HYDERABAD: Two years since the ambitious Car-free Thursday (CFT) initiative was called for by several techies, associations and companies, Thursdays at IT corridor seem to be no different from any other day as there are not many takers for initiative now.
Launched in 2015, the campaign created a buzz to decongest the roads of IT corridor beside reducing air and noise pollution. But all it took was few months for the fizz to die down as, except a few enthusiasts, the campaign failed to reach the masses.
“There should be a societal awakening on the need to gain mass support for campaigns like these. People should realise that it is being done for a better tomorrow and not just for a day,” said Bharani Kumal Aroll, secretary, Society for Cyberabad Security Council. The way forward will be generating a strong support from major tech companies to take pro-active action in endorsing concepts like car-pooling, he added. Meanwhile, B Vishala, communication strategist of CFT, feels that social initiatives die soon as the vision is not easily understood by everyone. “A collaborative effort should arise for a long term impact. Our project is now a case study for the government to take cognisance and act upon,” she said.
Car pooling the way forward
The car pooling trend is yet to gain momentum in Hyderabad. Despite several apps providing car pooling facilities, people still prefer either travelling by their own transport or through cab facility provided by the company.
“We have car pooling facility in our company but very few use it. The main reason is that logout times of employees will differ and this discourages them from going for pooling,” said Yogi Vikas, a techie. If any of us says no to cab facilities, an extra `4,400 is given to them. But this works fine for only who stay near the company, he further added.