Emergency plan to promote bicycle use against COVID-19

    Jornadas de eficiencia y movilidad de Empresas por la Movilidad Sostenible

    The bicycle is one of the key vehicles to meet the social distancing and transport needs, to ensure the safety of people through comfortable and safe mobility after the COVID-19 pandemic.

    Hence, the Cities for the Bicycle Network (RCxB) has designed an emergency plan to promote the use of this vehicle.

    Many countries are already developing emergency measures to promote cycling against COVID-19 as:

    • It is an individual transport making physical distancingpossible.
    • It is the only vehicle that does not pollute since it doesn’t contribute to health problems.
    • The bicycle is silent, allows reduction of noise pollution and greater emotional well-being,
    • It is a vehicle without greenhouse gases.
    • The bicycle does not cause serious traffic accidents.
    • It is a flexible way that takes up no space and can move through most urban infrastructures.
    • The bicycle makes physical (see post)and emotional health(see post)profit to people who use it.
    • It is the fastest means of transportfor distances up to 8 km, the most common in metropolitan environments.
    • Very economicalconcept for both usersand public administration,
    • It allows a lower occupancy in public transport,
    • Cyclinghas proven to be the most efficient and effective last mile freight transport and e-commerce.

    Emergency Plan proposed by RCxB:

    1. Promote urgent and low cost tactical expansion of urban bicycle networks and connection with neighboring municipalities.
    2. Reopening of public bicycle services, under cleaning and disinfection measures.
    3. Traffic light coordination measures to prevent bicycles and pedestrians accumulation at crossings.
    4. Cities 30 and lower speed limits to promote active mobility.
    5. Safe bicycle parking facilities in municipal buildings and other easily accessible spaces.
    6. Promote cyclology home delivery, neighborhood shopping, and community services.
    7. We call on the state government and the autonomous communities to urgently purchase planning to support electric and mechanical bicycles.
    8. We urge the Directorate-General for Traffic to speed up the updating of bicycle regulations to enable safe bicycle mobility and to promote the use of bicycles as a priority tool.
    9. We request that projects that drive the economy, consider especifically those projects that benefit the industry, marketing anduseof bicycles.
    10. We ask theautonomous communities to draw up urgent plans to promote bicycle use.
    11. Decisively promote road safety training in the use of bicycles in schools, institutions and the general population.
    12. We ask the state government to appoint an official responsible to coordinate all the policy and all the agents involved, to carry out all these actions.