Paris’ Vélib Program: In Trouble or Just Fine?

According to the BBC, “Over half the original fleet of 15,000 specially made bicycles have disappeared, presumed stolen. They have been used 42 million times since their introduction but vandalism and theft are taking their toll. The company which runs the scheme, JCDecaux, says it can no longer afford to operate the city-wide network.”[1]
Yet, this report may be more an alarmist report than an accurate reflection of the reality of Vélib in Paris today. Streetsblog counters that “Vélib is here to stay, according to officials and transportation experts familiar with the details of its operations. The BBC's portrayal of a mortal threat, they say, is best understood as a negotiating ploy on the part of JCDecaux. (Note that the JCDecaux representative is the only source quoted in that story.) ‘Decaux is using media sensationalism in order to obtain more money from the city of Paris,’ said Denis Baupin, who as Deputy Mayor for Transportation oversaw the Vélib launch in the summer of 2007.”[2]
Bike-sharing programs are a media-friendly way of trying to “go green” and are appropriate to almost any setting. Vélib has been a popular, seemingly successful example of a wide-spread bike-share program. As advocates of bicycle and smart urban and suburban form, we should keep our eyes on how Vélib is working out.
For more information and to read the articles quoted in the post, please visit: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7881079.stm and http://www.streetsblog.org/2009/02/12/reports-of-velibs-demise-greatly-exaggerated/.


[1] http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7881079.stm
[2] http://www.streetsblog.org/2009/02/12/reports-of-velibs-demise-greatly-exaggerated/