New Delhi: Walking and bicycling must be at the heart of India’s transport, climate and public health policies, experts said at the Urban Adda – sustainable urban planning summit – at India Habitat Centre on Wednesday, warning that cities cannot build sustainable public transport systems without safe pedestrian infrastructure.
Experts also called for a fundamental shift from vehicle-centric urban planning towards streets designed around people. Anjlee Agarwal, universal accessibility and inclusive mobility specialist, underlined the need for political leadership to consider the voices of women, children, and senior citizens in policymaking. “No smart city is a smart city unless it is inclusive. It is the students and the informal workers. Walking has to be motivated. “A city is not the leftover space between gated enclaves. The panel also highlighted the gender and social-equity dimensions of walkability, noting that women, children and low-income groups can be particularly dependent on walking and public transport. The discussions also stressed the importance of engineering, enforcement and public education. The discussions during the three-day conference formed part of the launch of the Walk21 Asia-Pacific Regional Dialogue under the UN Decade of Sustainable Transport.
The speakers called for walking, cycling and street-quality indicators to be embedded in nationally determined contributions ahead of the 2030 climate targets.
“Every public transit trip begins and ends on foot,” said Polash Das, programme management officer at the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), calling for explicit walking and bicycling infrastructure to be included alongside electric vehicle (EV) targets, as active mobility should receive greater climate financing. Jim Walker, strategic director at the Walk21 Foundation, said policymakers are looking for multi-sectoral solutions to climate resilience and public health, and walkability delivers both. “When we stop designing streets for cars and start designing them for human beings, we transform the entire health and economy of a city,” Walker said. Putting people first is the way ahead,” she said. Kalpana Vishwanath, co-founder and CEO of Safetipin, said, “Who are the people who walk more? The women safety factor while navigating the streets should be taken into account,” she said. Dr Rutul Joshi, professor at CEPT University, said streets had gradually transformed from social “bazaar streets” into corridors primarily meant for motor vehicles. We must dismantle auto-centric master plans and stop forcing pedestrians to negotiate for basic survival on their own streets,” Joshi said. Delhi Police special commissioner Ajay Chaudhary said crash-hotspot analysis, school-level road-safety awareness and enforcement needed to work alongside better street design. Stating that the Supreme Court has recognised the right to walk as part of the right to life, Mahmood Ahmed, additional secretary at MoRTH, said, “Our focus should shift from building vehicular infrastructure to safeguarding people, especially pedestrians and two-wheelers who account for nearly two-thirds of road fatalities.
