HYDERABAD: Active mobility has great importance in big cities like Hyderabad. It also comes with several benefits like decongesting traffic, less air pollution, and the most important one: health and well-being. Recognising this, hundreds of cyclists in the city gathered on Saturday to mark World Bicycle Day.
The Hyderabad Cycling Group and Cycling Community of Hyderabad, in collaboration with the Indian Postal Department, organised an event to appreciate and honour the efforts of postmen and postwomen who still use bicycles for their daily commute.
To encourage citizens to cycle, Pedal for Health - Cyclothon was held at HICC Novotel, organised by the Union Ministry of Health in collaboration with Happy Hyderabad, BYCS India, and Hyderabad Cycling Revolution.
Around 500 cyclists, along with the Union health ministry officials and the Bicycle Mayor of Hyderabad, Santhana Selvan, participated in the event. Moreover, Tharuni NGO donated bicycles to girl children in many rural parts of Telangana.
While speaking to the TNIE, Bicycle Mayor Santhana Selvan said, “While there has been significant growth in the cycling community in Hyderabad, we still need more education, engineering, and enforcement to promote active mobility. We must develop a comprehensive bicycle lane network for first-mile and last-mile connectivity, as well as implement public bicycle sharing programmes to bridge the existing gaps in the city.”
He further emphasised the need to encourage active mobility in Hyderabad, considering its fast growth. “Introducing subsidies, distributing bicycles to rural girl children, and providing training to motorists and traffic police to ensure safer roads for pedestrians and cyclists are essential steps to be taken,” he said.
Regarding the bicycling infrastructure in Hyderabad, Selvan commented, “The existing bicycle lanes, which are two to three kilometres long, are insufficient. We need to provide a large number of bicycles for public use.”
He added, “We are fortunate to have a responsive government, and Hyderabad has the potential to lead in active mobility by designing and implementing these measures, as the people are ready to adopt and embrace them.”