Toulouse Métropole wants to “go further”
During his back-to-school press conference, Jean-Luc Moudenc announced that he wanted to “move up a gear” to develop cycling in the territory of Toulouse Métropole. In this sense, new cycle paths and stations of VélÔToulouse will notably see the light of day.
He made it “one of the priorities of the mandate”. Jean-Luc Moudenc reaffirmed its desire to encourage the practice of cycling during his back-to-school press conference this Thursday, September 15. According to the president of Toulouse Metropolis and mayor of Toulouse, “cycling is a valuable ally for refreshing the city”.
After “a summer marked by exceptional heat levels”, he revealed that “travel policy is one of the levers to fight against global warming”. Jean-Luc Moudenc thus intends to intensify the development of the bicycle.
92 kilometers of tracks dedicated to cycling more in six years
But before addressing the new features to come, he made a point of highlighting what had already been done in the area for cycling. The president of Toulouse Métropole thus welcomed the 92 kilometers more cycle paths created between 2016 and 2021.
“The number of cyclists increased by 77% over the period. This shows that the method put in place is good. You have to be ambitious without contradicting the citizens by closing streets overnight, ”supports Jean-Luc Moudenc.
Toulouse Métropole enters the realization of the REV
However, the mayor and the president now want to “move up a gear”. Toulouse Métropole thus announces “entering into the concretization of the Express Bike Network (REV)”. Several the public consultation meetings are taking place next November.
As a reminder, the REV represents 370 kilometers of cycle paths in Haute-Garonne, including 240 in metropolitan France. New ones will also see the light of day in the coming months within the Metropolis, in particular chemin de Gabardie, rue Vedel or even on the Saint-Pierre bridge.
New VéloToulouse stations in the Métropole
Always to develop the use of the bicycle, the Métropole intends to install new stations BikeToulouse. Currently 283 in number, 192 new ones will appear by 2024. “There will be 117 stations in Toulouse and 75 in the neighboring towns”, announces Jean-Luc Moudenc.
But that’s not all. These stations will only offer mechanical bicycles. They will also have electrically assisted bicycles on January 1, 2024. “They represent 50% of the fleet, or even 75%”, specifies the president of Toulouse Métropole.
Double the number of VélÔToulouse users
With these new stations and the provision of electric bicycles, the Metropolis hopes for “more users”. “We expect to double their number by 2024,” predicts Jean-Luc Moudenc. VélÔToulouse currently has more than 20,000 subscribers.
But who says more cyclists, says more vandalism. Toulouse Métropole has thus installed 823 more bike racks in 2020-2021, an increase of 300%. Similarly, 900 bicycle parking spaces in underground car parks will be put into service next month.
Toulouse Métropole also thinks about pedestrians
At the end of the month, the City of Toulouse will also inaugurate a charging station for electric bicycles. It will be one of the first pilot cities. In all, this experiment will last six months.
“We want more than ever to facilitate the use of bicycles throughout the metropolitan area with a dual objective: to secure use for cyclists but also to guarantee the safety of pedestrians”, supports the president of Toulouse Métropole. For him, the latter should not be the “losers of the cycling policy”.