Cycling stripes in Bengalur. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
The story so far:
Reports of accidental deaths and injuries of pedestrians, cyclists, street hawkers and other metro cities are on the rise. While the development of cities in different metro cities includes patches of reserved service lanes for pedestrians and cyclists, motor vehicles tend to overlap them. As a result, the risk of accidents is as high on these roads as on the main roads with traffic. In such a gloomy situation, active mobility is the need for an hour.
What is active mobility?
Active mobility concerns the ways of transport that use human power instead of a motorized form of mobility. Active transport methods include walking, cycling, skateboarding and other non -motorized modes that are used for travel and not recreational activities.
Active mobility in India gained attention to increasing transport overload, pollution, health problems and growing pedestrian deaths. This is accompanied by the growing importance of sustainable transport in national politicians, such as the National Transit Development Policy (NTOD) and Smart Cities (SCM), along with international efforts such as the Parisian agreement that emphasizes carbon emissions and supports ecological friendly mobility.
The first mayor of Bengalur, Satya Sankaran, was a key advocate of infrastructure for cycling and pedestrian since 2018. His efforts have contributed to the preparation of the active mobility of Karnataka in 2022. The inherent objective of this Act is to provide a legal structure protecting and promoting active mobility and ensuring equal access to public space. Several other countries also pay attention to active mobility. Delhi expands cycling tracks and pedestrian -friendly streets as part of his policy Delhi ev. PUNE has implemented a comprehensive bike plan and developed over 300 km of cycling lanes. Chennai reworks the roads under SCM to improve pedestrian safety while Kochi introduces the wheel sharing system (PBS) to increase the connection to the last mile.
What is its meaning?
As stated by the World Health Organization (WHO), active mobility in all its forms has economic, social, environmental and health benefits. Economic benefits include reduced household and transport expenses and lower health care costs due to increased public health. It also increases local businesses because the infrastructure friendly to pedestrians attracts higher pedestrian traffic.
Walking and cycling are sustainable ways of transport compared to motorized vehicles due to their carbon limit emissions. They increase energy safety and significantly reduce 12% carbon emissions in India from road transport. Cities with well developed infrastructure for active traffic reports of cleaner air and reduced traffic jams. In addition, it is known that active transport methods reduce the risk of chronic diseases, improve cardiovascular health, promote mental well -being and increase public health among citizens. It is a way of transport that makes cities livelier and climate.
What are the barriers?
Active mobility remains strictly insufficiently used because the urban infrastructure is actively discouraged. The lack of adequate infrastructure for pedestrians and cyclists prevents active mobility as the primary method of transport. Since 2021, more than 85% of roads have not met minimal safety requirements for walking and cycling. This is also accompanied by the availability of low -cost alternative motorized transport modes. Extreme weather conditions and long distances of travel discourage people from receiving active transport ways.
In addition, social perception acts as important obstacles. In many regions, cars and bikes are associated with a higher social status. India has a growing number of private motor vehicles on the road. According to Indian car manufacturers, more than 12,000 cars are sold every day in India. High transport overload, along with weak enforcement of traffic regulations, causes walking and cycling of danger.
How did other countries succeed?
The Netherlands with more than 35,000 km of reserved cycling lanes is a global leader in support of active mobility by cycling. The Mobility and Transport Department prefers to support walking and cycling as a means of transport that allows more sustainable mobility. This is accompanied by the Vision Zero, which aims to alleviate the number of incidents between pedestrians, cyclists and motor vehicles. The German Berlin Mobility Act orders wider sidewalks and reserved cycling lanes, reduced speed limits for motorized vehicles within urban limits, and prefer pedestrians/cyclists in urban planning.
Dean Nath Pathak, Associate Dean, Faculty of Social Science, University of South Asian. Ruth Anna A is a researcher, Christ University.
Published – April 9, 2025 08:30
