The Mohali municipal corporation’s ambitious project to construct dedicated cycle tracks in the city, on the lines of neighbouring Chandigarh, is back on track.
To begin with, the civic body has decided to construct a 6-km track from Phase 11 to the Industrial Area, Phase 7, at a cost of ₹2.27 crore. The agenda will be tabled for approval in the House meeting scheduled on October 24.
At present, there is no cycle track in Mohali.
In 2015, the MC proposed a 2.7-km cycle track from the YPS Chowk to Kumbran village intersection and then towards Forest Complex in Sector 68. However, design objections stalled it. One of the issues was that the road already has a service lane and demarcating a cycle track on it with a yellow line would have flouted the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act. Later, the project was taken over by Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA), which scrapped it in 2017.
The proposed cycle track will start from Phase 11, pass from in front of the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER) in Sector 67 and cross Kumbra Chowk, PCL light point and Spice Chowk before culminating near the cremation ground in the Industrial Area, Phase 7.
“The track will be constructed on the pattern of Chandigarh. However, it will be constructed on only one side as we have space constraints,” said MC superintending engineer Ashwani Chaudhary. “Once, this project gets completed, we will construct cycle tracks in other parts of the city as well.”
{{/usCountry}}“The track will be constructed on the pattern of Chandigarh. However, it will be constructed on only one side as we have space constraints,” said MC superintending engineer Ashwani Chaudhary. “Once, this project gets completed, we will construct cycle tracks in other parts of the city as well.”
{{/usCountry}}For the proposed project, the engineering wing has already conducted the survey of roads along which cycle tracks are to be constructed, said Chaudhary.
“As per the survey report, the track could be constructed on the left side, as on the other side there is no space. To construct a standard cycle track, 10-foot road space is required,” he said.
The proposal has been designed as per the Indian Roads Congress specifications, which mandate construction of tracks in a planned and integrated manner so as to ensure continuous flow of cyclists and reduce their conflict with vehicular traffic flow to the minimum.