MYSURU: The country’s first Public Bicycle Sharing (
PBS) system
Trin Trin, that was inaugurated in June 2017, is all set for a major upgradation and modernisation.
The Directorate of Urban Land Transport (DULT) and the
Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) are all set to use technology including the Internet of Things (IoT) to give further push to Trin Trin which is now one of the major attractions of Mysuru tourism.
The PBS modernization proposal includes upgradation from conventional bicycles to battery-powered pedal-assist bicycles, the shift from beam style dock to the dock-less system, and introduction of IoT-based integrated lock system.
As per the revamping and modernizing the PBS proposal, it has been planned to increase the number of bicycles to 1,000 besides increasing cycle hubs to 100. The idea behind this exercise is taping the tourism potential of the city, bringing down operational cost, wider coverage area, ease of accessibility with fully automatic system, etc.
As per the proposal, PBS modernization will make way for three distinct technological interventions in the current system. These include upgradation from conventional bicycles to pedal-assist bicycles to reduce stress and impact on the rider’s knees and thighs on account of pedaling on the undulating terrain of the city. Health trip users or any other users can choose to pedal just like normal bicycles, whenever they desire.
The MCC has proposed battery-powered pedal assist bicycles. The proposed shift from beam style dock to a dock-less system will make the system more flexible. The IoT-based integrated lock in the bicycle not only makes the bicycle independent from any fixed infrastructure like beam or bollard but also efficient and effective in terms of ease of operation, robust nature of the system, and low maintenance cost. MCC has invited national competitive bidding for this purpose.
1,000 pedal-assisted electric bicyclesV Manjula, commissioner, DULT, said this exercise has been taken up to further extend the network and connect more places and add more cycles. Trin Trin currently has 15,000 registered users and its usage increased from 1.4 rides per cycle per day in 2017 to 2.2 in 2019. Post Covid lockdown, the usage trend is gradually increasing, but is yet to reach pre-Covid levels. Trin Trin is based on docking technology. Now, app-based dock-less technology is available. The new upgraded Trin Trin would be dockless and would have pedal-assisted electric bicycles, she said.
1,200 rides being recorded every day Amid an increase in the Covid-19 cases, the number of rides continues to be good. According to Trin Trin manager
Asha Kerakatty, Trin Trin is recording an average of 1,000 to 1,200 rides every day now. “On weekends, the service is not available due to the weekend curfew,” she said.