Lack of dedicated tracks dampens Mysuru cyclists’ enthusiasm

Mysuru: It is now more than two years since then chief minister Siddaramaiah flagged off India’s first Public Bicycle Sharing (PBS) system ‘Trin Trin’ in Mysuru, kindling hopes among environmentalists, cycling enthusiasts and stakeholders in the tourism industry of turning the Heritage City into a model for sustainable transport. However, the cheer that greeted the launch of Trin Trin have long since become silent, and citizens of Mysuru took to cycling with near infectious passion, convinced that infrastructure for this eco-friendly mode of transport was on the shorter edge of the horizon. However, the promise of dedicated bicycle tracks remains just that, even after two years.
Among those frustrated with the failure of the civic agencies, and the government, with playing a proactive role in giving a fillip to cycling by supplementing Trin Trin with additional infrastructure is Stephen, an optometrist at Nethradama Hospital. Following the launch of the PBS system in the city, Stephen did not tarry in getting a card for Trin Trin and is among its many regular users. He takes a bicycle from the docking station at the Regional Transport Office, and parks it at a station in east Mysuru that is closest to his workplace.
Although cycling on some of the congested thoroughfares of Mysuru is not exactly hassle-free, Stephen prefers to pedal to work. “It is very convenient, and helps me stay fit,” he told TOI.
Since its launch in June ’17, Trin Trin’s popularity among the residents of the city has witnessed a steady surge – there are more than 10,000 registered users in the city today, while the stations register around 1,000 rides on the bikes, on average, every month. However, users fear that lack of necessary infrastructure could wean many new cyclists off Trin Trin.
Close on the heels of the launch of Trin Trin, Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) designated a three foot-wide strip along one side of JLB Road, along the stretch running between Rotary School and Ramaswamy Circle. Proposals to create dedicated tracks for cyclists similar to the one on JLB Road near Mysore Palace and Mirza Road have been hanging fire. Although senior officials and elected representatives have conferred among themselves about the need to ramp up infrastructure for cycling in the city, most of the proposals are yet to find their way even to the drawing board. The absence of dedicated cycling tracks endangers not only Trin Trin users but also schoolchildren, for whom pedalling is the most favoured mode of transport, and other bicycle users, as they vie for space on the roads with speeding cars and motorbikes.
Assistant engineer for Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission with the MCC Jyothi said that there were no pending proposals with the civic agency to develop tracks for the exclusive use of cyclists on the city roads. “We are more focused on setting up more docking stations across the city,” she said.