This Indian city has introduced no-car
Saturdays
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/04/ranchi-india-encourages-no-car-saturday-to-tackle-air-pollution/
Those behind the initiative hope that locals
will embrace bikes or take to walking.
Image: Unsplash/Jianxiang Wu
12 Apr 2021
Anuradha Nagaraj
Correspondent, Reuters
*An 'every Saturday, no car' campaign is
running in Ranchi, India.
*It's hoped the scheme will help reduce air pollution.
*The city has also introduced a bike-sharing
scheme.
Every Saturday, Shankar Yadav dusts off an old
bike and pedals to work, reliving his carefree schooldays and hoping fellow
Indians will join him in ditching cars to protect the planet.
In one of India's most ambitious such plans,
Ranchi city's 'har shanviar, no car' - every Saturday, no car - campaign goes
well beyond other towns that have banned cars from a few lanes for set hours of
the weekend, but risked nothing more.
"We are a small city and studies have
shown that most residents live within a 5-km radius of their workplace, school
or markets," Yadav, a deputy commissioner with the Ranchi Municipal
Corporation, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
"Though there is no law to implement this
idea, we are hoping that people will embrace it because it is very doable here.
Barring the elderly, our analysis shows that most people can easily switch to a
bicycle or walk."
The scheme kicked off this month, a small-city
initiative in a vast country that faces ever-worsening pollution.
Ranchi is among many Indian cities trying new
ways to tackle this worsening air quality - be it with pop-up cycle tracks,
free cycle repair clinics or pedestrian-only streets.
Akanksha, a first-time rider in Ranchi, said
she enjoyed the ride and was "quite excited" by the eco-rationale,
too.
"I did have to deal with the city traffic
and the pollution, but am hoping as the idea catches on, these problems will
get addressed," said the music teacher, who goes by just one name.
"I think cycling with a guitar might be
difficult - but I definitely wanted to set an example for my students."
Ranchi residents participate in the 'every
Saturday, no car scheme'.
Image: Ranchi Municipal Corporation
The cost of inaction is steep.
Bad air was linked to 1.24 million deaths, or one
in eight of those who died, in India's latest nationwide pollution study.
Ranchi, the captial of eastern Jharkhand state
with an urban population of 1.5 million, has ambient air pollution levels that
are seven times higher than World Health Organization (WHO) recommended
standards, according to studies.
It has also been identified by the National
Clean Air Programme as one of 122 "non-attainment cities" that
consistently fall short of national standards.
"It is a welcome move and heartening to
know that smaller cities are starting these initiatives," said Sarika
Panda, who set up the country's first lasting car-free initiative in 2013.
"This is a good time to push for this
switch as people are more aware and understand the need to reduce their carbon
footprint."
Change makers
Ahead of launch, Ranchi built 50 bike stands where
residents can rent wheels by the hour. Cycle tracks are due to follow.
While the city is compact, urban planners
welcome even these small and "symbolic gesture" as they foster
awareness and force authorities to improve facilities for walkers and cyclists.
Citing Shimla in northern Himachal Pradesh,
home to one of India's oldest pedestrian-only streets, researchers say both
momentum and longevity are key to clean air in the long term.
"Any intervention that cuts air pollution
is good but if there are many exceptions to the rule than there will be no
benefits," said Sarath Guttikunda, director of UrbanEmissions.Info, an
independent research body.
"If we really have no cars running on the
roads for 24 hours, it will make a difference. Otherwise, in small events like
a no vehicle street for a day, it is difficult to measure change. They are just
good awareness exercises."
Yadav agrees it is too soon to crow about
success - but says the early signs are promising and the goal is ambitious.
While precise data on the new scheme was not
yet available, interest in cycling is rising.
In 2019, there were more than 9,000 people who
had registered on the bike sharing app started by the civic body. Post
COVID-19, many more have invested in bicycles, Yadav said.
"It is early days but government
officials, politicians and prominent citizens are setting the example,"
Yadav said.
"Besides pollution we are also linking it
to a healthy lifestyle and the Indian government's Cycle4Change challenge. A
lot will depend on the enthusiasm of the city's residents."