Plan Vélo 2023 France

French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne this week unveiled new investment in cycling as part of a second plan vélo, reports France Info. The first plan vélo was in 2018.

‘Cycling is accessible to all, environmentally-friendly, healthy…it’s also a benefit to our economy.’

elisabeth borne, prime minister of france

The second plan vélo comes with funding of €250 million in 2023 for cycle tracks and secure cycle parking. Local authorities can ask for grants for their projects.

‘The challenge for us in the coming years is to show that the bicycle can also be a mode of transport in rural areas,’ said Borne. So far efforts have focused on urban areas.

Objectives in Numbers

The government wishes to target trips of less than 5km, which make up 40% of car journeys.

Overall, the objective for 2024 is that 9% of trips should be made by bike, as against 3% in 2018.

Progress so far since 2018 includes:

• 14,000km of cycle tracks built
• €365 million invested in 933 projects between 2019 and 2022

Government Involvement

An ‘interministerial’ committee is to meet every 6 months to check on progress. It will be made up of the Prime Minster and five other government ministers. The objective is to make sure that France ‘develops into the cycling nation that we want her to be’.

Borne says that cycling is relevant to many government departments, and is a key lever for preventative healthcare.

Cycle Industry in France

Borne says that she wants to develop the cycle industry in France, from assembly to recycling. One objective is for a million bicycles a year to made in France by the end of the government’s 5-year term, as against 800,000 today.

The 2024 Olympic Games will provide a shop window for the sector.

Current grants for individuals to buy or maintain bikes will remain in place. In 2021 bicycles were the most biggest-selling mode of transport.

Children will be given Bikeability-style training.