After years of hesitation, the Val de Marne has finally gotten serious about bikes. The goal: multiply by seven the number of trips by bike!
In the towns east of Paris which comprise the Val de Marne, 70% of trips are under two kilometers. That’s just a few minutes by bike. For these short distances, why not encourage people to ride instead of drive?
That’s exactly what Val de Marne’s Conseil General aims to do. The new “Plan de déplacement” (transportation plan) ramps up the bike option:
· 450 kilometers of bike paths by 2020
· 15 kilometers of NEW bike paths each year
· Obligatory bike paths included in plans to modify departmental roads
· Financial support for creating 76 new Velib station in Paris’ eastern suburbs
· Threefold budget increase for bicycle—related projects
The Mayor of Paris, Bertrand Delanoe (PS), pushed and supported by the Greens, set off a transportation revolution in Paris by shifting urban space away from cars and towards buses and bikes. Velib in Paris has been, despite massive vandalism, a raging success.
This movement is now spreading to the suburbs (banlieue). Christian Favier (PC), president of the Conseil General du Val de Marne has thrown his considerable political weight into alternative forms of transportation.
The prospect of a region-wide network of bike paths linking Paris to the suburbs and the suburbs to each other is a joyous one. Vive le vélo! Vive la République!
Special treat:
UTUBE of Danny MacAskill on his bike
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