Even though crores are being spent on giving the city’s public transport a boost, commuters remain unhappy with the service. Questions are being raised as to whether DTC’s swank makeover is all show and no substance.

Commuters are fed up with the increased fares, lack of change, tardy timings and the unwaveringly sloth work culture of the DTC buses. Samyukta Singh, a resident of Malviya Nagar says, “Bus fares have increased by almost 150%, so has infrastructure but the service is still the same. Even after the increased fares, DTC buses never come on time and one cannot predict travel times either.”

“DTC’s green buses will not come before an hour, so there’s no point waiting. Take the Metro or a Blueline instead,’’ said Raj Mishra, who works in Noida, Sector 2.

Maintenance of the new low-floor fleet has been outsourced to the bus manufacturers — Tata Motors and Ashok Leyland — and DTC is paying nearly Rs 40 lakh per bus for a 12-year term. Despite this, buses are dirty. Garbage and torn tickets lie strewn on the floor. Window panes are not clean and even seats and door panels are dusty.

Bus staff also run out of printed tickets after about 8pm. Passengers are then sometimes asked to pay only half the fare, since the chances of a ticket checker suddenly appearing are slim at that hour.