New Delhi, Dec. 31 -- In almost every Indian city I have walked through, one thing has been consistently missing: walkable footpaths. Sidewalks, where they exist at all, are often so broken, obstructed or unsafe that pedestrians are forced to walk on the road alongside moving vehicles.

What should be a simple act-walking a short distance-becomes a daily exercise in risk management.

These hazardous conditions push even willing pedestrians to choose vehicles for short trips. Not because they prefer driving, but because no one wants to gamble with their life navigating open manholes, construction debris, hanging wires, parked cars, sewage and unlit stretches of road.

The consequences are severe. Pedestrian fatalities in India have doubled...