Paris to peddle large e-bike fleet

The Paris region plans to launch a large fleet of electric bicycles in a statefunded scheme aimed at getting commuters to cycle to work.

The Paris region plans to launch a large fleet of electric bicyles in a state-funded scheme aimed at getting commuters to cycle to work and reducing congestion and pollution.

From September 2019, regional transport agency Ilede-France Mobilités will provide 10,000 e-bikes for long-term rental, with a view to expanding the scheme to 20,000, to make it the world’s largest e-bike rental programme.

The aim of the “Veligo” service is to encourage bicycle commuting, which accounts for only 1.6% of daily trips in the Ilede-France area.

Veligo will be run by a joint venture including the postal service and transport firm Transdev under a six-year contract. It will have a budget of up to €111m. It will complement Paris’ Velib scheme, which was a model for bike-sharing worldwide but struggled since a new operator took over in 2018. Only half the promised 20,000 new Velibs are in operation.

Unlike Velib bikes, which are rented on an hourly basis and must be docked in roadside stations after use, Veligo bicycles will stay with users, who can rent them for €40 a month, half of which can be subsidised by their employers.

While Velib mainly serves the 2-million residents of central Paris, Veligo is aimed at the capital’s wider region, home to 10million people and a third of national output.