The City of Brussels has doubled its budget for cycling lanes from € 6m in 2014 to € 12m in 2015, and will invest in secure, separate bike paths that will run the length of the Belgian capital.
‘Over the past decade, the number of cyclists has increased in Brussels,’ said Pascal Smet, the Brussels Minister for Mobility. ‘Riding a bike in Brussels is clearly popular, but to make our city a real cycling city, we need to move up a gear.’
The budget increase is in response to the number of cyclists stagnating in the city between 2011 and 2013. Officials hope it will encourage more citizens to hit the pedals.
Smet wants to convince the ‘large group of potential cyclists’ to get active and believes that developing the supply of electric bikes through the shared bike system and effective marketing will most likely encourage more riders onto the streets – particularly women. According to the minister, women in Brussels are 31.5 per cent less likely than men to ride bikes.
Brussels will also begin mapping the flow of the city’s cyclists to have regular have up-to-date data on the city’s cycling patterns.
Original author: Alexia
Photo by Daquella manera
