Cycling plan goes off-track in Delhi

Plans to develop cycling infrastructure to promote non-motorised transport in the city and cut down on vehicular emissions, which add to the pollution cocktail dragging down air quality.
While cyclists are seldom seen on tracks, vehicles are often found parked in these vacant spaces. (Photo | EPS, Arun Kumar)
While cyclists are seldom seen on tracks, vehicles are often found parked in these vacant spaces. (Photo | EPS, Arun Kumar)

The extreme pollution levels and free-falling air quality in the national capital has yet again stoked a debate on whether the city needs to switch to an alternative mode of transport, a non-motorised one, to cut down on toxic vehicular emissions. However, one look at the existing cycling lanes in the city will make you wonder if it’s, at all, a feasible option.

The general sense that the so-called dedicated cycling lanes convey is that all the tall talk around developing infrastructure to encourage use of non-motorised modes of transport in the city has come to naught. Though seen as an effective way to rid the city off its pollution taint, all attempts to encourage cycling as an alternative mode of communication have failed.

Not a safe option

Sunim Kumar, a 35-year-old Delhi resident who often cycles around the Lodhi Road in the evening, said though it’s a hobby and he has actually been giving a thought to pedalling to work over the last four years, he dares not as “even cycling for leisure in Delhi can make you feel vulnerable, forget doing it as a routine”.“I love cycling and have lived in places where one can pedal to work. I have been residing in Delhi for a over a decade now and since the climate change has become such a big issue these days, I often think about cycling to work and even encouraging others to do so. However, out here, it’s like inviting people to a death trap. There’s simply no attention to the safety and security of people who cycle out of fun or see it as a leisure activity. I, too, cycle at times, but am surrounded by three-wheelers trying to overtake me,” he said.

Plans on paper

Though far from taking off in a big way, the idea of cycling as an alternative mode of communication in the city is not a new one. However, the plans around cycling have largely remained on paper. The latest such proposal was mooted on October 22 when Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced that roads in the national capital would be redesigned to bring them on a par with those in leading European cities and there would a detailed presentation on his government’s plans to develop and maintain cycling tracks or lanes to encourage use of non-motorised transport. From featuring in Delhi’s first master plan in 1961 to being a dream project of erstwhile governments under Sheila Dikshit, the idea of cycling is one that has been presented to the city in different packages at different times. However, while the fast declining air quality in the city has fuelled fresh talk on use of non-motorised transport to rein in pollution, the idea of pedalling to work has yet to catch on with a large section of the city. It also reflects the failure of previous governments to put the idea into practice. Experts reckon that the reason why the idea hasn’t gained currency among residents is that they just don’t feel safe pedalling in the city.

Fair few but more needed

The existing cycling lanes in the city were developed in the run-up to the 2010 Commonwealth Games.
In north Delhi, around 7.1 kilometres of road space, from Mall Road to Azadpur H point, has been dedicated to cyclists. Similarly, in south Delhi, 3.5 km on both sides of the road connecting Mehrauli to Badarpur via Saket has been set aside for pedalling. Even the chaotic Bus Rapid Transport Corridor (BRT), which extends from Ambedkar Nagar to Lodhi Road, has 12 kilometres of cycling track on both sides. However, while one seldom spots cyclists on these tracks, two-wheelers and three-wheelers are often seen parked on the empty spaces. These vehicles even use these vacant lanes to jump red light.

PWD admits failure

The Public Works Department (PWD), which has been assigned to redesign city roads, has conceded that the existing cycling lanes in the city fall far short of the desired design and safety standards.
“The existing cycle tracks are not designed in a way they should have been. For starters, there’s no security for commuters here as motorists are not used to lane driving and even the fear of penalties aren’t enough to deter them from jumping lanes. Also, there’s no telling where and when these tracks will merge with the main traffic. There’s no continuity. Hence, navigating these tracks is akin to putting the cyclists in harm’s way. These lanes are vulnerable for cyclists as they are prone to accidents,” said a PWD official, asking not to be named. Adding that there’s very less use of cycles in the city, he said,

“Those using bicycles for regular commute are mostly labourers or daily wagers. By now, it ought to have become the most commonly availed mode of transport in a polluted city like ours.”

Approach needs change

Professor Sewa Ram from the transport planning department of the School of Planning and Architecture (SPA) called for a more “holistic approach” in developing cycling infrastructure in the city. 

“To encourage use of cycles for regular commute, there’s a need to extend the lanes and put better infrastructure in place to make commuting safe,” he said. He also advocated development of infrastructure to enable parking of cycles even in markets, proper merging of non-motorised transport with the main traffic and physical segregation of the two.

“The authorities should even consider reducing the width of cycle tracks to enable smooth and unimpeded flow of traffic on main roads,” Ram said.
Long wait at signals are also believed to drive vehicular emission in the city.

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