Public bike sharing facility launched in Sangam city
PRAYAGRAJ: As part of the smart city project initiative, ‘Public Bike Sharing’ (PBS) facility was launched in the Sangam city on Saturday. The PBS system would allow users to rent out a bike from a designated automatic docking station and deposit it at another docking station located close to his/her destination. The facility would be available at a nominal rent.
In the first phase, the city would have 32 docking stations, each having 14-10 bicycles. In this phase, around 300 bikes would be in service for the denizens, according to officials.
The facility was inaugurated at an event in Civil Lines. Apart from BJP MP from Phulpur, Kesari Devi Patel and divisional commissioner Sanjay Goyal, several senior police officers, city Mayor Abhilasha Gupta, municipal commissioner Ravi Ranjan, mission manager of Smart city project, SK Sinha and others were also present during the launch. “We believe that the initiative, which is part of smart city project, would go a long way in providing the cheapest means of transport to the commuters. It will not just help them in maintaining good health but will also bring down pollution level in the city,” said divisional commissioner, Sanjay Goyal, who is also the chairman of Prayagraj Smart City Board. “To start with, two docking stations, one at Subhash crossing and second one at gate number 3 of Chandra Shekhar Azad park have been made operational. Over 50 cycles have been docked at these stations which would be available at a minimal cost,” said Goyal.
Docks have special bike racks that lock the bikes and only release them by a command generated by computer-controlled system.
The user enters payment information, and the computer unlocks a bike. The user returns the bike by placing it in the dock, which locks it in place.
Some of the sites identified for docking stations include Nagar Nigam , All Saints Cathedral, Girls High School and College, Hotel Harsh Ananda, Sardar Patel Marg, Hotel Allahabad Regency, PD Tandon Park, etc.