The odd-even experiment has prompted the Delhi government to look at alternative modes of travel.Earlier this week, transport minister Gopal Rai had promised a robust cyclesharing system for the city , adding that Delhiites opting for cycles will get a subsidy from the government, which will be funded by the revenue collected from challans during the odd-even fortnight . To lay the framework for the system, the government has asked transport infrastructure experts to come up with a turnkey project. Institute for Transport and Development Policy (ITDP) is one of the consultants on the project. Said Shreya Gadepalli of ITDP, “Cycle sharing is a flexible form of personal public transport that provides an effective feeder link to bus and rail systems. It encourages shift from personal vehicles to sustainable modes.Without owning a cycle, people get access to attractive cycles. A user can check out a cycle from any cycle sharing station, use it for free for up to 30 minutes and return it to any other station. Smart IT backbone enhances user convenience.“ ITDP, which has conducted a study on the cycle-sharing system for the Delhi government, says the project can be rolled out within a year's time. The project, which will be implemented in phases, as Rai had said, will not only ramp up the number of cycle stands in the city , but also look at providing cycle tracks for safer and faster transportation in the next phase. According to the study , the scheme should first be launched in north and south Delhi areas with a dense network of cycle stands. The cycle stands or stations, as ITDP calls them, will be located 300m from each other, making it possible to have 10 stations per square kilometre. More importantly , the study says that the number of cycles will be increased to 3,800 in a network that will cover 52sq km--all this within a framework of a year. Starting with 276 stations, the cycle network will have three types of stations: small stations with 12 docks, medium with 24 docks and large ones with 36 docks. The study says that after three months of operations, 100 more stations can be added.It recommends an annual membership system, with the first half hour of usage being free to encourage a shift to the cycle-sharing system. GPS-enabled bicycles, smart cards for users and real-time data of cycles will also be incorporated in the sys tem, says the study . According to Gadepalli, what makes the cycle sharing system recommended by ITDP different from the existing ones is the format.“What we have in Delhi at present is, at best, cycle rentals. Commuters have to return the cycle they rent at the same station where they pick it up from. This makes it inflexible and inconvenient.Cycles are of poor quality and no one uses them,“ said Gadepalli. A small network with stations located far apart, are some other drawbacks, she added. In the system recommended by ITDP, however, the stations will be located nearby and anyone taking a cycle from the system needn't return it to the same station. “The user can return the cycle at any other station located near his or her destination,“ Gadepalli added. What makes the study important is that despite a network of around 6,000 buses and over 80,000 autorickshaws, along with the Delhi Metro network, last mile connectivity continues to be a problem. With a cycle-sharing system in place, it could boost the connectivity .