Bikes Take Priority in Post-Lockdown Paris

Faced with the task of rethinking its transportation systems in the face of the ongoing public health crisis, Paris and the Île-de-France are clearing the way for people on bikes.

1 minute read

April 24, 2020, 7:00 AM PDT

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


Bike Traffic

Michel Passet / Shutterstock

"Paris is the latest global city to roll out emergency bike lanes for the use of key workers and others during the lockdown," according to an article by Carlton Reid. The shift toward bike priority in Paris will last beyond the lockdown.

Concerns  about transportation mode choices (i.e., a massive shift to automobile trips) after the lockdown has led Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo ready 650 kilometers of cycleways—including "corona cycleways"—for May 11 when the lockdown is eased in France. Mayor Hidalgo is also accelerating the existing "Plan Vélo," which is designed to turn Paris into a 15-minute city. A January 2020 article by Reid reported in more detail about Mayor Hidalgo's ambitious plans to end the car-centric design of Paris streets. 

Now, Mayor Hidalgo's efforts have support from higher levels of government. "On April 21, the Île-de-France region pledged financial support for the preexisting RER Vélo project, a network of nine protected cycleways linking the center of Paris with key suburbs, a concept of the Ile-de-France Bike Collective advocacy network," reports Reid. "€300 million will be provided to part-pay for a mix of new infrastructure and temporary 'corona cycleways,' or TempoRER vélo," according to Reid.

Wednesday, April 22, 2020 in Forbes

Young Professional

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban and Environmental Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban and Environmental Planner

Get top-rated, practical training for planners

"Planetizen federal action tracker" logo superimposed over black and white image of US Capitol dome.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

September 16, 2026 - Zachary Whalen

Passengers board an Amtrak train under a cloudy sky.

Amtrak, CN end decades-long dispute with eight-year agreement

The new operating agreement establishes an updated framework for the companies to work together, including processes to resolve disputes.

September 18, 2026 - Mass Transit

The Gross Reservoir, a large body of water surrounded by trees and mountains.

Judges permit Denver to divert 77,000 acre feet from the Colorado River for reservoir expansion

Overuse and climate change have caused the Colorado River’s water levels to plummet.

September 18, 2026 - Inside Climate News

A crowd of people boarding Boston's green line in an underground subway station.

Boston has spent millions making the Green Line more accessible — and there’s no end in sight

While the city has invested millions into expanding and adding platforms to the Green Line to make it more accessible, new train cars set to arrive next year will be too tall for disabled passengers to board without raising the current platforms.

3 hours ago - Boston Globe

Railroad tracks in Idaho passing a home by a river.

Idaho may see an 18% drop in federal surface transit funding — the largest estimated cut in the US

Transit systems in rural communities are much more reliant on federal funding to provide their services.

4 hours ago - Grist

A Florida family with their belongings in a wagon walks past a destroyed storm after a hurricane.

How ‘post-disaster gentrification’ alters neighborhoods after natural calamities

After hurricanes, fires or other calamities, the original residents of a community are often replaced by younger, wealthier residents.

5 hours ago - Inside Climate News