India and the cycling paradox
Are Indian cities cycle-friendly?
The story of cycling in India started in 19th century Bombay, Madras, and Calcutta. Historian David Arnold recorded interesting events and anecdotes on cycles in India in his book, Everyday Technology: Machines and the making of India’s Modernity. He wrote about Indian cycling aficionados setting up cycling clubs in cities like Calcutta and Bombay as early as the 1890s. “In Bengal the bicycle acquired the kudos of being healthy — for the race, and not just the individual,” he noted.
In 1909, entrepreneur Sudhir Kumar Sen saw potential in the bicycle’s popularity and founded a bicycle venture in Bengal. After India’s independence, Sen partnered with Britain’s Raleigh Bicycle Company in 1952 to establish the Sen-Raleigh bicycle manufacturing unit in Asansol, West Bengal. From there, the robust Sen-Raleigh bicycles journeyed to the rest of India.
Finding ways in a no cycle city
Today, Kolkata, the capital city of West Bengal, is the only city in India that has barred cyclists from 62 arterial roads in the city. Along with bicycles, non-motorised rickshaws, carts and cycle vans are not allowed on these roads. This puts the milkmen, newspaper delivery boys, push-cart vendors, and many such informal workers in a predicament. They are liable for penalty or punishment for using the only modes of transport that are affordable and available to them. Hence, millions of cyclists have no option but to pedal through the city every day.
In July 2022, SwitchON Foundation collaborated with Amity School of Architecture and Planning to carry out surveys on cycling routes in Kolkata, specifically focusing on livelihood cyclists and daily commuters. Many cyclists shared that they had to shell out a monthly fine of Rs 100–200 from their limited incomes, and were also called to the police station once a month. The survey team chalked out alternative routes that cyclists can use.
“In addressing the challenges confronted by cyclists, our survey has revealed four key areas of concern: fear of speeding vehicles, fines imposed by authorities, issues related to vehicle overtaking, and inadequate cycle parking infrastructure. This can be tackled through many strategic measures like alternate cycle-friendly routes and cycle lanes wherever possible along with awareness, creation, and establishment of a Comprehensive Mobility Plan for the city involving all stakeholders.” — Vinay Jaju, managing director at the SwitchON Foundation
The team also recommended solutions like allowing cyclists on the thoroughfares for a particular time intervals, converting on-street parking into ‘pop-up’ bicycle lanes, using narrow roadways only for cycling, and lifting bans from certain roads that do not have any alternate roads for cyclists, such as Shakespeare Sarani road.
Build cities for cycles
In 2019, researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee (IIT-R), conducted a study to understand why people refrain from cycling in Indian cities. One of the major conclusions stated that the design of cycling streets in India needs to alter significantly. “A citywide interconnected network of bicycle tracks with appropriate environmental protections allows for the desired comfort of a cyclist to cycle in a seamless cycle network,” it stated.
The research also states that rainfall patterns significantly affect cycling. Temperature and humidity also play a prominent role. In some cycling-friendly cities, covered bicycle tracks with intermittent misting systems are implemented to alleviate extreme summer heat, particularly in temperate and hot-dry climates. These strategies prioritise convenient access to bicycle tracks, nearby parking, and cooling facilities at workplaces and commercial centres. An efficient infrastructure for cycling is a necessity if we want to increase cyclists in Indian cities.
“Dedicated cycling infrastructure would surely switch vehicle drivers to cycling. The present infrastructure is not suitable for the cyclists in the cities and that makes others hesitant to take up cycling as a mode of transportation.” — Dalip Sabarwal, Bicycle Mayor* of Delhi, BYCS, an Amsterdam-based organisation that has its head office and team in India.
According to the authorities, the rationale behind the cycling ban in Kolkata was to alleviate road congestion and enhance safety for pedestrians and cyclists. The cyclists surveyed by the SwitchON and Amity team also felt unsafe in fast moving vehicular traffic.
While India greatly needs to improve the cycling infrastructure, Sathya Sankaran emphasises that dedicated cycling infrastructure will not be available on all roads, it’s important to use traffic calming, tree shade and other methods to signal safety of road use for cyclists. Sankaran is from Council for Active Mobility, a not-for-profit collective in Bengaluru dedicated to promoting walking, cycling, and healthy living.
“Culture is an attitudinal shift on how people see the bicycle as a mode that they can use for most purposes in the city.” — Sathya Sankaran, Council for Active Mobility.
A true cycling culture in India will begin when the drivers of motorised vehicles will sincerely consider the rights and safety of cyclists on the city road.
Cycling and stigma
Aspirations for upward social mobility among Indians often lead to a preference for owning cars as a symbol of status. In his tenure as the bicycle mayor, Sabarwal states that in India, bicycles are often seen as a vehicle of the poor. Social status and mobility options have always been closely intertwined.
David Arnold writes in his book that, “Cycling in the heat of the Indian day, a European was likely to arrive at his or her destination sweaty and dishevelled, his or her racial authority compromised. A horse, a motorcycle, better still an automobile, was a more dignified proposition and preserved greater social distance between coloniser and colonised.” Today, this dilemma of the coloniser is shared by the average office worker.
Sabarwal says that this “mindset can only be changed by making ‘bicycle to commute’ a new fashion”. When the daily cyclists reach a critical mass, the stigma will be broken. It will also ensure development of the cycling infrastructure in the cities. As Sankaran explains — “Cycling infrastructure promotes choice for citizens. Planners don’t get to decide not to provide that choice in the city for the people that choose to use it.” But only if we make it a collective choice.
*Bicycle Mayor is an honorary title given by BYCS.
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