Symbolic events, Smart Cities and dumb infrastructure designed to fail, and road safety campaigns meant to simply ‘check a box’ without strong measures and result-oriented outcomes – these are some of the uncomfortable facts that we need to speak about.

Billions for Car-Centric Infrastructure and Pennies for Active Mobility:

A massive Rs. 3.09 Lakh Crore was invested toward building coastal roads, highways, bridges, and tunnels in the last fiscal year, but there is no dedicated budget for visible cycling infrastructure from the central government.

We live in a bitter reality where our national budgets are primarily focused on building road infrastructure that welcomes private cars, while active mobility and non-motorized transport remain invisible in the budget plans.

Smart Cities Mission: Promised vs. Delivered:

The Smart Cities campaign began with a loud buzz in media circles, raising high expectations with the goal of building 100 Smart Cities. After a decade, the campaign went silent on March 31, 2025. As per records, the government spent Rs. 1.51 Lakh Crore across 100 designated cities to support localized projects, including painted cycle lanes which have mostly been wiped out and are nowhere to be seen.

Pop-up cycle lanes that start and end abruptly show a fundamental flaw in adhering to the core principles of the Dutch bicycle network framework: Cohesion, Comfort, Directness, Safety, and Attractiveness.

Count of Failed and Promised Cycle Tracks:

I searched the internet but couldn’t find any data showing the number of cycle track projects executed in India and how many of them have been successful. While there should be a centralized national database tracking the exact count of cycling tracks in the country, the fact is that nearly every city where pop-up or painted cycle lanes were created in the last decade has functionally failed due to various reasons. Looking ahead, several cities continue to promise hundreds of kilometers under individual municipal masterplans and sustainable development policies.

Road Accidents and Fatality Statistics:

According to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways report, around 1.68 Lakh road deaths occur annually, which cumulatively adds up to 1.5 million people losing their lives in the last ten years. About 60,000 to 70,000 of those who became victims during this period were cyclists and pedestrians.

The hard reality is that road safety campaigns have become check-box activities to meet institutional compliance rather than accountability-driven measures. The onus of safety is pushed onto cyclists to use high-visibility clothing, helmets, and other equipment, instead of implementing practical policies such as speed limits, traffic-calmed streets, pedestrian-and-cyclist-only streets, and, of course, a segregated cycling network for long-distance commutes.

Tokenism and No Transformation:

Many of us (including myself) have been a part of weekend morning cyclothon events with VIPs and cordoned-off streets. But once the event is over, traffic returns, leaving cyclists vulnerable and in risky situations. If utility cycling is ever to become normal, we have to break out of this loop of celebratory tokenism and symbolic cyclothons.

There is enough awareness about the benefits of cycling, but people simply will not get on the saddle due to practical limitations-unless these challenges are resolved with safe and extensive cycling infrastructure. Can the authorities think of a bold idea like closing the roads to cars on a weekday morning, where everyone, including VIPs, celebrities, and common citizens, cycles to work?

Sounds impractical? That is exactly why I chose the title of this blog – ‘Why Cycling Will Not Grow in India in the Next Decade?’.

Watch the Reality: 

Below is a ride-along look at the BKC cycling track before it was completely dismantled and repurposed for motorized traffic. This is the visual obituary of our active mobility promises:

Please drop your comments, and let’s have a healthy discussion.

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Author: Vijay Malhotra, Mumbai.