3Paris, Nantes, Bordeaux – France
After Tokyo, Paris is the second global mega-city on this list. London and New York are way behind it regarding this subject.
Paris features over 440 km of cycle tracks and, same as Dublin, the city offers a bike sharing system called ‘Velib’ with more than 20.000 public bikes distributed at 1.800 parking stations.
‘Copenhagenize Index of Bicycle-Friendly Cities’ said : ‘Planners have been searching for space for bicycle infrastructure and Paris has some unique solutions.
They are, however, solutions that are not sustainable in the long run. It’s time to up the stakes and go after a more permanent solution with the creation of more protected cycle tracks.
The success of the bike share system is impressive but better maintenance is required, as well as increasing the number of stations at both transport hubs and popular nightlife neighbourhoods.‘
Nantes is also one of the most bike-friendly cities. The ‘Green Capital of Europe 2013’, Nantes will be the host of the 2015 Velo-City Bicycle Conference.
