Feasibility Study And Detailed Project Report For Cycle Track in the Neighbourhood of Madiwala Lake

The Context

Bangalore, now known as Bengaluru, is home to some of the most high-tech industries in India. The city also has some of the country's premier scientific establishments and public sector enterprises. Besides being the capital of the southern Indian state of Karnataka, Bengaluru is Asia’s fastest growing cosmopolitan city and India’s third most populous city, with nearly 9 million inhabitants. The salubrious climate of this metropolis, with its gardens, parks and natural lakes embellished with infrastructural amenities, shopping malls, restaurants and pubs, has played a major role in making this city an attractive business destination.

As an obvious outcome of urbanization and commercialization, cars are flooding the streets of Bengaluru, as travel distances continue to increase. According to a study conducted by Centre for Sustainable Transport (CST), India and the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited, the city has an average of 283 vehicles per 1000 persons with an average travel distance of 9.6 kilometres. The 33-kilometre Namma Metro, with 35 stations, became operational in 2011 and signified a major effort to move away from personal motorized transport to light rail-based public transport. However, Bengaluru’s real transport challenge is to combat congestion and accidents as well as to battle health problems such as asthma and other cardio-respiratory illnesses triggered by air pollution. This has consequently necessitated a cultural shift towards public transport such as the metro and buses on key transit corridors coupled with non-motorized transport such as cycling and walking for short distances, covering last-mile and recreational purposes.

Services for Feasibility Study:

Inspired by a workshop attended by public officials, cycling experts and enthusiasts, CST India developed an action plan to make Bengaluru the ‘cycling capital of India’. The goal was to find sustainable, low-cost solutions to encourage cycling. To that end, state agencies have approved the creation of two pilot cycling paths financed by the municipal bodies. In order to plan a cycling track around Madiwala Lake in Bengaluru, Directorate of Urban Land Transport (DULT) engaged UMTC.

UMTC were assigned the task to carry out the feasibility assessment of developing a cycling track in the neighbourhood of Madiwala Lake in Bengaluru. The scope included:

Understanding the travel pattern in the area
Financing and Cost Benefit Analysis
Understanding the current cycling usage
Understanding the current cycling usage
Understanding the cycling demand
Physical Design of Track
Economic Analysis of project

The Study report precipitated a larger commitment of stakeholders in making Bengaluru the ‘cycling capital of India’. Going forward, local authorities will develop a citywide cycling master plan and create a cycling infrastructure in consultation with a group comprising engineers, planners, public officials and non-motorized transport experts.