KEY POINTS:
Paris launches an ambitious cycling venture this weekend, seeking to get citizens hooked on pedal-power through 10,000 bikes that can be rented cheaply for short times, and are easy to pick up and drop off.
Velib - a truncated form of "free bike" - starts in 750 bicycle stations around Paris, where the bikes, hooked up to a terminal, are released with a smart card or a credit card. They can be returned to any station in the city.
The scheme, which will be expanded to 20,600 bikes and 1451 stands by the end of the year, is a keystone of Paris' Socialist-Green coalition city government's plan to reduce the number of cars by 40 per cent by 2020.
City hall spokesman Gwenaelle Joffre said the project, unlike typical bike rental schemes, was aimed less at tourists and more at locals.
"Our programme is for people travelling short distances, from point A to point B. It's for people who don't want to take the bus. They'll take a bike instead of taking the Metro and changing stations."
The bikes are sturdy beasts weighing 22kg, sporting three gears and a large front basket. Users have a basic charge of 5 euros ($8.80) per week, or 29 euros for the whole year. If the bike is used for under 30 minutes there is no additional charge; the first half hour beyond that costs 1 euro; the second half hour 2 euros; and every additional half-hour segment after that 4 euros. Maps and safety manuals will be available at every bike stand.
Renters can users the internet or their mobile phone to check bike availability and to monitor their accounts.
European capitals have made attempts in the past to convert themselves into biking utopias. But success has been spotty at best, mainly because of theft and the cost to the municipality of maintaining and renting out bikes.
This time, though, organisers are confident they have cracked these problems. Each bike is fitted with a lock and an alarm that will sound if the bike is not returned to a station, and riders will have to sign up for a security deposit on their credit card, which they will forfeit if their bike disappears. The cost of the operation is being kept as low as possible, using smart technology and automation. And, says Joffre proudly, it will not cost Paris taxpayers a cent.
Velib is being paid for by JCDecaux, a large outdoor advertising firm, in exchange for exclusive rights to 1600 ad hoardings across the city for the next 10 years. The company will also pay a fee of ¬15 million.
Remi Pheulpin, manager of research and production at JCDecaux, said his firm was confident that Velib in Paris would be a huge success.
"We expect to have 250,000 [Velib] uses in Paris per day," Pheulpin said.
The company has launched similar ventures in the southern city of Lyon, in Brussels, in the Spanish cities of Cordoba and Gijon, and in Vienna, the Austrian capital.
Mulhouse, Aix-en-Provence, Marseille and Besancon are among other French cities set to follow suit.
Other cities including Rio de Janeiro and Montreal, have sent planners to Paris to see how Velib works out.
City Hall has worked hard to promote public transport and encourage bike use. It has reduced spaces for car parks, reintroduced the tram, established bus-only lanes and built nearly 400km of bike lanes.
Wheel Deal
* Velib - short for "free bike" in French - allows the public to access more than 10,000 bikes from 750 bike stations around Paris by using a smart card or credit card.
* It is hoped that by the end of the year there will be 20,600 bikes and 1451 stands.
* Users have a basic charge of 5 euros ($8.80) a week, or 29 euros a year, with extra charges depending on the length of time they are used.
* The venture is a keystone of Paris' Socialist-Green coalition city government to reduce the number of cars by 40 per cent by 2020.
