Velib' Nine Months Later

Remember the days in Paris before last summer when you had to be more concerned with looking both ways for cars than seemingly harmless bikes? Well, times have changed. Just as you're about to cross in the crosswalk (you know, that small unimposing area of the street where you the pedestrian, have the right of way), you now have to put on your brakes to dodge the cyclist who's plowing through. Chances are that person is on a Velib’ bicycle.

On its initiation day, Velib’, Paris' effort to "green" the way people get around, had 750 stations around Paris, holding a total of over 10,600 bikes. Today those numbers exceed 1,400 and 20,600 respectively. You can imagine how that has changed the dynamics of the road. Velib’ has been largely well-received by the Paris public and the city’s millions of tourists. It allows people to maneuver through the city, above ground, inexpensively and without polluting.

Many companies have even begun offering memberships to Velib’ as a benefit for their employees. Most notably, Louis Vuitton, which has had an environment initiative for at least a decade offers this to its Paris employees.

The idea behind providing bikes to citizens and visitors cheaply is indisputably noble and great, but there are still kinks to work out all these months later. Everyone on wheels in this city seems to think he has the right of way. The danger factor has been the catalyst for the launch of a “Rules of the Road”-type campaign. If you come to Paris and take advantage of this mode of transportation, be sure to know rules and etiquette of the road before pedaling out there.

The other side… Unfortunately, not everyone has been pleased with Velib’. Several web sites exist merely for complaints about all things that have gone wrong with the system. Despite the mishaps with Velib’, Ruyi salutes this “green” effort.

Real time information about availability of bikes at every station: ParisàVelo
Site with information and forums to share good and bad experiences: Club Velib’