Thane : Cycles that had been brought for the green cycle Initiative have been just dumped near the Thane’s stadium in the badminton court. The Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) has not been able to start the project as the tracks are yet to be prepared. The project was inaugurated on August 24 by the Shiv Sena’s Yuva Sena wing chief Aaditya Thackeray.
The TMC had previously also initiated a similar project a few years back, but had scrapped it later on. Also, there were special tracks built for cyclists, which was later occupied by parked vehicles.
This new project also has yet to be finalised and the residents will have to wait some more for this green project. The cycles as now are just lying at the stadium.
Around three cycle stands at Majiwada junction, Viviana Mall and Korum mall were made available from this initiative. The service was supposed to start immediately, however, the residents are still waiting.
The operation is stalled due to heavy rain and will start only when a dry spell is available, claim the agency operating the service. The agency also plans to start seven additional cycle stands once the rain stops. The rent a cycle initiative provides cycles on rent for merely Rs. 10.
A civic officer requesting anonymity as he was not authorized to talk to the media said, “We need to construct a concrete slab at the stands to park these cycles. We were going to begin the work, however, since the last few days it has been raining heavily so we could not construct the slab. Moreover, at present we have only three stations, we thought that the service will really be beneficial to the residents only when at least 10 stands are operational. Thus, the work on the remaining seven stands has also been undertaken.”
The Rent a Cycle initiative has being received well by the residents, as over 400 people have registered on the website and the application of this service in the last ten days. “We have received good response from the people and in this first phase we will set up the ten stands along the Majiwada and Manpada circle. After the slab work,
it will take two to three days for construction and a few more days for curing. It will take few more weeks to start the service.”
About Rent-A-Cycle
Through the Rent-a-Cycle project, the corporation will provide 50 cycle stands across the city, each with 20 cycles. There will be 500 cycles for this service. At present 100 cycles from a Japanese company enabled with GPS have arrived in the city. Residents can pick a cycle from their nearest stand and drop it at a stand near their destination. The rate is merely Rs. 10 for one hour. Ten stands will start in the next few weeks, while 50 stands will be operational in one month.
How to Register
Residents who wish to use the service will have to download the application ilovecycling or go to the website by the same name (the website is currently under construction). Residents can put their details on the application and pay a one-time registration fee of Rs. 250. The membership details will be verified by the agency and then the members can use the cycle from any of the stand. They can either use a smartcard or even book a cycle on this application.
