Bus Q Shelter Design - Dilli Meri Jaan - दिल्ली मेरी जान

NDMC Bus Stand Design Competition 2001

This (episode) is from 2001. A Drawing and a Photo are posted. Architectural Plan Drawing is part of drawings that I prepared for NDMC in 2001 (March April, I think) for the Bus Q Shelter Design Competition. I was hired by a Construction Company. There were only 4 entries. Oops? Mine was the best! Ye-ee-aa-hh! :-) And I was the only Architect amongst the 4 competitors! And then I was actually the only one to hire a Structural Consultant also! This fact is mentioned for some reason only. The Structural Drawings are not in this post, btw.

Find below the Architectural Plan Drawing. In the Plan, you see that the entry into the Shelter is from the Side Front (and not the road only). I made a provision for the pedestrian to walk in the Shelter ‘organised’ – provide definition. Don’t just scoff at it (some pseudos will) but understand it. The Broken Lines are the extent of the Bus Q Shelter. The total area of the Bus Stand enclosure was to be 25 SQM. The dimensions of the Shelter were worked out by me to be 8025 MM x 3115 MM. So when you enter the Shelter from the side, you are in already, then you take three steps or four, then you turn and you enter further in. Simple.

Architectural Plan Drawing of a Bus Q Shelter Design Competition Submission from 2001. This is for NDMC (New Delhi Municipal Council). Sandeep Vij Architect's Designs were adjudged the Best Design, though no prize was awarded to him! He was not even mentioned anywhere!

There is a railing towards the sides as you enter (both left and right) and then there is also a railing towards the front. I called it the “Balcony Railing”. :-) Now in this Balcony Railing I had envisioned a commuter, passenger with his hands on the railing and waiting for the bus and looking towards the direction of the oncoming bus. So “THAT” was the ‘symbolic, appropriate, direct, correct, true, apt’ representation of a Bus Stand. :-) It has four vertical Stainless Steel pipes, and then it has a C shaped or U shaped SS pipe towards the top which you see in the Plan, It has 1000 MM height. The whole of it forms the railing. Refer Front Elevation when it comes. Towards the sides of this shelter but very much within the compound is a railing to sort of encase or enclose the shelter from the sides. Once again it is about definition (fortifying?, not really .. maybe yes ..). This was supposed to be the NDMC area, and I reminded myself of the Chain that you see along Rajpath and India Gate. Remember? So this Chain would automatically immediately bind the City! Yes? Call it 'Visual Connect'. Refer Side Elevations when they arrive in a subsequent Post. I called it the Chain Railing. You see Benches at the rear. And just behind the Benches towards the fag rear of the compound I provided 25 CM of Green! And then I also proposed that another 25 CM of Green be provided as donation (misnomer) by the NDMC so that the total Green width becomes 50 CM. I used the term. “Bhagidari”. The word Bhagidari became a buzzword soon after in Delhi (I am not suggesting that it was because of my using it here, but I don’t know). So the portion where you find GREEN mentioned is actually the portion just outside of this Compound. The Shelter ends just before that and you can make that out from the dimensions on the left. There are also square pipes towards the rear to prevent the person from straying into the Green (and also for definition).

This Shelter is not just after the kerb and does not start immediately from the road. That’s not shown here. I had envisaged that the person walking along the pavement will either enter the Bus Stand or else move from the rear of the Shelter if he is just passing by, even though there is space towards the front. The pedestrian not intending to enter the shelter walks in one direction, the passenger waiting in the shelter walks in the perpendicular direction to that. So to prevent collisions between the two, I nudged the pavement walker towards the rear, and I had reminded myself initially while beginning the design that this is NDMC area, they have broad pavements. There can be space at the back. So the front is clear. He is not supposed to walk from towards the front. And for that I had carefully prepared an ‘extra’ site plan actually (not here in this Post – but it will come soon). I had nudged the city walker (on the pavement), while still away from the Bus Q Shelter by several metres, to gently change direction and move towards the rear. He was supposed to ‘select’ from the diversion – ‘select your lane’ type. So people walk from the rear. And in case he goes towards the front lane accidentally and then realises that ‘oops, …’, there was a provision to ‘get him back’ without taking a u-turn! ;-) Refer the Site Plan when it arrives. Seamless, .. I am, .. Watson?!, .. huh? .. Subtle is more like it! I wanted to have a similar thing in place for the accidental rear lane entry wallah also but was shelved by me to prevent overkill.

Look also at the accompanying photo (shot on Dec. 23, 2015). This is not exactly the replica of my Design, but you can see the landscaping just towards the rear of the Shelter. This is somewhere in NDMC area of course. I am not blowing my own trumpet but I am only trying to make a point for the citizens of Delhi, through this my post, on my own personal web platform. Anyway in the Plan Drawing you also see a glimpse of the landscaping along the nudged path just towards the right as it ends at the side of the Shelter. I have mentioned that the Site Plan will also be posted later. And now look at the photo also by the way - Glimpses of my designs here and there. In my Plan Drawing you see that there are ad panels towards the rear, and there are also ad panels on the sides, one is towards the ‘front of the side’, other is towards the ‘rear of the side’. Refer the side elevations when they come accompanied by reasons, description etc.

Photo of a Bus Stand from the NDMC area in New Delhi. Photo clicked by Sandeep Vij. This is not Sandeep Vij's Design exactly, but glimpses of his Design Submission from 2001 (!) can be seen when an Architectural Design Competition was held by New Delhi Municipal Council for Bus Q Shelter Designs.

The roof structure is supported by two pipes towards the front and two at the back. These round columns are all 150 MM dia and 6 MM thick MS Pipes.

And a certain Mr. Mishra was Chairman of the NDMC at that time btw. The Company that hired me is called Progressive Constructions.

:-) . . . Till next time then. . . I Shall Be Back. . . .  . .

[Later Edit: Next Post is at http://www.sandeepvij.blogspot.com/2018/05/ndmc-bus-q-shelter-design-competition-wings.html .]

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