fleets consist of more modern cars such as the
Suzuki Dzire and
Suzuki Ertiga. In recent years, taxi fleets in India have become more diverse, and taxicabs now include sedans, SUVs and even
motorcycle taxis. Depending on the city/state, taxis can either be hailed or hired from taxi-stands. In cities such as
Bengaluru,
Chennai,
Hyderabad and
Ahmedabad, taxis need to be hired over phone, whereas in cities like
Kolkata and
Mumbai, taxis can also be hailed on the street. According to Government of India regulations, all taxis are required to have a fare-meter installed. There are additional surcharges for luggage, late-night rides and toll taxes are to be paid by the passenger. In recent years, online app-based cabs have become increasingly popular with the public due to reasons of safety and convenience. In cities and localities where taxis are expensive or do not charge as per the government or municipal regulated fares, people use
share taxis. These are normal taxis which carry one or more passengers travelling to destinations either on one route to the final destination, or near the final destination. The passengers are charged according to the number of people with different destinations. The city of Mumbai became the first city in India to have an "in-taxi" magazine, titled
MumBaee, which was issued to taxis which are part of the Mumbai Taximen's Union. The magazine debuted on 13 July 2009. In
Kolkata, there are many
no refusal taxis available with white and blue in colour.
Auto auto rickshaw in Delhi, India An
auto is a three-wheeler
vehicle for hire that does not have doors and is generally characterised by a small cabin for the driver in the front and a seat for passengers in the rear. Generally it is painted in yellow, green or black and has a black, yellow or green canopy on the top, but designs vary considerably from place to place. The colour of the auto rickshaw is also determined by the fuel that it is powered by, for example
Agartala,
Ahmedabad,
Mumbai,
Pune and
Delhi have green or black autos indicating the use of
compressed natural gas, whereas the autos of
Kolkata,
Bengaluru,
Hyderabad have green autos indicating the use of LPG. In
Mumbai and other metropolitan cities, 'autos' or 'rickshaws', as they are popularly known, usually have regulated metered fares. A recent law prohibits auto rickshaw drivers from charging more than the specified fare, or charging night-fare before midnight, and also prohibits the driver from refusing to go to a particular location.
Mumbai and
Kolkata are also the only two cities, which prohibit auto rickshaws from entering certain parts of the city, these cases being
South Mumbai and certain parts of
Downtown Kolkata. However, in cities like
Chennai and other areas, some autorickshaw drivers demand more than the specified fare and refuse to use the fare meter. Airports and railway stations at many cities such as
Howrah,
Chennai and
Bengaluru provide a facility of
prepaid auto booths, which requires a fixed payment, with a base fare of Rs. 30 and a rate of Rs.14.20 per kilometre after 1.5 kilometres of travel, set by the authorities as of May 2022. The fare to be paid by the passenger is calculated on this basis.
Electric rickshaw is a new popular means of transport, rapidly growing in number and popularity in India, due to low running and initial cost, and other economic and environmental benefits. E-Rickshaws are made in fibreglass or metal body, powered by a BLDC Electric Motor with max power 2000W and speed 25 km/h. They are usually painted white and blue though some E-autos use the conventional colour scheme as well.
Intermediate or last-mile transport As per a report by
CPPR, "
Intermediate Public Transport (IPT), also known as para-transit or feeder service, refers to vehicles that work as a supplement to the public transport system by providing first and last mile connectivity to commuters. In urban and suburban areas, they commonly take the form of
autorickshaws, cycle rickshaws, taxis, mini buses and more recently
e-rickshaws. Jeeps, chakdas and kadukas (usually tractor or jeep chassis fitted with a trailer) provide feeder services in rural areas, connecting
villages to the nearest
towns. If the public transport system forms the skeleton of the framework, feeder services are its veins and capillaries." IPT fills gaps in
public transport and addresses deficiencies, catering to excess demand and serving areas lacking public transport. Despite its crucial role, IPT has been overlooked in policy for decades, remaining largely unorganised and neglected by the central government while facing heavy state regulation to avoid competition with state-owned transport systems.
Public transport typically excludes informal services like
autorickshaws,
taxis, and minibuses, yet these play a vital role in cities where formal systems are lacking. "In larger cities with more than one crore population, the major share of transport is served by formal systems like the bus, metro and suburban rail (refer table below). In medium sized cities with population less than one crore, IPT modes like autorickshaws are almost equal to the formal bus system. In smaller cities, with less than 10 lakh population, the share of IPTs is almost three times that of the formal bus system." The high prevalence of two-wheelers in small cities highlights the inadequacy of both formal and informal transport. Comparing the number of informal transport options to city buses per one lakh population in Indian cities reveals that informal transport is often equal to or surpasses city buses, indicating heavy reliance on informal transport due to its demand-responsive nature compared to fixed-route city buses. == Rail ==