Promoting cycling culture as a healthy and eco-friendly mode of transport is a potentially effective way to reduce escalating levels of carbon emissions of the transport sector in Pakistan. With Pakistan’s public transport system already in dismal shape and many cities without a decent transport facility, more and more people are buying smaller cars and motorcycles. This is steadily increasing carbon footprints of the transport sector. Presently, the sector accounts for 21 percent of the country’s over 400 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent, annually. Yet Pakistan is among top 10 countries extremely vulnerable to climate change-induced disasters, particularly floods, sea-level rise, drought, desertification, shifting rainfall seasons and cloudbursts. Surging number of private cars and motorcycles has badly degraded urban air quality. Besides this, having been a cause of frequent and commonplace traffic contestations on roads, this has greatly increased time of reaching from one destination to another. The situation, however, can be addressed by encouraging people to use bicycles through a policy response at the government level and heightened awareness about health, environmental benefits of cycling, particularly through intermittent cycling events. Such an event was organised in Islamabad on September 25 as a part of the Climate Change Diplomacy Week by the European Union Mission in Pakistan. This event primarily aimed to motivate people to cut on their use of personal cars and motorcycles in the country and use cycling, particularly for short-distance travel. Thousands of citizens, students, members of educational institutes, representatives of governmental and non-governmental bodies and diplomats of different countries cycled through thoroughfares to positively signal that they are equally a part of a climate action — cycling — by reducing individual carbon footprints. Jabeen Fatema, a science student at the Islamabad-based National University of Science and Technology, is one such participant. She hopped on a bicycle on a lane outside the Islamabad Arts Council building from where the cycling rally began, and passed along the elegant buildings of the Prime Minister Office, Parliament and Supreme Court on the Constitutional Avenue lined with trees on either side. “I came to join the event of the European Union Mission in Pakistan because I thought it could be fun to be with thousands of participants. And it was really fun,” she said while arranging her scarf back on her shoulders as she pedalled the cycle, smilingly. For Fatema, travelling back and forth four kilometres daily by her family car to go to the university costs her family nearly 80 dollars worth of fuel a month. “I think cycling for female students like me can be a mode of good, safe, cost-effective and reliable transport that has no carbon footprints, and can rid us of our dependence on our family vehicles or public transport,” Fatema said as she finished the four-kilometre ride amid cheers of the participants. For majority of the participants of the event, riding a bicycle in a rally was a first-time experience. Such cycling events can help bring back a culture that has gone completely invisible. Many were unequivocal that by creating a safe, convenient and attractive alternative to driving, investments for bicycling, particularly construction of separate cycle lanes, could help get people out of their cars, cut vehicle miles travelled and reduce carbon emissions. Nawaz Khan, a student of the Pakistan National Council of the Arts, said that being one of the oldest, noiseless and pollution-free modes of transport, cycling was more than fun. Khan believes, “Climate could benefit in a big way if urban commuters across the country left their cars at home and cycle to work, schools and shopping areas.” According to the Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency, at present around 200,000 cars and over 500,000 motorcycles are in use in Islamabad. From national perspective, the number of car and motorcycle users is growing very fast in the country, which is increasing transport sectors carbon footprints at a rapid pace. According to estimates, over a million new cars and nearly three million motorcycles come on the roads of Pakistan every year. There is a question as to what hampers bicycles from being widely used in the country. Lack of dedicated cycle-friendly infrastructure (bicycle lanes), awareness campaigns about health and environmental benefits of cycling, and a sustainable transport policy with a clear role and place for cycling are major roadblocks to revival of bicycle culture in Pakistan. Addressing these issues could significantly cut vehicle tailpipe emissions by offering potential motorists an attractive alternative to getting in their cars. However, according to Jean-Francois Cautain, EU’s Ambassador to Pakistan, cycling can slow down increase in use of car and motorcycle in the city, Ambassador Cautain said, “Cycling calls for government’s commitment and a viable policy initiative to put the required pro-bike infrastructure in place and launch a national awareness drive to encourage motorists to shun their motor cars and motorcycles and use bicycles, particularly for short trips.” As a part of promotion of bicycle use as a healthy activity, periodic intra-city and inter-city as well as intra-university bicycle competitions can help revive bicycle-riding culture in Pakistan. Besides through a policy or legislation response, government can direct administrations of educational institutions to encourage students to use bicycles for travel between home and school/college/university. Educational institutions can introduce rent-a-bike on monthly or weekly basis for students. The writer is the head of climate change communication section at the Climate Change Ministry. He is also a freelance columnist, media trainer and a guest speaker at the National University of Science and Technology, Islamabad