E-Paper
Covid shadow over bike sharing project in Chandigarh
When implemented, the size of the project will make it India’s largest and densest public bike sharing network
The second Covid-19 wave has put into question the continuation of the popular public bicycle sharing system in the city.
On one hand the Cycle4change challenge, under which the public bicycle sharing was launched in October last year, will be ending on May 31. And at the same time, the launch of the first phase of the Chandigarh Smart City Limited (CSCL) public bicycle sharing system (PBSS) project has been delayed by at least two months. The first phase was to be launched in May.
Currently, 225 bicycles, including more than 100 pedal-assisted e-Bikes, can be rented from 25 docking stations spread across the city. The stations include prominent locations such as Rock Garden, High Court, Sukhna Lake, PGIMER, Sector 17, Sector 22, Sector 34, Sector 35, and Sector 43.
Cycles likely to be unavailable after May 31
Chief general manager of CSCL, NP Sharma, said, “We have written to the company managing cycles under the Cycle4Change challenge to stop charging people from June 1 onwards as the challenge ends on May 31. We are awaiting their response on whether the cycles will be available after May 31 or not.”
If the company says no to offering free cycles, there would be none available for public use. Users are charged at ₹10 for an hour and ₹5 for half an hour.
On the delayed start of the CSCL’s project, Sharma said, “We have given two months (May and June) deadline extension to the private firm implementing the public bicycle sharing system in the city.” He attributed the delay in the implementation of the first phase to issues related to the pandemic, particularly, the lockdown.
Project to be developed over 4 phases
Under the CSCL’s project, 5,000 bicycles will be provided in the city along with a network of 617 docking stations spread throughout the city giving last mile connectivity to the users. The size of the project will make it India’s largest and densest public bike sharing network.
The project will be developed in four phases of 1,250 cycles and 155 docking stations each, with the availability of pedal-assisted e-bikes with charging facility.
All bicycles will be GPS-enabled and will be monitored from a command-and-control centre with 24X7 helpline facility for users. The PBSS project is being implemented and operated by the concessionaire M/s Smart Bike Tech Private Limited, Hyderabad, for a period of 10 years on a public-private partnership (PPP) basis.
