Hyderabad inaugurates the first solar roof cycling course in India.

Minister of Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MA&UD) K.T. Rama Rao inaugurated the country's first solar roof cycling track on Sunday, marking a significant step towards an environmentally sustainable future in urban transport. Healthway is the second innovative pathway of its kind in the world.

The track, located on the Outer Ring Road (ORR) between the main carriageway and service road, will be accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week, giving the city's cycling community a significant boost. It is also an essential step towards making Hyderabad the active mobility capital of the nation.

The Minister announced at the track's opening that a similar track will be constructed around Gandipet Lake, in the Financial District, and in Neopolis.

"This cycling track is a self-sustaining and viable undertaking. The primary objective is to excite children about cycling and mobility so that they do not develop lifestyle-related diseases in the future, he said, adding that additional sports facilities, such as skateboarding ramps and tennis courts, will be added along the track.

The 23-kilometer path is comprised of two stretches: a pink line of 8.5 kilometres from Nanakramguda to Telangana State Police Academy and a blue line of 14.5 kilometres from Kollur to Narsingi, both of which converge at Narsingi Junction and have five distinct access points. It is a 4.5-meter-wide, three-lane road with one metre of verdant space on either side.

The track will be led by Hyderabad Growth Corridor Limited (HGCL), a division of Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA), and will feature ample parking, surveillance cameras, food courts, drinking water, first aid stations, and lavatories. In an effort to make life simpler for tourists, bicycle repair shops, cycle docking and rental stations, and other services will be provided.

In addition to shielding cyclists from the sun, rain, and other weather conditions, the solar roof panels and the track itself will isolate them from major road traffic, enhancing their safety.

In a record-setting 18 days, 16 thousand solar panels were installed. This will generate 16 megawatts (MW) of power, which will be used to illuminate the track at night and is anticipated to meet other ORR power needs.

The MA&UD Minister got the idea for this track after spotting a tweet by renowned environmentalist Erik Solheim that highlighted the cycling track between Daejeon and Sejong in South Korea.