Cycling enthusiasts attending Cycle Day event at Yelahanka.

Directorate of Urban Land Transport (DULT), UDD, Government of Karnataka which is part of Bangalore Coalition for Open Streets (BCOS) along with local partner Yelahanka United Environment Association (YUVA) conducted the ‘Cycle Day’ event in Yelahanka New Town next to the Allalasandra lake.

The program was attended by over 3,000 local residents and cyclists from across Bangalore who enthusiastically participated in the cycle day event.

S R Vishwanath, MLA Yelahanka, Manjula-Commissioner DULT, Muniraju-Corporator Ward 4, Mr.Virupaksha Mysore-Additional Commissioner, BBMP-Yelahanka zone and S T Tayappa-President, YUVA addressed the participants.

Cycle Day has been gaining in popularity and more and more participants are turning up with family and friends at such events. This goes to show the support that the public has for reclaiming the streets and going back to healthier lifestyle by cycling and indulging in traditional street games. The flavor of old Bangalore is being very well captured in these events when the roads and streets were congestion free and pedestrian friendly. We hope to continue this participation by signing up with more local partners to carry the message of Cycle day to their local communities.

The event was kicked off by warm up exercises by Snap Fitness, cycle ride covering almost 6 kms around the Allalasandra Lake pathway and Yelahanka New Town. The MLA, Commissioner DULT, Corporator and Additional Commissioner Yelahanka planted trees on the lake bank. Traditional games played on the streets included Chowka bhara, Kunte balle, Lagori, Marbles, Snake and ladder, Kite flying on the lake bank, passing the ball, bombing the city, chess, gully cricket, volleyball, throw ball, Chess, blindfold and hit the target, balloon blast, slow cycle race were great hits with children and elders participating.

Skits by school children, NSS, Scouts and Guides (North), breakfast for participants, butter milk supplied by KMF, mineral water and energy drinks provided by Ezzy group, bicycle workshop and cycles for test ride sponsored by Sangam International and active participation by Aviratha, Praja, GoGreen, Namma Bengaluru . Glamour quotient was added by the presence of Cine actors, Honnavalli Krishna and Vinayak Joshi who participated in the event.

The event could not have been conducted so seamlessly and effortlessly without the support and cooperation by Police – Traffic & Law and Order, BBMP. It is indeed very encouraging and heartening to see multiple public agencies and the general public coming together to create such a successful and family friendly event.  

The Cycle Day is a car-free event where few kilometers of roads are blocked to motor traffic to create a safe and festive zone for people to just come out and try cycling as well as engage in sport, fitness, or community building activities. An idea box was also provided for participants to provide feedback on how they would like to make Bengaluru more active and pedestrian and cyclist friendly. By putting cyclist and pedestrians first, the campaign seeks to change the prevailing mindset that roads are meant primarily for cars. We want people to re-boot their relationship with streets to ensure that all users, particularly pedestrians and cyclists, have an equal claim to road space and the right to use streets safely. At the same time the campaign aims to provide our government partners with the public support and impetus needed to create an enabling environment for cyclists through the planning and development of better roads, cycle tracks and lanes, cycle rental schemes, city-wide cycle parking stands and other infrastructure.

Bengaluru Coalition for Open Streets (BCOS) is collective group of organizations comprised of Directorate of Urban Land Transport (DULT ), Praja RAAG, EMBARQ, ESAF and individuals. Cycle Day is an open streets event conducted by BCOS with support from organisations like Bangalore Police (Traffic and Law&Order), BBMP, local sponsors and Decathlon support the event.

This content was sent by Samhita Rajashekar on behalf of Directorate of Urban Land Transport and Bangalore Coalition for Open Streets, and published on Citizen Matters in the Message Forward section meant for publishing public service messages from individuals and non-profits.