Cycle tracks yet to become a reality
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Good old bicycles are fast disappearing. “The number of bicycles parked in the basin bridge railway station used to be more than 200 till 2009, but now hardly 100 bicycles are parked at the stand on a daily basis and I recently shifted my cycle stand from basin bridge to nearby Pattalam,” says Mr K. Arumugham, who owns a cycle stand.
With the habit of cycling fast vanishing in Chennai, the city corporation remains a mute spectator. Two years back, it proposed exclusive cycle tracks in the city and a pilot project was envisaged for posh Anna Nagar where several schools are located.
Similarly, the corporation had plans to rent out bicycles along Marian beach, but the cost-effective project seems to be a non-starter and the fate of the eco-friendly project continues to hang in balance.
There is nothing as good as cycling to keep a person fit, but the problem is Chennai roads are not safe for cyclists.
In fact, to tone the additional fat accumulated in the abdomen and thighs, cycling can be the best exercise as it not only burns the additional calories but also provides good cardiac work out, opines fitness trainer and former Mr South India T. Arunagiri.
When contacted, a corporation official said a private consultant was appointed by the civic body and they submitted recommendations to establish cycle tracks in the school zones of Anna Nagar, but the project failed to take off due to elections and then the regime change.
However, now the civic body is working on re-designing a few arterial roads in Chennai and provisions for cycle paths are under active consideration, sources added.
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