“The fear of being knocked down by bigger vehicles is constant,” said 28-year-old Suraj L.N. Swamy, who often cycles 13 km one way to work, and back. Bengaluru has a thriving community of cyclists who hope that the city will be become more friendly to this mode of transport now that it has a bicycle mayor.
June 21 will mark a month since Bengaluru got a bicycle mayor — Satya Shankaran — who is entrusted with the job of promoting the humble vehicle. However, there’s a long way to go before it becomes a safe place for people to cycle. Lack of infrastructure and safety remain huge barriers.
Four years ago, Mr. Swamy started 'Bangalore Cycling’, a Facebook community, which has over 5,000 members. “While the group allows cyclists to connect with each other, many people also seek advice from experts on the feasibility of cycling to work. This shows that there is an interest among people, but infrastructure is lacking. Every time I ride, I am conscious about the bigger vehicles around me,” he said.
Despite a fall from his bicycle after hitting a pothole on the road during rains, Ramesh Agarwal, a businessman, feels it is the best mode of transport: “It not just saves times, but also is a great way to exercise while on the move,” he said.
However, cyclists agree that Bengaluru has to make space for them so that more people will start considering cycles as a viable means of transport. Creating cycling lanes on roads won't work, he said. “How will cycle lanes work when there is no lane disciple in the city? If roads are made safer for pedestrians, they will become safe for cyclists as well,” said Mr. Agarwal, who frequently cycles to work from his home in Arekere to Devarabisanahalli. “Given safe spaces, even rains won’t hinder most of us from riding to work,” he added.
While better infrastructure is a long-term goal, authorities should look at short-term measures, such as imposing strict punishment and higher penalty for causing accident to pedestrians and cyclists, said Mr. Swamy.
That said, responsibility to ensure safety cannot be on external agents alone. Cyclists themselves should be careful.
“People should not jump straight to cycling to work. They should start with short distance riding in and around your home. Once they gain some confidence of riding alongside bigger vehicles, they can try cycling to work. If riding at night, a cyclists should make himself visible to other motorists,” he said.
On what cyclists expect from the bicycle mayor, Mayank Rungta, a cyclist, said the mayor should ensure more trees are planted in the city. “The city was a good place to ride because of trees. Now, if we ride in the morning, we have to deal with smog. The priority of the mayor should also be pedestrian infrastructure, which will ensure a cyclist’s safety as well.”
‘Focus on building corporate, community partners’
Since becoming the bicycle mayor of the city, 42-year-old civic activist Satya Shankaran said the focus has been on working with corporates to encourage employees to cycle to work.
“On World Bicycle Day, we worked with Cisco Systems and encouraged 100 employees to cycle to work. We want to continue reaching out to more corporates and make cycling to work a regular practice,” he said.
He is also working with communities to encourage short commutes on cycles. “People from Vijaynagar and Indiranagar have approached us to encourage residents to take to cycling to reduce vehicular traffic on interior roads,” he said.
There are also plans to work with civic activists to take the bicycle initiative to more people. On the lack of infrastructure, he said, “We cannot be waiting for infrastructure to begin cycling. Only when more people start using cycles will the authorities cater to their needs. That is why our plan is to connect with more people and get them to cycle. When we have the numbers, we can demand infrastructure,” said Mr. Shankaran.
