Successful Project: Bavaria Replaces Cars with E-Cargo Bikes in Rural Areas - Söder Scraps It Anyway
Congested streets and lack of parking are familiar to all city dwellers with cars. An alternative, besides public transportation, is the bicycle - also with regard to climate protection. In rural areas, however, the situation is quite different: According to the current Bicycle Monitor of the Bavarian Ministry of Transport, 34 percent of residents in communities with fewer than 20,000 inhabitants ride regularly - significantly fewer people than in larger municipalities. "The bicycle is certainly not suitable for every use case in rural areas," says Bavaria's Transport Minister Christian Bernreiter (CSU), adding with a view to cargo bikes:
“Nevertheless, it offers an attractive alternative for transporting children, shopping, or larger items within towns and for distances of up to ten kilometers.”
His thesis is supported by a model project from the Ministry of Transport, which has established a rental system for electric cargo bikes in seven smaller Bavarian communities. The authority invested 2.4 million euros and covered 90 percent of the costs in Lechbruck am See, Lindau, Cadolzburg, Freising, Würzburg, Marktredwitz, and Passau. This funded 55 rental stations including charging technology, 133 motorized cargo bikes with smart locks, and 13 shelters. The aim was to investigate whether a cargo bike rental system could reduce urban traffic.
Cargo bikes replace cars
"And that was definitely the case for us," says Werner Moll (Free Voters), Mayor of the municipality of Lechbruck am See, which, with just under 2,900 inhabitants, entered the race as the smallest town. The 12 bikes were rented 2,456 times from September 2022 to the end of December 2023. Renters traveled more than 14,500 kilometers with them. Seventy-one percent of users stated that a ride with the rental bike replaced a car trip. Moll sees the cargo bike as a potential replacement for the second car. “Rental stations near new housing developments would make sense,” says the town hall chief.
Enthusiasm is high, effects noticeable
Enthusiasm is high in Lindau as well after the end of the model project. The rental system made the switch to cargo bikes easier. "This reaches many for whom these bikes are too expensive as a personal purchase," says Mayor Claudia Alfons (independent). In the city on Lake Constance, cyclists covered 13,500 kilometers in 2,232 rental transactions on 16 bikes - 60 percent of which were, according to their own statements, as a car replacement. As in the other municipalities, the rental system will continue here in the future.
9,000 Car Journeys Avoided
At least 9,000 car journeys have been avoided through the model project, reports the Ministry of Transport. It hopes for further municipalities to participate in the upcoming cycling season. This aligns with the results of the Bavarian Bicycle Monitor: 43 percent of Bavarians between the ages of 12 and 69 want to use their bicycles more frequently in the future - making it the mode of transport with the highest growth potential in the Free State.
"Cargo bikes effectively contribute to the reduction of car traffic and thus to climate-friendly mobility," states the final report.
Prime Minister Markus Söder, who not only in the election campaign liked to criticize the supposed "Green Party topic of cargo bikes," recently stated: "We stand by the car (...). You won't get through the winter in rural areas with just a cargo bike." Therefore, despite its great success, further funding is apparently on the line. As Ippen-Media reports after an inquiry to the Ministry of Transport, a "further funding program for cargo bikes is currently not planned," according to the Bernreiter House. However, the final report clearly notes:
Translated automatically from German."Without financial support, the procurement method for rental cargo bikes is an important question."
Elektromobilität , Newsletter Elektromobilität , IAA Mobility , SUVs und Geländewagen , Hybrid , Antriebsarten, Kraftstoffe und Emissionen , Oberklasse- und Sportwagen , Carsharing , Autonomes Fahren (Straßenverkehr) , Ladeinfrastruktur , Verkehrspolitik , Formel E , Brennstoffzellen , Fahrzeug-Vernetzung und -Kommunikation , Fahrzeuge & Fuhrpark , Automotive-Messen & Veranstaltungen , Pkw, Kompakt- und Mittelklasse , Minis und Kleinwagen , E-Auto-Datenbank, E-Mobilität-/Automotive-Newsletter, E-Auto-Tests