Cycling's customer-driven growth in India
By: Varun Choraria
Tags: Startup, Transportation, Business Strategy, Consulting, Cycling

Cities need to be productive for you to be truly productive

According to Mckinsey, inclusive cities are productive cities- implying that cities are productive engines.

Commuters will only be incentivised to opt for cycling over other available modes (bike, moped, scooter, etc.) if the city infrastructure supports the safety and ease of travel.

Here’s one thing to keep in mind: Most metropolitan and cosmopolitan cities are now becoming immigrant hubs- and with that comes more a more inclusive two-way interaction- how easily can a citizen get from point A to B, and how many establishments of the city can the commuter interact with along the way?

A densely packed route (A to B), for example will invite a higher frequency of interaction- both with businesses and the government, implying more chances of revenues for both parties.

This however, can only happen if the economic perception of infrastructure investment changes from “costs” to “assets”, as explained in the Mckinsey article.

Good news is that this inclusive infrastructure is slowly becoming a reality: take a look at the graphs from above (figures 2 and 3). Here are some inferences from it:

Out of the 6 major Indian cities mentioned, 4 out of 6 cities saw a decrease in distance traveled, 1 saw a decrease in average time traveled. But, remember that inclusivity is a ratio here: distance to time traveled- and so in that case having a reduction in only one component might not yield much collectively. Thus, while 4 cities have become more dense, 4 other cities have reported to witness an increase in average travel time.

In our next article focused on infrastructure PoV, we’ll try and answer this infrastructure question, with now the base trend clear in our mind: commuters are willing to adopt cycling and the sales figures are showing it.

So, is cycling all hype? How valid is the option in the day-to-day of an average working-class commuter?

Let’s draw first a comparison about the viability of the cycle itself against other modes of transport- cars, e-bikes, etc.

No matter how much I try, I don’t think I’ll be able to draw a comparison as good as Casey Neistat, the famous YouTuber in this insanely fun yet practical video.

Furthermore, you can almost consider this video as a “day in the life” of the average commuter. I’d really encourage you to take 7 minutes out and watch this film.

At 5:51 timestamp, the conclusion is drawn- citibikes, yulu bikes, bounce scooters, etc.- are actually great and can also be financially rewarding, but in the long run- primarily because:

There’s a small learning curve involved Intermodal hubs or places where commuters can switch between modes of transport aren’t available everywhere. But I believe this can be easily hedged over time if the major public transport facilities like metros, sub-urban trains, buses, etc. connect every part of the city/district more frequently.

Screenshot at 5:51 from Casey’s Video. Citibikes apparently are more economical and viable than cycles in the long run, but with a minimal learning curve

But, in terms of a sustainable future- cycles offer a morally rewarding activity (fitness + eco-friendly) in the same time it takes them to go from point A to B. Although, a large driver of e-bikes could also be placebo.

Showdown: Yulu vs. Bounce vs. Cycling

Casey has been helpful.

Industry statistics and trends have been helpful.

But, without some first-hand opinions from the general public, it would be unfair to end this article. Let’s draw our final inference for this part of the series, from consumer insights. For this section, I will be sourcing the information from Quora.