NEW DELHI: The national capital may pride itself on its wide roads, which are the envy of other Indian metros, but Delhi's drivers have the fifth most painful commute among 20 global cities, says a survey conducted by IBM among drivers in these cities. Almost all of Delhi's respondents said that traffic had negatively affected their health and half said that driving makes them angry.
IBM's 2010 Commuter Pain Survey polled 400 drivers in each of 20 major cities in six continents. Based on the results, it compiled a Commuter Pain Index that ranks the emotional and economic toll of commuting in each city on a scale of one to 100 along 10 indicators, including commuting time, driving-related stress and the impact of traffic on work.
If it's any consolation, Beijing, with a score of 99 on 100 is much worse than Delhi as is Mexico City. Johannesburg (97), Moscow (84) and New Delhi (81) complete the list of the five worst. London, ranked 10th worst, sits in the middle, while New York is 17th, which means it is among the best. In line with Scandinavian countries having the best standards of living, Stockholm's drivers experienced the minimum pain among the 20 cities covered.
Nearly all of Delhi's drivers — 96% to be precise — said traffic negatively affected their health. Almost two-thirds (62%) said traffic negatively affected their work or academic performance.
Info-T.O.I.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Delhi-worlds-5th-most-painful-city-for-drivers-Beijing-worse/articleshow/6117068.cms
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
A new set of hot wheels for John Abraham
John Abraham's fetish for bikes is legendary. Adding to the two superbikes in his garage, Bollywood's hottest hunk has a new war horse straight from the land of warrior Rajputs.
The actor had commissioned a bike from Jaipur-based Rajputana Customs, which according to the makers is "one of its kind in the world."
John Abraham with his new Rajputana Customs bike at his garage
"The bike we have built for John is an extension of his personality and taste. For instance, the bike is subtle, simplistic, and a complete stand-out much like John's calm and uncomplicated demeanour but amazing presence," Vijay Singh, co-owner of the Rajputana Customs, told MiD DAY.
He said the bike draws inspiration from the American 'Board Track Racer' of the 1910's where motorcycle races were conducted on oval race courses which were about 3-km long and the surface composed of wooden planks.
Singh said they treated John's bike with extra care as he is well versed with motorcycle design and they discussed the specifications with the Bollywood star in detail.
"We have made sure that John's bike is highly stylized in all aspects such as frame geometry and engine design," he said.
John is known as a true connoisseur of bikes and knows machines inside out. "It was a true pleasure to sit down with him and go over aspects of his custom machine," Singh added.
"The whole bike took 50 days to make and finish. Every thing on the bike has been made by hand...the chassis, single side-drum brakes, rims, spokes, girder-fork front suspension, gas tank, handle bars, seat, fenders, internal throttle assembly, even heads of the screws were shaved to make them sit flush and achieve an unmatched finish," he said.
Apart from his new toy, John also owns a Suzuki Hayabusa and Yamaha R1. Singh did not disclose the cost of the bike. Repeated calls to John Abraham were not returned.
John Abraham with his new Rajputana Customs bike at his garage
"The bike we have built for John is an extension of his personality and taste. For instance, the bike is subtle, simplistic, and a complete stand-out much like John's calm and uncomplicated demeanour but amazing presence," Vijay Singh, co-owner of the Rajputana Customs, told MiD DAY.
He said the bike draws inspiration from the American 'Board Track Racer' of the 1910's where motorcycle races were conducted on oval race courses which were about 3-km long and the surface composed of wooden planks.
Singh said they treated John's bike with extra care as he is well versed with motorcycle design and they discussed the specifications with the Bollywood star in detail.
"We have made sure that John's bike is highly stylized in all aspects such as frame geometry and engine design," he said.
John is known as a true connoisseur of bikes and knows machines inside out. "It was a true pleasure to sit down with him and go over aspects of his custom machine," Singh added.
"The whole bike took 50 days to make and finish. Every thing on the bike has been made by hand...the chassis, single side-drum brakes, rims, spokes, girder-fork front suspension, gas tank, handle bars, seat, fenders, internal throttle assembly, even heads of the screws were shaved to make them sit flush and achieve an unmatched finish," he said.
Apart from his new toy, John also owns a Suzuki Hayabusa and Yamaha R1. Singh did not disclose the cost of the bike. Repeated calls to John Abraham were not returned.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
United Colours Of Enfield and Kinetic
Royal Enfield Motorcycles is inundated with orders but is simply unable to meet the demand for motorcycles.
The Chennai-based company produces 4,500 bikes on average every month, while the market demand exceeds this by at least 2,000 units.
“It is a difficult situation and we are looking at a variety of options to get over this problem,” Mr R. L. Ravichandran, Chief Executive Officer, told Business Line. One of the chief problems lies with the paint shop, which is not large enough to cope with the orders.
“In fact, our bigger problem is meeting the demand for the Classic model, which uses a unique paint and painting process. The in-house capacity is just not able to satisfy the demand. We have a six-month waiting period as of now,” he said.
Help in Pune
Royal Enfield has partially overcome this problem by reaching out to the Kinetic group. Pune-based Kinetic, which recently sold its two-wheeler business to Mahindra & Mahindra, has spare capacity at its Ahmednagar paint shop which Royal Enfield is now using to paint key motorcycle components including front and rear metal fenders, cover tubes, toolbox and ornamental covers for its Classic model.
The company, however, needs a long-term solution. Its plant is located not in one of Chennai's bustling auto hubs of Maraimalainagar or Sriperumbudur, which are home to the likes of Ford and Hyundai, but in Tiruvottiyur, one of the oldest parts of the city.
Mr Ravichandran said the company is working at ways to overcome the present supply crunch.
“There is only so much this plant can take, but it is not as if we can just start producing motorcycles overnight in a new facility,” he added.
Coming full circle
Amidst this anxiety, there is also cause for cheer at Royal Enfield. Quite unlike the big-ticket manufacturers like Hero Honda, Bajaj Auto or TVS Motor, this company is a niche player with a focus on high-end leisure cruiser bikes.
When Mr Ravichandran took over as CEO five years ago, things were not in the best of shape. The company was rather wobbly with a fragile bottomline, a limited array of products, and with more stocks than demand.
“Since then, things have gradually got back on track with the domestic and global business looking more buoyant, thanks to a focused business strategy on new models and engine, stricter quality standards, well-tuned brand initiatives and a vibrant team,” he said.
And the biggest turnaround of all is the waiting period for bikes which ranges from eight weeks to six months. “Customers have been calling non-stop to check when they can own one. We are pulling out all stops but this is still not enough,” Mr Ravichandran said.
Honda gears up once again to promote racing
Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Pvt. Ltd. (HMSI), the 100% owned 2-wheeler subsidiary of the Honda Motor Company, Japan, is all set to conduct five rounds of ‘Honda One Make Race’ in Chennai this year. The round one will be held from June 4-6 has already revived heart-warming enthusiasm among the participant and others alike. Once again, it has brought the racing enthusiasts together to make them experience the adventure, thrill and sporting spirit of the event.
Honda had successfully participated in all the five rounds in the ‘Rolon – FMSCI National Motorcycle Racing Championship event series held in Coimbatore and Chennai last year. The “One Make Race” event series last year saw the participation of about 350 riders. We had awarded the CBF Stunner class champion with a New CBF Stunner Bike and Trophy apart from the cash awards and trophy in each round to the winners.
Popularly known as the ‘Honda One Make Race,’ the activity is aimed at providing ‘Fun Riding Experience’ to all participants as well as spectators in a safe and controlled environment.
Honda keeps on enhancing its product lineup to meet the diversified needs of the Indian 2wheeler customers, with last year’s full model change of the Activa 110cc scooter, one of the company’s best-selling products, and by introducing the CB Twister 110cc motorcycle in February 2010 in the 100-110cc market segment, which accounts for approximately 50% of total motorcycle market. Recently HMSI also launched the new CB Unicorn Dazzler, the 150cc bike, a great combination of style & performance for the young customers. The decision to build the second motorcycle production plant was made to better accommodate a further increase in demand in India.
Honda One Make Race is mainly focuses in two categories – CBR150 & CBF Stunner, this year Honda is adding up one more new category with its recently launched 110cc Mass model CB Twister. Now there will be three kinds of races; CB Twister for Novice class, CBF Stunner for Intermediate class and CBR150 (import from Thailand) for expert class.
Honda is Technical sponsor of Sidvin- FMSCI National Motorcycle Racing Championship 2010. This year we will be awarding the winners in each round of Honda One Make championship and Race (1st – Rs 7500, 2nd – Rs 5000, 3rd – Rs 2500). We will also be awarding the championship prize at the end of 5 rounds for CBF Stunner Class and CBR 150 class (1st Prize: Bike + Cup, 2nd Prize: Rs20000 + Trophy, 3rd Prize: Rs10000 +Trophy)
In addition to the racing sports, participants will have a chance to improve their riding skills through various fun & Safety riding activities, which will further enable them to implement these skills in their day-to-day riding. Many biking enthusiasts and Auto journalists will also participate in the Honda ‘One Make Race’.
Honda promoted Safe biking and Gymkhana activities. These activities gave the visitors an opportunity to get tips on safe riding from the Safety Riding Instructor. Honda also spread its belief that fun-biking can also be safe.
Safety issue is very close to Honda’s heart. HMSI has taken several initiatives to generate awareness and knowledge about safety. A large number of students, corporate entities and other institutions have been trained for Safe riding and safety education. HMSI has also installed Safety Riding Trainers at its dealerships in order to cultivate a healthy road sense among the riders. HMSI believes in educating young kids about traffic sense and safe riding through fun riding experience using CRF50 bike designed especially for kids. HMSI has also taken initiative to provide special riding education to ladies for them to ride safely on their scooters.
Honda had launched its international premium bikes – CB1000R & CBR1000RR Fireblade - in the Indian market last year in order to popularize the fun-biking culture. The bikes have generated good response amongst the Indian biking enthusiasts. We will be taking more steps in this direction. This year we will be introducing our latest International bike VFR1200 to Indian Market.
A lot of fun activities at the racing events ensured that all those present at the track had a gala time apart from experiencing the adventure of the racing event. Even the kids enjoyed learning safety riding with the CRF-50 model which has been specially designed to give them an experience and education on two-wheeler & road safety.
Excerpts from Company officials-
“We will continue our efforts in promoting the fun biking culture in India in controlled & safe manner. As a responsible member of society Honda always believes in nurturing the youngsters with safe fun biking with our nationwide spread of Gymkhana activities. ” – said Mr. N.K Rattan, Operation Head, Sales & Marketing, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Pvt. Ltd.in his presentation.
About HMSI
Honda is the world''s largest manufacturer of 2-wheelers. Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Pvt. Ltd. (HMSI), is a 100% owned subsidiary of Honda Motor Company Ltd., Japan. Current HMSI products include Activa, Dio & Aviator in Scooters and CB Unicorn, CB Shine, CBF Stunner, CB Twister & CB Unicorn Dazzler in Motorcycles. All products have been well received in the market and have created new benchmarks in their respective categories. HMSI has also entered the Fun-Bike market last year with the launch of CBR1000RR Fireblade and CB1000R bikes in the Indian market. For more information visit www.honda2wheelersindia.com
Honda had successfully participated in all the five rounds in the ‘Rolon – FMSCI National Motorcycle Racing Championship event series held in Coimbatore and Chennai last year. The “One Make Race” event series last year saw the participation of about 350 riders. We had awarded the CBF Stunner class champion with a New CBF Stunner Bike and Trophy apart from the cash awards and trophy in each round to the winners.
Popularly known as the ‘Honda One Make Race,’ the activity is aimed at providing ‘Fun Riding Experience’ to all participants as well as spectators in a safe and controlled environment.
Honda keeps on enhancing its product lineup to meet the diversified needs of the Indian 2wheeler customers, with last year’s full model change of the Activa 110cc scooter, one of the company’s best-selling products, and by introducing the CB Twister 110cc motorcycle in February 2010 in the 100-110cc market segment, which accounts for approximately 50% of total motorcycle market. Recently HMSI also launched the new CB Unicorn Dazzler, the 150cc bike, a great combination of style & performance for the young customers. The decision to build the second motorcycle production plant was made to better accommodate a further increase in demand in India.
Honda One Make Race is mainly focuses in two categories – CBR150 & CBF Stunner, this year Honda is adding up one more new category with its recently launched 110cc Mass model CB Twister. Now there will be three kinds of races; CB Twister for Novice class, CBF Stunner for Intermediate class and CBR150 (import from Thailand) for expert class.
Honda is Technical sponsor of Sidvin- FMSCI National Motorcycle Racing Championship 2010. This year we will be awarding the winners in each round of Honda One Make championship and Race (1st – Rs 7500, 2nd – Rs 5000, 3rd – Rs 2500). We will also be awarding the championship prize at the end of 5 rounds for CBF Stunner Class and CBR 150 class (1st Prize: Bike + Cup, 2nd Prize: Rs20000 + Trophy, 3rd Prize: Rs10000 +Trophy)
In addition to the racing sports, participants will have a chance to improve their riding skills through various fun & Safety riding activities, which will further enable them to implement these skills in their day-to-day riding. Many biking enthusiasts and Auto journalists will also participate in the Honda ‘One Make Race’.
Honda promoted Safe biking and Gymkhana activities. These activities gave the visitors an opportunity to get tips on safe riding from the Safety Riding Instructor. Honda also spread its belief that fun-biking can also be safe.
Safety issue is very close to Honda’s heart. HMSI has taken several initiatives to generate awareness and knowledge about safety. A large number of students, corporate entities and other institutions have been trained for Safe riding and safety education. HMSI has also installed Safety Riding Trainers at its dealerships in order to cultivate a healthy road sense among the riders. HMSI believes in educating young kids about traffic sense and safe riding through fun riding experience using CRF50 bike designed especially for kids. HMSI has also taken initiative to provide special riding education to ladies for them to ride safely on their scooters.
Honda had launched its international premium bikes – CB1000R & CBR1000RR Fireblade - in the Indian market last year in order to popularize the fun-biking culture. The bikes have generated good response amongst the Indian biking enthusiasts. We will be taking more steps in this direction. This year we will be introducing our latest International bike VFR1200 to Indian Market.
A lot of fun activities at the racing events ensured that all those present at the track had a gala time apart from experiencing the adventure of the racing event. Even the kids enjoyed learning safety riding with the CRF-50 model which has been specially designed to give them an experience and education on two-wheeler & road safety.
Excerpts from Company officials-
“We will continue our efforts in promoting the fun biking culture in India in controlled & safe manner. As a responsible member of society Honda always believes in nurturing the youngsters with safe fun biking with our nationwide spread of Gymkhana activities. ” – said Mr. N.K Rattan, Operation Head, Sales & Marketing, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Pvt. Ltd.in his presentation.
About HMSI
Honda is the world''s largest manufacturer of 2-wheelers. Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Pvt. Ltd. (HMSI), is a 100% owned subsidiary of Honda Motor Company Ltd., Japan. Current HMSI products include Activa, Dio & Aviator in Scooters and CB Unicorn, CB Shine, CBF Stunner, CB Twister & CB Unicorn Dazzler in Motorcycles. All products have been well received in the market and have created new benchmarks in their respective categories. HMSI has also entered the Fun-Bike market last year with the launch of CBR1000RR Fireblade and CB1000R bikes in the Indian market. For more information visit www.honda2wheelersindia.com
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Yamaha sales up by 17 % in May
New Delhi, June 1st, 2010: Inching closer towards its 2010 target, India Yamaha Motor has registered 17% growth in sales during May 2010 as compared to the corresponding period last year. It sold 25,033 units in May 2010 as against 21,388 units sold in May 2009. In domestic markets, the company sold 17,614 units in May 2010 as compared to 16,952 units in the same month last year. The export figures stood at 7,419 units in May 2010 while 4,436 units were exported in May 2009.
“We have been receiving a tremendous response from Indian and overseas markets across all product segments. We are particularly impressed with the response we are receiving for entry level YBR 110 and refreshed FZ16 & FZ-S deluxe segment bikes and which have helped in increasing our sales numbers. In domestic markets, we will continue with our focus on dealer network expansion to further augment our sales in the coming months”, said Mr. Koji Arai, Director & Chief Sales Officer, India Yamaha Motor Pvt. Ltd.
Yamaha is continuing with its efforts to enhance consumer confidence by taking customer centric initiatives like Yamaha Safe Riding Science, Yamaha Service Camp, Mobile Service Caravan initiatives as also racing events like Yamaha R15 One Make Race Championship.
This year, Yamaha R15 One Make Race Championship is being kick-started in Chennai on 5th & 6th June (Round 1) as part of the “SIDVIN-FMSCI National Motorcycle Racing Championship-2010”. Yamaha has modified the racing format for the Season 2010 by making it an open championship and has invited participation from both Yamaha and Non-Yamaha customers.
Info-Yamaha Motor India
“We have been receiving a tremendous response from Indian and overseas markets across all product segments. We are particularly impressed with the response we are receiving for entry level YBR 110 and refreshed FZ16 & FZ-S deluxe segment bikes and which have helped in increasing our sales numbers. In domestic markets, we will continue with our focus on dealer network expansion to further augment our sales in the coming months”, said Mr. Koji Arai, Director & Chief Sales Officer, India Yamaha Motor Pvt. Ltd.
Yamaha is continuing with its efforts to enhance consumer confidence by taking customer centric initiatives like Yamaha Safe Riding Science, Yamaha Service Camp, Mobile Service Caravan initiatives as also racing events like Yamaha R15 One Make Race Championship.
This year, Yamaha R15 One Make Race Championship is being kick-started in Chennai on 5th & 6th June (Round 1) as part of the “SIDVIN-FMSCI National Motorcycle Racing Championship-2010”. Yamaha has modified the racing format for the Season 2010 by making it an open championship and has invited participation from both Yamaha and Non-Yamaha customers.
Info-Yamaha Motor India
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