URBAN MOBILITY, FOCUS2R: GROWING ATTENTION FROM MUNICIPALITIES ON BIKES AND MOTORCYCLES, BUT SAFETY ALERT REMAINS

EVENTS | 25/01/2025 | 08:10
The ninth report of the Observatory promoted by ANCMA and Legambiente, in collaboration with Ambiente Italia, captures local policies in favor of two-wheelers: increasing average availability of bike lanes, bike sharing, and intermodality, with insufficient dedicated parking and still limited access to public transport lanes for motorcycles.
Thus, between lights and shadows and with a marked disparity between Northern and Southern cities of the country, the average availability of bike lanes grows (11 meters per 100 inhabitants, equal to a +53.7% increase since 2015), as well as the possibilities of transporting bicycles on public transport and sharing opportunities for pedal-powered two-wheelers. Safety attention moves at two speeds, a current and central theme whose improvement remains a priority in many municipalities' resolutions regarding bicycle circulation (despite increasing accident rates), while motorcycle, moped, and scooter safety is seriously overlooked.
The overall number of parking spaces remains insufficient. This is the picture of urban two-wheel mobility in Italy, emerging from the ninth Focus2R Observatory report, research promoted by Confindustria ANCMA (National Cycle Motorcycle Accessories Association) with Legambiente and elaborated by the consulting firm Ambiente Italia, presented this morning in Milan. Focus2R offers the most complete, updated, and exclusive overview of policies implemented by city administrations dedicated to cyclists and motorcyclists and is the result of a specific questionnaire sent to 107 provincial capital municipalities.
BICYCLES - Delving into the report's results, the pedal mobility universe offers moderately significant confirmations. As anticipated, the average availability of bike lanes in the examined provincial capitals rises in 2023, reaching 11.02 equivalent meters per 100 inhabitants (10.49 meters in 2022, +53.7% compared to 2015). In this area, the cities of Reggio Emilia stand out with over 48 equivalent meters per 100 inhabitants, followed by Cosenza, Lodi, Cremona, and Cesena. Bringing up the rear is Vibo Valentia with 0.12 m, L'Aquila, Salerno, Naples, and Avellino.
The data on public transport lane access is growing (permitted in 54.1% of cities) and the percentage of municipalities allowing bicycle transport on public transport increases from 57% to 63.3% (however, in 30.6% of cases, transport is only allowed with folding bikes). Regarding parking availability, 51% of cities have between 1 and 15 parking spaces per 1,000 inhabitants, while cities with the highest number of spaces (more than 45 spaces per 1,000 inhabitants) are only 4% of total respondents. The report also reveals that in 2023, 31 municipalities have approved the creation of new bicycle parking spaces in the next three years, with an estimated increase of about 4,300 total spaces. Topping the podium for available parking spaces at bicycle interchange parking at railway stations - which have significantly increased compared to previous surveys - are Bologna and Milan (1,500 spaces) and Florence (1,200), while Campobasso, Isernia, and Perugia are in the last positions.
In 2023, the number of shared bicycles grows by 16.3%, where the free-flow type remains prevalent with 79.4% and an availability of over 33,700 bikes in the analyzed municipalities. In this area, Milan stands out with a fleet of almost 15,000 bikes, followed by Rome (6,000), Florence (4,153), Turin (2,800), and Bologna (2,300): these five cities alone account for almost 70% of the total fleet available in all provincial capitals. Among the cities with the highest number of rentals are Milan, with over 5 million rentals, Florence, Bologna, and Rome, which exceed 2 million rentals, followed by Brescia and Padua. Regarding safety policies, in the analysis of two main urban mobility planning tools - the Urban Mobility Plan (PUM) and the General Urban Traffic Plan (PGTU) - the ninth Focus2R report shows that 25.3% of municipalities consider bicycle safety improvement a very high priority, 34.3% a high priority, while 29.3% consider this theme a low to medium priority. Regarding the development of measures to counter bicycle theft, an anti-theft marking and registration system promoted or sponsored by the municipal administration is available in 25% of the 89 cities that provided information on this topic. Finally, the number of municipalities that have established or planned incentives for Cargo Bike use in last-mile logistics is increasing, as are those that have declared possession of a bicycle fleet used for municipal services (64, up from 51 in 2021).
ANCMA PRESIDENT MARIANO ROMAN - "Focus2R allows us to shine a spotlight every year on good practices, as well as the shadows, concerning municipal policies in favor of urban two-wheel mobility. We are witnessing with interest a progressive increase in attention from administrations, many of the main report indicators show an increase, but this commitment is fragmented from a territorial perspective and is not yet proportional to market trends, community policies, road users' needs, and the growing presence of cycles and motorcycles in cities."
"Two-wheeled pedal and motor vehicles - Roman added - represent a concrete, usable, sustainable, and highly appreciated response to new mobility needs, and there is still much to be done in terms of promoting usage, cycling infrastructure, intermodality development, and access to public transport lanes for motorcycles. ANCMA intends to position itself as an active part in the relationship with cities to provide them with new and greater tools to bridge this gap: particularly on the safety issue, so important and urgent for bicycles and still, worryingly, far from the local political agenda regarding motorcycles, mopeds, and scooters."