Cycling advocates and others are urging cities to move fast to encourage the boom in biking brought on by pandemic lockdowns that have moved millions out of cars, buses and trains. A World Cycling Day seminar called it a unique chance to rethink urban space and mobility.
Matthew Baldwin, deputy chief of the EU Commission’s Mobility and Transport Directorate and a cycling enthusiast urged city officials: “Don’t wait for permission — push for the temporary lanes, put the paint on the roads.”
Others argued that cycling had shown itself a crucial resource for safe, reliable and fast transportation during the crisis. Paris’s deputy mayor for transport reported that the 60 km of new cycle lanes opened during the lockdown have been quite busy, with one, on the Rue de Rivoli, handling 14,000 rides a day.
Several other cities, including Lisbon, put forward the ‘if you build it, they will use it’ argument, calling for even more efforts toward bike-friendly city centers.
