Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai Mulls Setting up Parking Spaces Especially for Bicycles

MUMBAI, June 5: To give a boost for cycling in the financial capital, Municipal Commissioner Ajoy Mehta today said a parking authority is being planned which will focus on creating spaces to park bicycles.

"We're working on a parking authority for Mumbai which looks at parking not just for cars, but for cycles also. It will create an environment for people to cycle to work," Mehta told PTI on the sidelines of annual 'cycle to work' event here to mark World Environment Day today.

He said the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) is looking at places where people can safely park their bicycles so that the usage of bicycle in the city facing problems surrounding pollution can increase.

Stressing that cycling is not a sport, Mehta said it is the only activity, which benefits both the environment as well as the person indulging in it, through better health.

He also called on public participation to boost cycling, saying "we need a people's movement for cycling in the city".

Smar Commute Foundation's Feroza Suresh said the city will soon be starting the monthly "critical mass" event at the last Friday of every month starting in June.

"To start with, we've identified 17 business hubs where people will be assembling and riding together at a specified time to assert the need to be considerate towards them on the road and co-exist peacefully," she said.

It can be noted that "critical mass" is a regular event across the major cities of the world, where citizens aspiring to make their city more cycle-friendly ride together.

She said the business districts include the Bandra Kurla Complex where the government wants to make a International Finance Centre, Mindspace, Andheri east, Lower Parel and Worli, where the Mahindras have agreed to help.

Suresh said her NGO is also in talks with corporates to inculcate the culture within their organisations by creating the necessary infrastructure like safe parking and shower facilities in their premises.

 -PTI