Chandigarh to launch second phase of bicycle sharing on February 23

UT administrator Banwarilal Purohit will launch the second phase of bicycle sharing system, under which the number of bicycles and docking stations will go up to 2,500 and 310 from 1,250 and 155

UT administrator Banwarilal Purohit will launch the second phase of the system, under which a total of 1,250 new bicycles are expected to be added to the public bicycle sharing system on February 23.

The second phase of the Chandigarh’s bicycle sharing system will be launched on Feb 23 by the UT administrator. (HT File)

The total strength of the cycles under the project, the first phase of which was launched in August last year, will go up to 2,500, up from 1,250 that were initially made available to the public at 155 docking stations across the city.

An additional 155 more docking stations, in designated places at different locations across the city, will be available under the second phase, pushing the total docking stations in the city to 310.

Further expansion to 5,000 bicycles and 617 stations is planned in a year’s time, with the aim being to make it India’s densest and largest PBS system.

The project includes bicycles, docking stations, GPS-based tracking, central control system with call centre, workshop, user registration and fare collection system through a mobile app, and advertisement space. It will be maintained by the concessionaire for 10 years.

Users can borrow a bicycle for ₹10 per half an hour, while the charge drops to ₹5 per half an hour for those holding annual ₹500 membership. The bicycles can be borrowed after registering on the Smart Bike app.