We're just returned from Paris - on which more soon. But in the odd moment we had free, we got to try out the city's new shared bike network - Velib'. Run by JC Decaux, Velib' is something of a phenomenon, having become an instant hit with Parisians. We'll write a full analysis shortly but in the meantime wanted to share some of the pictures we took; a sort of photographic review if you like...
The bikes and stations are all painted in a very cool off-grey / coffee colour, which is very understated - very Parisian. But this can make the Velib' stations a little hard to find. It's interesting to muse on whether that's just a problem for us tourists, or whether the Parisian in a hurry might find this a problem too...
A full Velib' station...
...and an empty one. As you'd expect, it seemed to follow that the predominant directional flow of bikes is 'in' from suburb to centre in the morning, and 'out' from centre to suburb come evening. This can lead to stations on the peripheries being deserted during the day, and ones in the centre having no free space to drop a bike off.
What's really impressive is how unobtrusive and well-integrated the stations are in Paris's notoriously crowded - and in many place narrow - streets.
A red light on a bike's post at a Velib' station indicates a bike is out of order. It's interesting to see how an additional 'user code' has quickly developed, where fellow 'Velibrans' turn the seat backwards on any broken or problematic bike that they return.
Perhaps the physical (in)visibility of the stations isn't such a problem when everyone's got a mobile phone... If you can't find a free bike, or nearby station, simply get the Velib 'WAP' service on your phone in order to find the nearest one to your current location.
At the Velib' station, in order to take a bike, you either sign up - as Parisians do, getting a monthly or yearly card, which allows you to just 'swipe' bikes in and out as you please. Or as tourists like us, you register and get a day ticket...
...which involves putting a 150 Euro deposit 'stop' on a credit or debit card...
...agreeing to one or two conditions, taking a printed ticket receipt card, and then picking your bike. Yes it's as easy as that.
Then press the button on your chosen bike's locking post to free your steed for the next half hour.
The design of the bike itself is fairly simple, but with one or two really nice touches - such as the front basket seen here, which will accommodate surprisingly large ruck sacks or brief cases.
Once comfortable, off you go, taking your life into your hands in the Parisian traffic! In all though, scary as that might seem, it's no worse than cycling in London, and in tandem with Velib'...
...cycle lanes are popping up all over Paris.
So could Velib' paint a way forward for moving around cities in the future? Certainly it's clever, simple, and easy to understand. Most importantly it's been taken instantly to heart by the people of Paris. It works because the technology behind it is smart, up-to-date, and the system appears to be relatively well managed. What's interesting is that all of this has been achieved by an organisation who have not previously been known as transport providers or designers - in the shape of advertising group JC Decaux. The best thing about Velib' though is that it's fun - putting thrill, enjoyment and ease back into moving around the city. And in a homogeneous world, where national identities are increasingly lost, it feels terrificly French. Which I think, as so often with the country's products of past, makes Velib' a very cool thing indeed.
Images: Joseph Simpson - thetrickytree on Flickr. Photos are available to use via creative commons license - please credit "Joseph Simpson / Movement Design Bureau" and link to this page.
Posted by Joseph Simpson on 9th December 2007
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