Friday, 29 March 2024
InfrastructureNewsPolitics

Portugal’s answer to upping cycling’s modal share? Start with the students

The Portuguese Government has launched a bicycle rental project with 17 Universities nationwide, citing a goal to up cycling’s modal share to 5% nationwide by 2020.

Investing some €6.4 million into the scheme, the Ministry of Environment will look to grow the current 1% of trips by targeting students in higher education. Bicycle parking will also be funded on campuses as part of the budget.

The project aims to get some 200,000 students annually on over 3,000 bikes, more than 1,000 of which will offer electric assistance.

In campus in Aveiro, for example, 300 new parking spaces will join an existing 300, while 239 bikes (97 electric) will be delivered in order to create a “Low Carbon Campus.”

Read more on the project on Observador.

This article has now joined our series on cities developing their cycling credentials around the globe.