Pedal power: Realising India’s potential for sustainable mobility

Since 2017, local governments in India have worked with private sector companies to create bike lanes and bike-sharing schemes. Together, they run awareness campaigns to boost cycling in smaller cities like Chandigarh, Ahmedabad, Bhubhaneshwar, Pune and Indore, as well as regional metropolises such as Delhi, Chennai and Bengaluru. The trend accelerated during the Covid-19 pandemic when bicycling became a safer alternative to using crowded public transport.

Although more commuters use bicycles today, it remains difficult to achieve scale in deploying bicycling infrastructure and establishing a culture of bicycling as a form of sustainable transport.

“In India, the cycle is considered a poor man’s vehicle and is mostly used by the low-income group for commuting to work. People in the middle- or- higher- income groups own a bicycle for the purposes of sport, fun, or fitness. We need to work towards bringing a change in mindset to regard bicycling as a convenient, fast, and safe mode of transport for all income groups,” Harpreet says.

Delivering that change requires dedicated public funding in India for sustainable mobility, and new financing models to spur investment by public and private sectors into bicycling infrastructure and bike-sharing schemes. It also requires more awareness activities, such as educating citizens in how to access and pay for shared bikes, helping reduce the incidence of bike theft and vandalism.

These investments could, in turn, benefit existing and planned urban mass rapid transport systems. “India is fast developing metro rail systems in many cities. Cycling can become an effective and sustainable mode of transport for first mile and last mile connectivity to these metro rail systems,” Harpreet explains.

Harpreet recommends four actions to boost the uptake of cycling:

1. Identify residential areas with large concentrations of service-sector workers (those with mid-to-low level incomes) and provide them access to bike share programmes and bicycle pathways.
2. Provide legal safeguards for cyclists, such as enforcing penalties for disrespect, unsafe behaviour, or traffic violations against cyclists.
3. Build bike lanes and related infrastructure such as streetlights, traffic lights, and intersections to make traffic friendly for bicycles. Provide shared bicycle schemes at inter-modal hubs to encourage last-mile connectivity by bicycle, rather than by car.
4. Influence behaviour change through pro-cycling awareness campaigns, enforcing car-free zones at morning rush hour, and supporting those who bicycle to work by offering at-work changing facilities and organising bicycling competitions.

Harpreet believes Ramboll has a key role to play in the adoption of bicycling infrastructure for sustainable mobility in India. This includes building awareness of bicycle infrastructure with decision makers and supporting campaigns with cities and the private sector to improve conditions for those who bicycle to work.

“We need to explain in layman’s terms the benefits of switching to bikes from other forms of transport and show what the benefits are in practice,” she says. “We need to get the message out there that bicycles are a low-cost, convenient mode of transport that reduces air pollution and traffic congestion whilst improving health and access to work.”