AGRA - As the first 11 of the long-awaited fleet of low-floor buses to be inducted in the city bus service arrived here, residents fear that the new vehicles will lead to frequent traffic jams.

These buses, of which the first lot arrived Thursday evening, will connect historical monuments and ferry tourists across the city, according to officials of the Uttar Pradesh state road transport corporation. Agra will get 200 buses in phases as part of a scheme under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM).

Local commuters, long used to cycle- and auto-rickshaws claim these buses will lead to traffic jams becoming a permanent feature as the city does not have the kind of roads these luxury buses require.

“As it is, there are traffic jams in many parts. Once these buses come on the roads, there is bound to be utter chaos. The authorities should have first taken measures to widen the roads and remove encroachments with a firm hand,” says orthopaedic surgeon Sanjay Chaturvedi, who has been assisting the traffic police plan vehicular movement within the city, as head of the Agra Task Force.

A round table on traffic snarls in the city has urged authorities to prepare the ground for the movement of these vehicles.

Real Estate Developers and Colonisers organisation (REDCO) president K.C. Jain said: “Proper ground work has not been done and there could be any number of problems in the days to come. If these buses do not run or obstruct traffic movement, then what is the point in starting the service and squandering away public resources.”

Agra has experimented with mini buses under Mahanagar City bus service a few years ago, but it did not yield expected results, and one could see chaos everywhere, says social activist Sudhir Gupta.

“In the 1970s, we did have a proper city bus service but at that time there wasn’t so much pressure on roads. Now we have more than five lakh (500,000) vehicles registered, compared to just 40,000 in 1985. However, the roads continue to remain same… in fact, they have got worse now,” he said.

Hotelier Surendra Sharma said tourists visiting Agra prefer to hire auto-rickshaws to move through the city. Some take horse-driven tongas for adventure, and a majority of foreign tourists use air-conditioned taxis.

“The buses had to come, as there is big money in cuts and commissions. Imagine 200 big buses on Agra roads. It is a sure invitation to permanent chaos,” eco-activist Ravi Singh said.