Paris Once Had Too Many Cars, Now It Has Too Many Bikes
2023-09-30
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1Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo has long worked to make her city less dependent on cars.
2She wanted to see more people using bicycles, or bikes, to get around.
3Over a number of years, the city government put in restrictions on cars and increased the amount of bike lanes from 200 kilometers to over 1,000 kilometers.
4Now, her effort seems to have paid off.
5This year, Parisians are not complaining about too much automobile traffic.
6Instead, they say there are too many bikes.
7Thibault Quere is a spokesperson for France's Federation of Bicycle Users.
8He said he remembered seeing "traffic jams all over the place" when he traveled by car as a child.
9"Now, it's really like a bike traffic jam," he said.
10"It's kind of a good difficulty to have, especially when we think about what Paris used to be."
11Some famous roads along the River Seine are completely closed to cars.
12Now you see people riding bikes, running, and walking with their families along the river.
13In another part of Paris, a bike path on Sebastopol Boulevard is one of the busiest in Europe, after opening in 2019.
14In one week in early September, it recorded a record high of 124,000 riders.
15Paris en Selle is a volunteer organization supporting cycling in the city.
16It says the French capital's bike paths are busier than some popular ones in London and almost as busy as some in Amsterdam.
17Amsterdam is known for its high bike usage.
18Experts say the revolution will continue.
19Instead of the honking of horns and pollutive gas from cars, Paris will become known for cyclists, they say.
20The city will host the summer Olympics in 2024 and plans to add more bike lanes by then.
21Paris wants to reduce its pollution by half during the games, even as visitors from around the world will be in the city for the event.
22Organizers say all of the competition sites will be reachable by bike through a 60-kilometer network of bike lanes.
23The change to Paris, however, has not been easy.
24With more people using bikes, more people are making mistakes.
25Some of them are new to cycling and disobey traffic rules.
26Michel Gelernt rode through the Place de la Concorde in the central part of the city.
27"Paris has become unlivable," he said.
28"No one can stand each other."
29Gelernt, who is retired and in his 70s, said he often used public transportation and for-hire motorized scooters.
30But he changed to cycling during the COVID-19 pandemic.
31He said he uses Paris' bike-sharing system for 80 percent of his trips.
32He still has complaints.
33"Everyone behaves selfishly ... the traffic is a lot worse than it was," he said.
34But the environment may be improving.
35Cycling is good exercise and helps reduce pollution, which is still a problem for the large city.
36The French government blames atmospheric pollution for 48,000 early deaths in the country each year.
37Hidalgo was re-elected in 2020 and plans to keep making what she calls a "Paris that breathes."
38Her newest five-year bike plan includes over $250 million for more bike paths and bike parking.
39The new budget is an increase of over $100 million from her first five-year plan.
40I'm Dan Friedell.
1Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo has long worked to make her city less dependent on cars. She wanted to see more people using bicycles, or bikes, to get around. 2Over a number of years, the city government put in restrictions on cars and increased the amount of bike lanes from 200 kilometers to over 1,000 kilometers. 3Now, her effort seems to have paid off. 4This year, Parisians are not complaining about too much automobile traffic. Instead, they say there are too many bikes. 5Thibault Quere is a spokesperson for France's Federation of Bicycle Users. He said he remembered seeing "traffic jams all over the place" when he traveled by car as a child. 6"Now, it's really like a bike traffic jam," he said. "It's kind of a good difficulty to have, especially when we think about what Paris used to be." 7Some famous roads along the River Seine are completely closed to cars. Now you see people riding bikes, running, and walking with their families along the river. 8In another part of Paris, a bike path on Sebastopol Boulevard is one of the busiest in Europe, after opening in 2019. In one week in early September, it recorded a record high of 124,000 riders. 9Paris en Selle is a volunteer organization supporting cycling in the city. It says the French capital's bike paths are busier than some popular ones in London and almost as busy as some in Amsterdam. Amsterdam is known for its high bike usage. 10Experts say the revolution will continue. Instead of the honking of horns and pollutive gas from cars, Paris will become known for cyclists, they say. 11The city will host the summer Olympics in 2024 and plans to add more bike lanes by then. Paris wants to reduce its pollution by half during the games, even as visitors from around the world will be in the city for the event. Organizers say all of the competition sites will be reachable by bike through a 60-kilometer network of bike lanes. 12The change to Paris, however, has not been easy. With more people using bikes, more people are making mistakes. Some of them are new to cycling and disobey traffic rules. 13Michel Gelernt rode through the Place de la Concorde in the central part of the city. 14"Paris has become unlivable," he said. "No one can stand each other." 15Gelernt, who is retired and in his 70s, said he often used public transportation and for-hire motorized scooters. But he changed to cycling during the COVID-19 pandemic. 16He said he uses Paris' bike-sharing system for 80 percent of his trips. He still has complaints. 17"Everyone behaves selfishly ... the traffic is a lot worse than it was," he said. 18But the environment may be improving. Cycling is good exercise and helps reduce pollution, which is still a problem for the large city. The French government blames atmospheric pollution for 48,000 early deaths in the country each year. 19Hidalgo was re-elected in 2020 and plans to keep making what she calls a "Paris that breathes." Her newest five-year bike plan includes over $250 million for more bike paths and bike parking. The new budget is an increase of over $100 million from her first five-year plan. 20I'm Dan Friedell. 21Dan Friedell adapted this story for Learning English based on a report by the Associated Press. 22________________________________________________ 23Words in This Story 24complain -v. to speak badly about the condition of something 25traffic jam -n. a situation where too many cars are on the road at once 26honk -v. to press on an instrument to create a warning sound 27horn -n. an instrument that makes a warning sound 28selfish -adj. something that a person does without thinking of others first 29We want to hear from you. Do you think Paris' bike plan will push other big cities to make the same changes?