Les Français et le vélo en 2022

• In 2017, more than half of households (51.1%) own at least one bicycle. This ownership rate varies by household size: 30% of single-person households have one or more bicycles at home, compared to 76% of couples with children. Similarly, income level significantly influences ownership rates: just over a third of the poorest households own a bicycle, compared to nearly two-thirds of the wealthiest households. • It is primarily in large urban areas that respondents report not owning a bicycle: in the Paris region, 60% of households have none at home, 23 percentage points higher than in rural areas (INSEE, Household Budget Survey 2017). This equipment deficit is, however, largely offset by easier access to public transportation services and free-floating bike-sharing schemes.

Owning a bicycle does not necessarily mean it is being used. The Personal Mobility Survey (SDES-INSEE, 2019) shows that bicycles that were actually used during the previous year belong to only one-third of households. Among these, only 8% were used daily, while 40% were ridden less than once a month. Furthermore, more than one-third of bicycles were not used during the year preceding this survey.

Over the past five years, more than 12 million new bicycles have been sold. During the same period, numerous national and local initiatives have been implemented to help used bicycle owners restore them (repair, maintenance). Data from the Cycle Observatory show that the bicycle market remains very dynamic, with sales revenue exceeding €3.4 billion and more than 2.7 million bicycles sold in 2021, compared to 1.6 million new passenger cars the same year. Over the past five years, sales of electric-assist bicycles (e-bikes) have increased fivefold. In 2021, 660,000 e-bikes were sold, representing one-quarter of sales (Union Sport & Cycle, Cycle Observatory, 2022). With an average price exceeding €2,000, e-bikes remain expensive equipment for many households, even though some purchase incentives are now conditional on household income levels.

Although French households have substantial bicycle equipment, they use them much less frequently: only 4.5% of French people who travel daily to their workplace or school reported at the end of 2021 using a bicycle for all or part of their journey. Among these, 1.9% use a bicycle followed by public transportation (CGDD/SDES, Environmental Platform 2021). Distance remains a determining factor for bicycle use: whereas below 5 kilometers, 5% of workers prefer a bicycle to get to work, beyond that only 1% do. For trips under 2 kilometers, walking remains six times more common (INSEE, Population Census, 2017). Not limiting itself to quantifying commuting trips (which represent only 11% of bicycle use), the Personal Mobility Survey (SDES-INSEE, 2019) shows that three-quarters of bicycles used also serve for leisure rides and 27% for sport. On average, bicycle trips are 3.4 km and last 19 minutes. The share of trips made by bicycle reaches a maximum of 5.3% between 2 and 3 km. Beyond 12 km, bicycles are rarely used. Drawing on a national sample of 300 counters, the association Vélo & Territoires provides regular estimates of cycling practices in France. Despite certain statistical limitations, this quantification work allows for understanding recent developments following the COVID-19 pandemic. According to this source, bicycle use increased by 39% (Vélo et Territoires, National Ridership Platform, June 2022) between 2019 and the first half of 2022. In urban areas, the increase was 42% and 27% in suburban and rural areas.

• Between 2015 and 2020, more than 150,000 French people chose to give up their car and adopt cycling to get to their workplace or school (INSEE, Annual Census Surveys 2015, 2020). This trend has notably been observed in city centers (central municipalities of urban areas) where bicycle use is twice as high as in the rest of the territory. In suburban and rural municipalities, bicycle use remains minority due to distances to travel and the weak density of cycling networks. In downtown areas of major urban centers, bicycles are used more regularly in daily life. This is particularly true in Strasbourg (17%), Grenoble, and Bordeaux.

When analyzing cyclist profiles, bicycle use is more prevalent among men (3.7%) than women (1.5%) (SDES-INSEE, Personal Mobility Survey 2019). All else being equal, minors use bicycles twice as much as adults. In households without a motorized vehicle, bicycle use is three times more frequent than in those with more than one vehicle per adult. Finally, weather also affects bicycle use. Beyond rain's discouraging effect, cold temperatures cause the share of bicycle trips to drop from 2.6% on average to 1.5% in winter. Lastly, bicycles are used for 3.4% of solo trips, compared to 1.4% of trips made with others.

Launched at large scale by the Lyon metropolitan area in 2005, bike-sharing quickly expanded through 2011. In recent years, growth in supply has slowed, although demand remains fairly strong. In 2021, more than 45,000 bicycles are made available to residents of about thirty French urban areas. In recent years, many cities have chosen to renew their fleet by providing an increasing share of electric-assist bicycles. Since 2017, new operators have entered the Paris market by providing "floating" bicycles not tied to stations. Given that nearly 90% of bicycles available are concentrated in eight major metropolitan areas (Paris, Strasbourg, Lyon, Toulouse, Lille, Bordeaux, Nice, and Nantes), it is understandable that people living in the Paris metropolitan area (15%) or in metropolitan areas of more than 100,000 inhabitants (11%) report having used a bike-sharing service in the past year (CGDD/SDES, EPEM 2016).

• Since the 1996 LAURE law, municipalities must create "cycling routes equipped with dedicated paths, road markings, or separate lanes" when building or renovating urban roads (art. L 228-2 of the Environmental Code). As a result, the supply of cycling infrastructure has improved over the past twenty-five years. • Initiated by the company Geovelo and fed by contributors to the OpenStreetMap online mapping site, the website amenagements-cyclables.fr seeks to comprehensively document changes to cycling infrastructure in France. According to this source, the national network totaled nearly 75,000 km in 2022, comprising 46% dedicated bicycle paths, 26% green paths (shared among soft modes), 19% bike lanes (road sections reserved for bicycles), and 7% two-way bicycle lanes and shared bus lanes (source: www.amenagements-cyclables.fr).

At the territorial level, total cycling infrastructure reaches 9,000 km in Nouvelle Aquitaine and exceeds 8,000 km in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and in the Grand Est region. In metropolitan France, four departments alone account for 20% of cycling networks: Nord, Bas-Rhin, Rhône, and Haute-Garonne. With 17 km of cycling infrastructure per 10,000 residents, the Pays de la Loire and Brittany regions offer the largest network per capita. In these regions, two departments contribute particularly to these results due to the numerous green paths running through them: Mayenne (469 km) and Morbihan (575 km). In the Landes (33 km/10,000 inhabitants, two-thirds of which are dedicated bicycle paths) as in other Atlantic coastal departments (25 in Vendée, 20 in Charente-Maritime and Gironde), topography has also favored the creation of numerous facilities, notably EuroVelo1, which crosses France between Roscoff and Hendaye. Similarly, cycling infrastructure is abundant in departments crossed by the "Loire à Vélo" bicycle route. Conversely, the Paris region has per capita bicycle mileage almost twice lower than the national average. However, the cycling density of Île-de-France (62 km of cycling infrastructure per 100 km²) is more than four times higher than the metropolitan average.

The Personal Mobility Survey (SDES-INSEE, 2019) showed that certain factors (cycling network density, climate, topography) significantly influence the level of cycling practice. At the municipal scale (intra-muros data), significant disparities are observed between the largest cities in France. Some municipalities, such as Paris or Lyon, have high cycling infrastructure density but relatively low per capita ratios. In Marseille, Nice, Toulon, or Saint-Étienne, supply is fairly limited, both in terms of infrastructure density and mileage per inhabitant. This is explained notably by the difficult topography of these cities. In Lille, Tours, and Nancy, network density is particularly high but dedicated bicycle paths represent less than 20% of infrastructure. Conversely, dedicated paths account for 60% of infrastructure in some cities (Le Havre, Montpellier) whose networks are less dense. Finally, two cities stand out significantly from the others due to the quality of their cycling networks (density, mileage per inhabitant, and share of dedicated paths): Strasbourg with its 412 km (72% of which are dedicated paths) and Grenoble (the densest cycling network: 10.5 km of infrastructure per km²). Understandably, these two cities receive high appreciation ratings in the 2021 FUB Cycling Cities Barometer. The same is true for Rennes, Annecy, Nantes, and Lyon. In other cities, user perception sometimes diverges from the quality of recorded cycling infrastructure: in Toulouse, Orléans, Mulhouse, Reims, or Metz, cyclists give relatively low ratings even though supply is above average. Conversely, cyclists in Besançon and Brest are fairly satisfied with their cycling networks, even though they are limited.

• Far from replacing the car as the preferred daily transportation mode, bicycles are often perceived as recreational or sports equipment. Before considering giving up their motorized vehicle, 14% of French people who use a car daily expect "more numerous and safer bicycle paths" to be built (Source: CGDD/SDES, Environmental Platform, 2021). • When asked specifically what could encourage them to use their bicycles more, French people who never or rarely cycle predominantly answer that they lack the desire or ability to travel this way. Among the five other options presented in the survey, the most cited concerns the quality of the cycling network: 25% of respondents indeed expect "more numerous and safer bicycle paths."

Despite progress made in recent years, much remains to be done to expand cycling infrastructure and increase its safety. Indeed, French people express concern about the risks posed by cycling. In metropolitan France, 226 cyclists died in 2021, a 29% increase compared to the average observed between 2016 and 2020. It is outside urban areas that the majority (56%) of deaths were recorded by road safety authorities. One fatal accident in ten involved an electric-assist bicycle. In half these cases, they were being ridden by people aged 75 or over. Aware of the risks posed by this type of mobility, an increasing number of cyclists have chosen to wear helmets (mandatory for children under 12).

This safety concern also extends to equipment itself. Indeed, 11% of people who use their bicycle little or not at all expect "secure parking spaces to be made available." Worried about bicycle theft, they hesitate to ride without knowing where they can park. As an alternative to this bicycle parking issue, "establishing a bicycle rental system near home" is cited less frequently (4%). This is partly explained by the fact that the vast majority of French municipalities are unable to implement large bike-sharing networks to meet users' demand for proximity.

• Among other factors that could encourage French people to use their bicycles more, 16% of respondents wish they could afford "a low-cost electric-assist bicycle" and 7% would be motivated by "receiving a mileage bonus for commuting." In recent years, public authorities have initiated financial aid to encourage bicycle use and facilitate electric bicycle purchases. Depending on the territory, different cost-sharing schemes have been implemented. Since April 2022, the State grants an environmental bonus to low-income households following the purchase of an electric-assist bicycle: the amount equals the aid provided by the local authority, up to €200. Specific assistance for purchasing cargo bikes was also established in 2021. Finally, the conversion bonus has been expanded to include electric-assist bicycle purchases. Previously, a "bicycle mileage allowance" had been initiated in the 2015 LTECV law to encourage French people to commute by bicycle. This bonus was €0.25/km, capped at €200 per year. This system was replaced in 2020 by the "sustainable mobility allowance," which allows employees to have their employer cover all or part of transportation costs between home and workplace. This optional aid concerns trips made by bicycle, public transportation, carpooling, etc. • > Extension of national bicycle purchase assistance > The supplementary budget law for 2022 provides for extending access to national bicycle purchase assistance between August 15 and December 31, 2022. This funding measure aims to encourage behavioral shifts toward clean mobility. Indeed, the bicycle is a relatively inexpensive, fast, and beneficial mode of transportation for both health and the environment.