[TusharK]

The government of Delhi is mulling a new car and bike ownership rule that could put a limit on the number of petrol/diesel vehicles a family can buy and ban sales of fuel-guzzling motorbikes and scooters.



Reports suggest that the new policy is set to limit the number of fossil fuel cars each household can purchase to 2 vehicles. The government will waive some taxes on the purchase of hybrid vehicles, which could lower their cost by up to 15%. It aims to achieve 30% EV penetration by 2030.

In the second phase, the government plans to ban sales of all petrol, diesel and gas-based 2-wheelers from April 1, 2027. At the same time, the government will provide cash incentives for the purchase of electric bikes and scooters.

An additional levy of Rs 0.5 on every litre of petrol sold has been proposed.

The new policy is expected to cost the Delhi government Rs 28.6 billion. That being said, it is yet to be finalized and could change based on the feedback from car manufacturers and other stakeholders.

Source: ET Auto

Link to Team-BHP news

[Mitadru]

A welcome decision in my opinion. Just extend it to limit all form of private vehicles ownership. Since roads aren't exactly known to grow on trees, it will greatly help in reducing congestion in the Delhi roads, especially during peak time. I had travelled to Delhi earlier this year,and it took us around 10-15 minutes to cover a 200 m stretch. But as always these will not help curb pollution. Factories and power plants also need to check their emissions.

[thoroughbred]

Why can't Delhi government create a Congestion charge, ala London and Paris? Create a congestion zone and dedicated hours, pool resources to ply most public transport during this time to serve the public.

Bigger cities have done it. Even Beijing was able to clear the pollution by improving infrastructure, sure Delhi can do it too.

[Bit]

And how exactly are they going to know (and define) "Family", let alone stopping them from buying?

[sunnsood]

Originally Posted by thoroughbred

Why can't Delhi government create a Congestion charge, ala London and Paris? Create a congestion zone and dedicated hours, pool resources to ply most public transport during this time to serve the public.

Issue is Metro is overloaded during peak hours and it's only after missing 2-3 trains, one gets to sneak in. Moreover, where possible Govt has made parking chargeable.

Laslty already have different rates for Weekdays vs weekends.

So we are already skinned by all sides. Hope there isn't a new one sooner or later.

[NinerWhiskey]

A family may own multiple cars registered to different individuals in the family. This is a loophole which I do not think can be fixed.

Highway tolls continue well past recovery, roads remain broken, dusty, and unsafe — contributing to PM10 pollution.

Fuel prices stay high despite global drops. Delhi bans 15-year petrol and 10-year diesel cars, and plans to ban ICE two-wheelers next, and now they want to limit cars per family!!??

Are core issues being addressed at all?
In developed countries, such steps come after strong public transport and infrastructure are in place. Here, only 1 in 12 households owns a car — and 4 wheeler ownership is bound to rise. The focus should be on parking solutions, better roads, and public transport, not on restricting ownership. The problem isn’t how many cars we own — it’s how poorly we’ve planned for them. They need to redesign the entire hierarchy of the authority chain which they won't, as this would lead to stop of supply of "perfectly legal-illegal" money.

[Captain Slow]

Originally Posted by Bit

And how exactly are they going to know (and define) "Family", let alone stopping them from buying?

More red tape and licenses are on the way—looks like the License Raj is making a comeback!

[YK85]

Originally Posted by NinerWhiskey

A family may own multiple cars registered to different individuals in the family. This is a loophole which I do not think can be fixed.

Highway tolls continue well past recovery, roads remain broken, dusty, and unsafe — contributing to PM10 pollution.

Fuel prices stay high despite global drops. Delhi bans 15-year petrol and 10-year diesel cars, and plans to ban ICE two-wheelers next, and now they want to limit cars per family!!??

Are core issues being addressed at all?

None of these measures make any sense because there is actually no serious intent to solve any problem. It's just an eyewash to deceive people into thinking some steps are being taken against pollution.
Regarding multiple cars, it's simply a stupid idea because I or my family may own 20 cars but would I be driving all 20 at the same time? So ownership of multiple cars does not really have any impact on the number of cars on the road.

Likewise for EVs, most of our electricity comes from burning coal, which is even worse than petrol and diesel. So increased number of EVs will simply cause more pollution, not less. The fact that even now we are not able to ensure 24/7 power supply is a separate discussion.

Simple steps like reducing congestion and improving public transport would have a bigger impact but that requires efforts and investment which is anathema to sarkar. Even simple steps like removing speed breakers and potholes from roads would give considerable benefits in reducing pollution, think in terms of several million vehicles braking for speed breakers and potholes, then burning fuel to get back to cruising speed, the amount of fuel wasted for that multiplied by millions every day for years. Also consider the jams and slow moving traffic caused by these. How much fuel is wasted and pollution increased, one can only imagine.

In NCR, bus service is atrocious while the metro is severely overloaded. And government is completely clueless about the purpose of public transport. The goal of Public transport is not profit, it is simply to provide safe, comfortable and secure transport which reduces the need for private vehicles. If public transport is good, most people would not need to use private vehicles.

But it's futile to expect sensible decisions from sarkar, it seems to me that ministers and babus simply evaluate options in terms of how much pain it can cause to the people and how much can be looted from them, then simply choose the option that inflicts the most pain and / or loots the most.

[self_driven]

I used to criticise desperate brands like Nissan and Honda for coming up with illogical products and special editions to stay in the news. Now the policy makers seem to be doing the same thing. Okay, Delhi government, we know you are doing something for air pollution!

[Axe77]

Banana Republic policy making at its worst. The scary thing with NCR is they might actually do it as well.

Scooters too are a lifeline for many from a basic commute to livelihood perspective. Is everyone expected to buy only electric scooters now regardless of their ability to charge it and what not. How do various delivery service folks get by?

Address the real pollutant sources first like crop burning, rampant construction, debris and garbage disposal and what not. Our major metros are properly dying on account of civic indiscipline and no serious administrative will - in different ways whether its Mumbai, Bangalore or Delhi.

[Piyushjaiswal]

What a brilliant masterstroke by Delhi’s policy wizards! Nothing solves traffic congestion and pollution like telling families, ‘Sorry, your third car is just too much for Mother Earth to handle—but don’t worry, you can still buy two!’ Because clearly, the problem isn’t the lack of reliable public transport or crumbling infrastructure—it’s those greedy middle-class families hoarding petrol cars like they’re limited-edition collectibles.

And let’s not forget the “generous” 15% tax waiver on hybrid vehicles—because nothing says “affordable green transition” like a discount on cars that still cost more than most people’s annual salaries.

But the real pièce de résistance? Banning all petrol two-wheelers by 2027—because nothing ensures smooth adoption of EVs like forcing millions of gig workers and middle-income workers to suddenly switch to bikes with questionable range, nonexistent charging infra, and prices inflated by cash incentives (read: taxpayer-funded subsidies for manufacturers).

Bravo, Delhi government! Another policy that’s equal parts unrealistic, burdensome, and utterly tone-deaf. Can’t wait for the next one.

:Sincerely, A citizen who’s tired of Symbolism over Solutions!

[cool.aquarian]

Originally Posted by YK85

Simple steps like reducing congestion and improving public transport would have a bigger impact but that requires efforts and investment which is anathema to sarkar. Even simple steps like removing speed breakers and potholes from roads would give considerable benefits in reducing pollution, think in terms of several million vehicles braking for speed breakers and potholes, then burning fuel to get back to cruising speed, the amount of fuel wasted for that multiplied by millions every day for years. Also consider the jams and slow moving traffic caused by these. How much fuel is wasted and pollution increased, one can only imagine.

In NCR, bus service is atrocious while the metro is severely overloaded. And government is completely clueless about the purpose of public transport. The goal of Public transport is not profit, it is simply to provide safe, comfortable and secure transport which reduces the need for private vehicles. If public transport is good, most people would not need to use private vehicles.

But it's futile to expect sensible decisions from sarkar, it seems to me that ministers and babus simply evaluate options in terms of how much pain it can cause to the people and how much can be looted from them, then simply choose the option that inflicts the most pain and / or loots the most.

Couldn't have said in any better way.

Originally Posted by Axe77

Address the real pollutant sources first like crop burning, rampant construction, debris and garbage disposal and what not. Our major metros are properly dying on account of civic indiscipline and no serious administrative will - in different ways whether its Mumbai, Bangalore or Delhi.

Vehicular pollution is real 24x7 pollutant source, contributes to about 40% overall pollution.
Crop burning is seasonal and present for few months during year.
Construction is altogether different level topic as it involves minting of money by real estate mafia, so difficult to mess with .

[Nithesh_M]

Originally Posted by Bit

And how exactly are they going to know (and define) "Family", let alone stopping them from buying?

Good question. People who can afford 2 or more cars in a family also can afford a second home address to register their 3rd and 4th car and thus bypass any limit the govt imposes. They can also claim they've cut ties from the other family members.

Its like that episode of Panchayat where an old lady fake fights with her son and daughter in law so she can get a new govt house under govt scheme for old destitute people.

[mack.mehul]

This rule if implemented will be patently funny. How do you limit two cars per family. What shall be the definition of family. Its implementation incase of nuclear and joint family or such families where parents are living in one house with two sons etc.

[It's Magic]

Currently, it's planned for Delhi, but it is quite possible that it might soon be extended to a few other states.

There is an issue of vehicle pollution, agreed, but stopping people from purchasing new vehicles is not necessarily the ideal solution.

I guess the government should think about building better local transport infrastructure so that the need to own a personal vehicle is reduced. More reliable, cost friendly, and safer public transport avenues should be explored.

If many people travel from point A to point B every day and they know there is quicker and cheaper public transport available, many will opt for it rather than spending on purchasing their own vehicles.