In a move to make Delhi streets cyclist and pedestrian-friendly, the Union urban development ministry wants various Central and state government agencies to develop a stretch of 200 km in two years’ t
In a move to make Delhi streets cyclist and pedestrian-friendly, the Union urban development ministry wants various Central and state government agencies to develop a stretch of 200 km in two years’ time.
According to a high-power committee set up by the ministry, 35 per cent of city comprises of commuters who “only walk”, while an equal percentage of Delhi’s population own cycles. The committee has asked civic agencies, Delhi Development Authority and the Public Works Department to work on cycle tracks and footpath.
In the second phase, the committee wants the concerned agencies to finish work on “500 km of street length covering arterial and sub-arterial roads”. It has asked the agencies to take no longer than five years to achieve the target.
“In Delhi, about 35% of the city comprises of commuters who only walk. These commuters are different from the ones who walk to access public transport. Therefore, in spite of the enormous motorisation, the highest share of people still ‘walk’. This is in spite of the poor working environment and danger to life by walking on roads,” the committee in its report says.
“With increasing road widths, crossings at junctions are riskier and the space for walking is narrower than before Since walking is so uncomfortable, most people prefer to drive or use private vehicles,” the report says. Constituted in October 2014 to suggest measures to decongest Delhi, the committee submitted its report in July this year.
There has been a rise in per capital trip rate (excluding walk trips) from 0.72 in 1981 to 0.87 in 2001 and exponentially more in 2011. It is estimated that the total trips would rise to 280 lakh by the year 2021, including 257 lakh motorised trips and 23 lakh non-motorised trips, as per the report.
The report has suggested development of foothpaths on all roads as per the Master Plan for Delhi-2021.
“With a mix of slow and fast moving traffic on the roads, travel by bicycle and rickshaws is very unsafe. Data has shown that although approx. 35% of population of Delhi owns cycles, only approx. 4.5% of them use cycles for commuting due to lack of safe cycling facilities or cycle-parking facilities,” it further says in its report.
