“Personal2PublicViaCycle,” a campaign aimed at showing people the bicycle parking facilities at Namma Metro stations and encouraging people to embrace cycling for their first and last-mile connectivity to the metro was launched by the Council for Active Mobility (CFAM) , in collaboration with World Resources Institute (WRI), BPAC, and Bangalore Apartment Federation (BAF), on Sunday at Yelachenahalli metro station.
In the city, the Directorate of Urban Land Transport (DULT) has deployed 200 bicycle stands in nine metro stations and 11 BMTC TTMCs to enable first and last-mile connectivity to public transport.
“The first of the many such events witnessed enthusiastic participation from residents of South Bengaluru. The initiative, supported by the Sustainable Mobility Network (SMN) map project, focused on fostering behavioural changes and raising awareness about the benefits of active mobility, specifically walking and cycling, as viable alternatives to motorised transport,” a release stated.
Sathya Sankaran, Bicycle Mayor of Bengaluru and founder of CFAM, said, “Bicycle provides the lowest cost, lowest emission footprint, most healthy alternative to any other prevailing modes of transport to reach public transport spots which have high frequency services, but are beyond walking range. This effort is to popularise the facilities being provisioned by the authorities, and enable people to discover safe routes to reach the stations’‘
Srinivas Alavilli, Personal2Public Fellow, WRI India, said, “One of the biggest hurdles for switching to public transport is last-mile access. Cycle is a viable option for Bengaluru blessed with pleasant weather and canopy. We must strive to make cycling safer and convenient to all age groups, particularly to daily commuters that are currently driving cars to work and adding to the congestion and pollution.”
