An executive in a reintegration association in Paris, Charles, 31, is not a big fan of public transport.
For a long time he preferred his motorcycle to them, but it ended up costing him too much, not to mention that the helmet and the shell jacket were painful to transport.
At the end of 2020, he therefore opted for Véligo, an electrically assisted bicycle funded by the Île-de-France and Île-de-France Mobilités region to encourage Ile-de-France residents to travel on two wheels.
Offered for rental for a maximum of nine months, from 40 euros per month, Véligo has converted 37,000 cyclists since 2019, and the Region wants to eventually double its fleet of 20,000 bicycles.
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Unlike Vélib 'or other short-term rental bikes, Véligo allows its user to be the sole owner of his bike for several months in a row. Rather robust, perfectly identifiable and therefore very difficult to resell, Véligo is hardly ever stolen, according to Île-de-France Mobilités. Insurance taken out by 80% of users allows, whatever happens, to protect against the risk of theft or breakage. “
I can park everywhere without a ticket, I move really quickly in Paris and financially, I find myself there
, estimates Charles.
It costs me 45 euros per month, I would have to keep an electric bike for five years without damage to make it more profitable.
“Once the nine months have elapsed, the Region has set up a bonus, up to 500 euros for a classic bike or 600 euros for an electric one.
Elongated Véligo
“
With all the public transport development projects, in 2030 more than 90% of Ile-de-France residents will be less than 2 kilometers from a train or metro station, or 10 minutes by bike
,” explains on the Île-de-France Mobilités side.
Today, there are multiple means of transport in the same day, between public transport, walking and cycling.
We want to support that. ”
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In addition to increasing its fleet, Véligo will also offer a new extended model with a child seat and a basket. Biporters and scooters have also been offered for a few months with higher prices. In total, IDF Mobilités and the Île-de-France region, which spends 20 million euros per year on this service, now receive nearly 180 subscription requests per day.