2023-08-29 09:54:56
The use of the cycling is at historic highs in Spain and there are already almost 20 million people who use them regularly in a commitment to sustainable mobility in which the combination of “leisure and sport” is also prominent, as the general secretary of the Association of Brands and Bicycles of Spain (AMBE), Jesus Freire.
In fact, last year it continued to grow and already 11 million users use them at least once a week, a fact that represents a 40% increase between 2019 and 2022, according to the latest barometer published by the Network of Cities for Bicycles.
Among the main reasons for this increase are “the post-confinement era”, “the population’s commitment to sustainable mobility” and its use for “leisure and sport”, indicated Freire.
The protection of the environment also appears among the reasons for its use, although, according to Freire, “this was one of the most chosen reasons before, but now the population uses it more for comfort, practicality, health and physical activity” .
Among the main reasons for this increase are “the post-confinement era”, “the population’s commitment to sustainable mobility” and its use for “leisure and sport”, indicated Freire.
The protection of the environment also appears among the reasons for its use, although, according to Freire, “this was one of the most chosen reasons before, but now the population uses it more for comfort, practicality, health and physical activity” .
Urban use and the rise of the electric bicycle
Another fact that demonstrates the spectacular increase of the bicycle as a means of transport in urban use is that nearly 20 million people use it regularly in Spain and, although the mountain bike continues to be “the most consumed, it is necessary to highlight the rise of the electric bike in recent years”.
An AMBE report titled ‘The bicycle sector in numbers’ which dates from 2021 confirms that at that time “more than 220,000 electric bicycles were sold with an average price of 2,861 euros”, one of the reasons that has led this industry to ask “to include the bicycle in Government Moves Plan to help the purchase of sustainable vehicles” since “those who use it do so more often and for longer distances” of between 50 and 80 km, Freire estimated.
Josep Travería, director of the company that sells cycling maintenance products Proride, has certified to Efe that electric bicycles are “a sustainable alternative, with respect to other vehicles such as motorbikes, even with the disadvantage of the cost and consumption of the batteries”.
The bicycle boom is also associated with that of the production of accessories and components, especially in 2021 “when there was a very accelerated demand”.
Sales in Spain “stand at one and a half million units with an average price of 984 euros”, which has turned the country into a “leader in the production of bicycles and brands”, as well as the European country that exports the most of the EU.
“Unsustainable not to bet on the bicycle”
Although there are places where they are used more than others, nowadays “it is politically unsustainable not to bet on the bicycle”, warns Freire, who congratulates himself on the construction of networks of cycle paths or car parks as well as the use of shared bikes especially “in Seville, Valencia, Barcelona and Madrid”, so “in the next five years there will not be any city in Spain that has not made a clear commitment to the bicycle”.
Travería added that it is also a matter of “education” and “awareness” of the public, claiming that “you need to leave the car and the motorcycle, and pedal a little” to “stop emitting CO2 in cities like Madrid and Barcelona, which are clamoring for it”.
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