Case Study: Nancy, France

Cycle lane patrols - Nancy, France

The municipality of Nancy together with the urban community of Grand Nancy has defined an Urban Transport Plan (Plan de Déplacements Urbains - PDU). The PDU defines principles for a sustainable development based on the organisation of the journeys of people, the transport and delivery of goods, the traffic flows and parking. The municipality of Nancy with the collaboration of the urban community of Grand Nancy has also established a Plan for the Development of Transport by Bicycle. The network of cycle routes has been expanded, and there are now 125 km of cycle lanes in the urban community of Grand Nancy. The promotion of bicycle use has involved, amongst other initiatives, a partnership with the "Réciprocité-Cyclotop" association. Conceived within the context of two plans - the Urban Transport Plan and the Plan for Job Placement and Employment in the Urban Area of Nancy - the "Réciprocité-Cyclotop" association has two objectives:

• to establish itself as a new urban service for the promotion of the bicycle as a mode of transport in its own right,
• to create job placement schemes and to make the bicycle more accessible to the most disadvantaged sections of the population (special rates, student participation, humanitarian operations, donations of equipment, etc.).

The association is much more than simply a "lender of bicycles". Beyond the environmental and road traffic aspects of the project there is also the social dimension. An original way of maintaining cycle routes and increasing cycle awareness has also been successfully introduced by the association: cycle lane patrols. Grand Nancy's 125 km of cycle routes are kept clean and tidy by two small three-wheeled Vespa trucks. A patrol team, much in the style of motorway patrols, monitors safety aspects of the routes and removes debris (such as branches, hubcaps, cans, wrappers, plastic bottles and broken glass) which could be dangerous for cyclists. Everyday, six 100 litre rubbish sacks are collected from Grand Nancy's cycle route network. The patrols are trained in first-aid and cycle maintenance, and also play a mediating role, offering advice to cyclists and increasing environmental awareness.