NEW DELHI: The capital’s most controversial traffic project , the Rs 400-crore Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) corridor, will be scrapped. CM Arvind Kejriwal has given in-principle consent to undo the project and official directions are expected to be issued shortly.The BRT, a subject of heated debate between its few proponents and many opponents, was virtually a non-starter from the beginning. While it sought to promote the noble cause of faster public transport by giving buses a special lane, it miscalculated the road space required for other traffic, with the result that the specially designed stretch from Ambedkar Nagar to Defence Colony was mired in traffic jams, high pollution and high fuel consumption from idling vehicles. The stretch rapidly became notorious for frayed tempers, accidents and delays.While the government had asked the transport department to submit a plan on whether the BRT could be salvaged, sources said the decision to scrap it was taken without waiting for the report because it was felt that the corridor had no utility and was only creating a mess.Sources added that the government was not opposed to the BRT concept and could consider similar proposals, especially those being planned by the department of urban development, on a case-to-case basis."Some MLAs wrote to the CM recently asking for the project to be scrapped. Based on their demand, and that of the PWD minister, the CM has given in-principal approval and is expected to soon issue directions to the agencies concerned to start work on dismantling the project. A formal decision can be expected in the next few days. The planning and execution of this corridor created a bad name for the concept which may actually be a very good option to promote public transport," a source said.The 5.8 km-long corridor from Ambedkar Nagar to Moolchand was made operational in 2008 and soon came in for massive criticism for the way it was planned. With all traffic except buses crammed into a two-lane carriageway, the busy stretch saw massive traffic jams.Even the dedicated bus lanes running through the middle of the road weren't snag-free. Traffic here was held up every time a bus broke down. The project was also criticized for lack of facilities for pedestrians, especially in crossing the road to reach the bus shelters in the middle.While a few activists argued for BRT's retention on the ground that it provided equality of space for all road users, it was felt that the problems on this particular stretch far outweighed the benefits.Aam Aadmi Party had taken up the issue in its previous tenure in 2014 but the government fell before any substantial work could take place. This year, former transport minister Saurabh Bharadwaj, along with four other MLAs from the area - Dinesh Mohaniya, Prakash Jarwal, Madan Lal and Ajay Dutt - met both the transport and PWD ministers last week, asking for immediate action to remove the BRT corridor . PWD minister Satyendar Jain had asked the transport department to prepare a report and talks were on to appoint an expert committee to advise the government on the way forward."After meeting the two ministers, we also gave a letter to the CM on Tuesday. He told us that he would take a decision on the issue very soon. The five MLAs belong to areas directly affected by the BRT corridor and residents have been complaining to us for the past year," said Bharadwaj."The stretch is also highly dangerous, and recently a child was also run over by a bus. At present, no agency is operating it. It should go, especially since almost all agree that the project was a big mistake," he added. A few months earlier, police commissioner B S Bassi gave a report to the lieutenant governor on the corridor, calling the BRT a highly dangerous stretch. Former CM Sheila DIkshit had also acknowledged in 2013 that the project had been a failure.