Burdwan observes car-free day; ‘happy with response’, say officials

Expressing satisfaction over the response from the people, DM Soumitra Mohan told The Indian Express: “About 80 per cent of the private vehicles had been off roads today. We didn’t want to issue any diktat. Instead we started spreading the awareness about keeping the cars and bikes at home for a day.

The response had been phenomenal.”

He said instead of only preaching, the district administration had spread awareness for over two months about the advantages of a car-free day in terms of lower pollution levels, less traffic jams and health benefits of cycling and walking to office, which had hit the right chord with the people.

SP Kunal Agarwal said over 90 per cent of their officers used cycles or walked to work.

“It was a wonderful scene where all the shops were open and mostly pollution-free vehicles such as cycles, cycle-rickshaws and battery-operated rickshaws were running on the road. Even at peak hours, the traffic movement was very smooth. It was encouraging to see that members of the Association of Minibus, the biggest in the district, were riding cycles to the bus depot,” Agarwal told The Indian Express.
Amalendu Bhattacharya, a businessman who participated in the programme, said, “It is a healthy initiative and I had volunteered to take a rickshaw rather than using my car.”

Buoyed by Tuesday’s success, authorities are mulling to make the exercise a monthly affair. “Talks are already on to make the first Saturday of every month a car-free Burdwan and if that is successfully pulled off we will try and make it a weekly affair,” Mohan said.