E-Paper
Come August 18, pedal around Panchkula on rental bicycles
In the initial phase, the civic body has decided to keep 200 cycles at 20 bike stations, which will be increased after reviewing the response.
Come next week and Panchkula residents can rent a bicycle from 20 different dock stations in the city at ₹5 per hour after registering themselves through a mobile-based application.
Confirming the same, MC commissioner-cum-administrator Rajesh Jogpal said, “The work of installation and operation of sharing the system in the city was allotted to M/S Dharani Enterprises for three years.”
“The firm is already running the system in Bhopal and Gwalior. The system is being built at ₹1 crore,” he said.
The municipal corporation (MC) is finalising the public bicycle sharing (PBS) system under the Smart City project to make it functional from August 18.
INITIAL PHASE
In the initial phase, the civic body has decided to keep 200 cycles at 20 bike stations, which will be increased after reviewing the response.
“The agency manufactured the dock stations at their factory, following which the installation work of dock stations was carried out.The work is in the final leg,” said Jogpal.
Besides installations at several locations in the sectors, dock stations are also being installed outside Post Graduate Government College in Sector 1 and Government College for Girls in Sector 14 here for students.
NON-MOTORISED TRAFFIC CORRIDOR
The MC chief said with the launch of the system, the civic body is implementing street design interventions (model street design) in the city as a part of its sustainable urban development vision.
Jogpal said, the MC is also coming up with a non-motorised traffic (NMT) corridor in the city, which will have cycle tracks, pedestrian paths and geometrical correction of roads. “Improving street design and bicycle sharing are excellent ways for promoting safety and non-motorised transport in the city,” he said.
EQUIPPED WITH GPS TRACKING
The bicycles will be equipped with global positioning system (GPS) tracking and a feature for cashless transactions through mobile apps and smart locks. It will be controlled by android and iOS applications. Jogpal said all the information regarding the PBS system is available on the mobile app, Yaana.
He said after downloading the application, one needs to get registered, following which a person can locate nearby bike stations, unlock smart lock on the bicycles.
Consumers will be charged through a smart card issued from a kiosk or mobile application and the rent can be paid online using a debit card or by cash at the bike stations.
The bicycles will operate for 14 hours from 6am to 8pm. A central control system will also be set up in the MC office to monitor them in real time. Users can also get themselves registered at the bike stations and get a smart card after submitting valid ID proof to access the PBS system. As per the application, one can get bicycle rides of 30 minutes for 180 days at ₹500.
