In Strasbourg, signs ask cyclists to dismount

In some neighborhoods, the Strasbourg town hall has installed signs asking cyclists to dismount. Through this initiative, it hopes to improve coexistence between bicycles and pedestrians.

Approximately 15 signs of this type have recently appeared in the city, near pedestrian areas. To help cyclists avoid these zones, the Metro has already created a detour, which will be improved in 2023. Special routes, marked by green lines, also allow cyclists to avoid the busiest pedestrian areas. Finally, new parking spaces have been added near the affected zones.

“This on-the-ground communication campaign aims to remind everyone of the regulations and penalties in case of infringement, which are not known by all, namely that in pedestrian zones, all users, including cyclists, ‘must keep a walking pace and not cause inconvenience to pedestrians, under penalty of a fixed fine of 35 euros’,” explains the municipality. The risk of penalty for those who do not respect the rule is also clearly indicated on the sign.

The beginning of a new trend?

The issue of coexistence between pedestrians and cyclists is becoming more prominent with the growing enthusiasm for cycling. In this context, other municipalities may be tempted to follow Strasbourg’s example. In Paris, Anne Hidalgo is considering a new street code, which she plans to implement as early as this summer. The project is still very vague at this stage, but it is not impossible that it will lead to new restrictive measures for cyclists and scooter users.

Read also: This electric bike detects pollution and has an integrated boombox