Design to Encourage Walking and Cycling


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Creator/Artist: Shreshta Jaisingh

Category: Communication Design

Document: P3 Project

Batch: 2014-2016

Source: India,   IDC IIT Bombay

Period:  2009-2018

Medium: Report pdf

Supervisor: Prof. Sudesh Balah & Prof. Raja Mohanty


Detailed Description

Cycling and walking are two of the most prime methods of transport. Such modes of ‘Active Transport’ give us the most control over our movement. These are two activities that one can never forget, as it is so ingrained in our muscle memory. Why then, in a society that is increasingly health conscious, where medicine has made leaps and bounds to extend longevity, where fitness is not just a trend but a way of life, do we still not adopt these methods of basic human movement into our daily lives? The pollution from our vehicles causes our temperatures to rise, motorized transport strains all our resources and creates a looming mess that we can’t seem to clean up. We are a society bombarded with choices and advertorial messages all day, everyday; we have a world of knowledge at our fingertips, yet there is a requirement for an external stimuli that can make us reconsider our choices that we make in our daily lives. This project falls into a realm of work that provides this stimuli. An initial survey involved asking people their preferences and why they simply do not make a conscientious effort to contribute to the well-being of the planet though the means involves merely taking care of their own bodies. Understanding the problem, though it might seem like reinventing the wheel, is part of the process in order to understand and gain insights about this innate laziness that we as a generation seem to have so easily adapted to. Work done that is similar to this endeavor in other such situations around the world was studied as part of secondary research, wherever similar efforts to promote walking or cycling were taken. Much work has been done in glamorizing cycling as a sport and not enough promoting it as a means of transport. The most active cities in the world all have one obvious common quality of possessing the basic infrastructure needed to pursue such means of transport. Since that aspect is not under my control in the realm of a design project, I decided to dedicate my project to those who are already inclined to physical activity. My outcome is a piece of communication that recognizes the limitations of influencing opinion and serves as an aide to people who want to pursure exploring the city in an unusual manner. It is for those who want to see it through a more personal perspective and need an incentive to plan out their own adventures. This project is created for the love of being outdoors, be it in an urban landscape or to be a little closer to the strains of nature around us. It is an aide towards making a more conscientious and healthy choice.