According to the Union minister, India has the second largest road network with 63 lakh kilometres of thoroughfares.India has an inherent expertise to increase population and automobile numbers, said Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari at Times Network India Conclave on Friday.
While responding to a question about traffic issues in India, the minister stated that starting with Delhi, the wealthy have almost no parking in their homes. “They use roads and footpaths to park their cars. India has an inherent expertise to increase population and automobile numbers.”
He added, "We need to strengthen public transport in India. Although we have built comfortable public transport systems, more needs to be done. Only then will the number of cars on the roads decrease."
Gadkari in October this year asserted that India's road infrastructure will be better than that of America in the coming time, underscoring that efficient highways, waterways and railways can lower logistics costs and boost the economy.
Gadkari recalled that when he was a minister in Maharashtra, he had a quote by former US President John F Kennedy in his office: "American roads are not good because America is rich, but America is rich because American roads are good."
The senior BJP leader said his friend Ratan Tata, who passed away in October, had asked him several times about the quote during his visits to the minister's office.
"In the coming time, Indian road infrastructure will be even better than that of America. We will do it," Gadkari said. He told the participants of the seminar that they could bring about this change.
According to the Union minister, India has the second largest road network with 63 lakh kilometres of thoroughfares.
Road safety and the environment need to be improved to give a better life to people, he said.
