Traffic experts say car-friendly city pushing cyclists off its roads
Ruhi Bhasin : New Delhi, Wed Oct 23 2013, 01:12 hrs
In the absence of proper cycle lanes along major arterial roads in the city, cyclists have no choice but to brave heavy traffic on a daily basis. Such lanes, constructed around the Commonwealth Games 2010, exist only around stadiums and flyovers and tend to end abruptly while the tracks along the existing BRT stretch from Ambedkar Nagar to Moolchand have all kinds of vehicular traffic plying on it.
Despite proper guidelines for creation of cycle tracks and non-motorised vehicle (NMV) lanes, the lack of implementation has resulted in putting cyclists constantly at risk. Director General of Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) Sunita Narain was injured on Sunday when an unidentified vehicle rammed her while she was cycling her way till Lodhi Garden.
“Delhi was the first city to come up with detailed guidelines for road design, that took into consideration the needs of non-motorised commuters. But these guidelines aren’t considered during approval of road design. The prime concern while constructing new roads is to look at the movement of vehicles, not people. Even now, infrastructure development is centred around increasing speed and comfort of motorised vehicles. The cyclist is pushed to the fringes,” said Anumita Roy Chowdhury, a transport expert with the CSE.
Traffic experts said the problem with cycling tracks — or the lack of it — begins at the level of policy-making. “The government’s policies that deal with traffic and its management are focused on motorisation. While other countries such as Sweden, Germany or even England are looking to increase cycling by investing in preparation of tracks and dissemination of cycles, this isn’t the case here,” said Rohit Baluja of the Institute of Road Traffic Education.
Baluja added that existing cycle tracks, such as the ones on the BRT corridor, had failed to attract cyclists due to a similar attitude. “The cycle corridor is there, but only in name. There are two-wheelers and even cars plying on it. In such a situation, cyclists simply don’t feel safe enough to use them,” he said.
While both Master Plan-2021 and street-design guidelines issued by the Unified Traffic and Transportation Infrastructure (planning and engineering) Centre emphasise the importance of creating NMV lanes, none of it has actually been implemented on the ground.
Master Plan-2021 states that segregated cycle tracks should be provided on all arterial roads with provision for safe parking in park- and-ride lots while in urban extension, cycle tracks should be there at the sub-arterial and local roads.
The street-design guidelines states that NMVs are the second most vulnerable group of road users and, therefore, must be clearly segregated from faster-moving motorised traffic.
“We are introducing NMV lanes in roads which are either being widened by us or along new flyovers. Existing NMV lanes were made during the Commonwealth Games and are around stadiums and flyovers constructed then. There is no plan to extend them further,” said PWD spokesperson Ravi Mathur.
The traffic police believes that a proper public transport system and creation of NMV lanes are necessary for safety of cyclists. Traffic officials claim to have written to the Transport department several times and have suggested measures such as creating the lanes without compromising on existing carriageways. The Transport department, meanwhile, maintain that traffic police has been opposing NMV lanes.
A senior traffic police official said, “A person using a cycle usually commutes a shorter distance. The need is, therefore, to create additional lanes with new infrastructure in areas such as central business districts and colonies and developing societies such as in places like Dwarka and Rohini.”
Source: Indian Express
Pains & Joys of Delhi 