As Deputy Mayor David Belliard of Europe Ecologie-Les Verts (EELV) aptly notes, cycling in Paris has transcended mere trendiness; it’s become a fundamental aspect of the city’s identity. Despite challenges like inclement weather, cyclists continue to flock to the streets, setting new attendance records and reshaping the urban landscape in the process.
Beautiful, just hoping Berlin will follow suit some day
Didn’t the new conservative government there stop any plans for new cycling infrastructure?
Yep… If I’m not mistaken they already reversed a lot of bike lanes. The condition was something on the lines of “if it blocks >5 parking spots in x meters then it can’t be a bike path”.
Also they plan to change the speed limit from many streets from 30 back to 50 kmh.
So yeah, Berlin is walking backwards at the moment…
The big difference is the size of the administrative area. Paris is obviously a much larger city, but the mayor only controls about 100km^2 containing 2 million people, whereas in Berlin the equivalent is almost 900km^2 and 3.5 million people. So while Paris can focus heavily on the concerns of the people that actually love in the city and don’t care much for those driving in, Berlin has to cater towards much more suburban interests.