Thread by @Secretary_MoHUA

India #Cycles4Change Challenge has been creating waves on social media along with national and vernacular newspapers.
Coimbatore, Agartala, Gwalior & Mangaluru have used unique branding strategies & cities have launched extensive campaigns to spread the word.

More than 2,000 citizens & CSOs across India have registered to support their cities in the last 50 days.
As part of Independence Day celebrations, a national #Cycle2Freedom campaign was launched to encourage citizens to share their experiences of cycling & how it empowered them

Campaign gathered over 230 personal & highly inspiring cycling stories from citizens, including women, children & elderly! As part of the campaign, #SheCyclesforChange initiative was also launched to urge cities & CSOs to work together to make cycling safe & accessible for women.

More than 50 cities have launched perception surveys to identify and work on the obstacles to cycling in neighborhoods across cities in India.

In less than two months, the Challenge has yielded more than 50,000 responses to these surveys.

The cities are now using the data from this survey to inform and test the pilot interventions.

Over 40 cities have formed official teams to take the India #Cycles4Change Challenge forward.

To ensure diversity, teams consist of city officials, cycle group representatives, civil society organisations, gender experts, planners & other professionals along with an equal share of women.

Community engagement has been at the centre of the India #Cycles4Change Challenge.

Cities have organised cycle rallies & cyclothons to attract citizens & get more people on the ground. Kohima & New Town Kolkata have come up with unique initiatives like freecycle repair clinics & cycle training camps respectively to step up participation in the cycling movement.

Using innovative virtual engagement methods, cities have introduced a slew of activities to create awareness about India #Cycles4Change Challenge. In cities like Agartala & Surat, city officials have organised virtual dialogues & town hall meetings, along with local champions.

Exciting drawing and photography competitions have been held by Jabalpur and Chandigarh. Many cities such as Pimpri Chinchwad and Mangaluru also crowdsourced the routes for the pilot interventions by asking citizens to send in their feedback.

26 cities have identified routes along corridors and in neighborhoods for the pilot interventions of Stage 1 of the India #Cycles4Change Challenge. The cities have conducted a handlebar survey to assess the different issues faced by cyclists along these routes.

21 cities included women and children as part of the survey to ensure that diverse perspectives are respected while designing solutions.

Madhya Pradesh is one of the forerunners of the #Cycles4Change Challenge.

Bhopal, Gwalior, Indore, Jabalpur, Sagar & Satna have rolled out a citizen survey with Indore registering over 5,000 responses.
Jabalpur has actively engaged with its citizens via multiple cycle rallies, events & has plans to create a recreational cycling trail through a forest.

It also conducted a drawing competition for children to reimagine a cycle-friendly world!

Bhopal created a buzz through virtual events, by inviting local ambassadors & Gwalior captured the stories of cyclists through the #Cycle2Freedom campaign.

All cities are now in the process of working with their citizens to identify the issues faced by cyclists on the ground.

India #Cycles4Change Challenge in Gujarat was kickstarted by Ahmedabad, which has ensured the inclusion of divyang groups and the vulnerable.

Surat has taken an extra step to spread awareness by introducing a 10 hours Cyclology subject for classes 3 to 8 in all schools. Rajkot has held discussions with various stakeholders including traffic police & identified potential routes for pilot based on responses from citizens

The cities have made the most of platforms through exciting virtual rallies, video contests & audio podcasts.

Karnataka boasts an impressive list of cities that have registered for the India #Cycles4Change Challenge.

Bengaluru & Mangaluru have both launched online surveys to seek inputs from the citizens on selection of routes for the cycle plan. Mysuru created a buzz through a cyclothon event for citizens to enjoy cycling and has began identifying the routes for the pilot intervention.

Hubbali Dharwad hosted night time cycling rallies and Davanagere has formed an diverse team that includes officials, cycling experts, academicians, and CSOs.

To garner support for the India #Cycles4Change Challenge, Kohima developed unique branding strategies.

The city hosted freecycle repair clinics & is creating a bicycle park, in close collaboration with the community.
Aizawl included women & children as part of its activities and also placed interactive banners across the city that allow citizens to participate in the Challenge.

Agartala has prioritised cyclists by organising Car Free Sundays, while engaging with different groups such as the elderly & children. To empower the community & motivate them to cycle, New Town Kolkata organized cycle training camps every weekend & also hosted a 3-day Cyclothon.