Feel like cycling? PMC will soon let you rent wheels

Rent-a-cycle Project will emulate similar model in world cities such as London, Paris, Montreal, Barcelona

Rent-a-cycle Project will emulate similar model in world cities such as London, Paris, Montreal, Barcelona

If the civic body has its way, then the city will soon have something in common with London, Paris, Barcelona and Montreal.
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The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) plans to start a rent-a-cycle scheme in the city, with world-class cycle stations putting up a clutch of cycles at the disposal of commuters.u00a0

The pilot project worth Rs 7 crore is to be funded by the World Bank.


For a green city: If implemented the project will be the first in the country.
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Pilot project
Ulhas Joshi and Manish Sabade, partners in Life Cycle and promoters of the idea, said if the project materialised, it would be the first in the country. "The project aims to make available about 300 cycles spread across 25 cycle stations in the city. This could increase to 3,000 cycles and 200 cycle stations in the city," Joshi said. "The mode of payment could be through the Internet. The entire system will be monitored by installing the cycles with a radio frequency identity tag using GPS technology. Anybody can use cycle to go from one station to another by paying Rs 500 a year. This is not a money- making project for the PMC, but it is a useful investment for the future."

Sabade said the project was for the common man who wanted to use cycle as a fitness tool.
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It was Pravinsingh Pardeshi, former municipal commissioner, who first flirted with the idea in 2008. Later on, it was pursued by his successor Mahesh Zagade, who worked out the economics of the project with the World Bank. Zagade had given the green signal to invite tenders in April itself.

PMC says
Srinivas Bonala, additional city engineer (Projects), PMC, said so far, two private companies have evinced interest in the project. "The work shall start after the Standing Committee gives the formal nod. The project shall be implemented on Build, Operate, Transfer basis. We are sure the project will be big success," Bonala said.

Once attached to the moniker 'City of Cycles' in the 1980s, when the number of cycle users peaked to about 12 lakh, the city has since seen a downward trend in the use of non-motorised two-wheelers.

The onslaught of bikes reduced the number of cycles drastically. As per the recent cycle census, the number is about 5 lakh. "Cycle users are basically industrial and construction workers and schoolchildren. Now, the cycle is being seen as a physical fitness tool and there are 3,000 such users," said Shyam Wadkar, a member of Pune Cycle Association.

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