Wanted: Safe pedal spaces for promoting cycling culture
NEWDELHI: Before one sets out for the rather simple task of cycling in Delhi, one has to be deeply imaginative — the air is fine, free of carcinogens, and greenery everywhere. With that in place, one can put the legs to work.
A confession: This is my first time cycling in Delhi. Purely to find out how well a project. which wants to get people off their four-wheelers and reduce pollution, might be received.
My ride: One of the Smartbikes that the New Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) launched for rent. It is smooth, easy on the eyes and simple to use if one is familiar with a smartphone. On first try, it took me a little less than two minutes to get going .
NDMC has one of the smoother roads in the capital. But as soon as I attempted to move out from the kerb, there came the unforgiving traffic. A speed demon tried to beat the few seconds remaining before the traffic light turned red. He won.
In the pyramidal traffic hierarchy, the lesser the horsepower, the closer to the bottom you are.
Soon enough, cars and motorcyclists began honking, vying for that little tuft of space that the cycle occu- pied inside the line forbidden for the likes of them. If air pollution affects the lung, close-quarter honking will probably endanger ear drums.
Shaken, I decided to shift onto the footpath. A violation of rules, perhaps, but maybe kinder souls would give way. But the footpaths are only good in short stretches. Much of it is not smooth, with uneven tiles, telephone company manholes jutting out and concrete blocks installed to keep motorists out, also forcing cyclists to get off and negotiate the gap. A few service roads had cars parked illegally. Watchout for the one that suddenly decides to move. And although the SUV right behind me was slower, given the narrowness of the stretch, it still honked a great deal, bullying me into giving way. Everyone was in a hurry.
“Get on the road,” said 50-yearold security man Ranveer Singh. I had hailed him to seek his advice. He had been cycling for 20 years from Gokulpuri to Connaught Place. “Don’t worry too much about the traffic. Let them honk. You will learn to expect cars, know the bottlenecks. Just keep your head down, go slow in the direction of traffic and say sorry if you bump into anyone. Most importantly, don’t lose sight of your cycle! I have already had six of mine stolen!”
His advice had a marked improvement on my mobility. Soon enough, a visit to Mandi House on the cycle and having chai from a roadside vendor didn’t seem too difficult. There are service roads and lanes off the main road that are great to take as shortcuts. With quite a few cycle parking stands in the area, the system does offer a cheaper option to citizens. The system is spread wide and would be a viable option for riding around the commercial hub. In fact, by the end of the hour, I had grown fond of cycling my way around and would definitely try it again.
However, the roads are still dangerous and for change to be lasting and impactful, policies and institutions should target at inculcating respect towards pedestrians and cyclists. Schools are the best place to begin the “cycle culture”. Not by introducing chapter in a book but actively encouraging children. Moreover, most residences are away from central Delhi.
While dedicated cycle corridors would be welcome, perhaps that is a little too much to ask.
And someone please fix the air.