New Delhi, July 8 -- Every morning, tens of millions of Indians board buses or the metro to reach their jobs or classrooms (or hospitals in some cases). Last-mile connectivity, the final leg of a journey between a transit hub and a commuter's home or workplace, is one of the most underrated drivers of economic growth: it determines whether infrastructure investment actually translates into jobs and markets reached.

Big investments in metros and highways only pay off if people can reach them. A 2021 World Resources Institute (WRI) study found 70% of potential Bengaluru metro users avoided the system due to inconvenient access; last-mile gaps hold back ridership in Delhi as well.

That gap is stranded economic value: a worker who can't rel...