https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from France in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed The western French city of Nantes is the first in the country to offer its residents the chance to rent out public bikes for anything from a month to a year. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180907/nantes-rolls-out-frances-first-long-term-bike-rental-scheme Fri, 07 Sep 2018 18:29:36 +0200 nantes-rolls-out-frances-first-long-term-bike-rental-scheme The scandal-hit company charged with revamping the French capital's bike share system has said the Velib' service won't be fully operational until 2019... a year later than planned. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180904/paris-velib-customers-forced-to-wait-to-2019-for-normal-service Tue, 04 Sep 2018 12:15:05 +0200 paris-velib-customers-forced-to-wait-to-2019-for-normal-service The scandal-hit company charged with revamping the French capital’s bike share system has pulled 3,000 dysfunctional bikes and all brand-new e-bikes from its stations in the hope of sorting out their relentless glitches. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180504/all-of-pariss-e-bikes-recalled-in-yet-another-crisis-for-velib Fri, 04 May 2018 12:36:26 +0200 all-of-pariss-e-bikes-recalled-in-yet-another-crisis-for-velib The Velib' bike hire scheme in Paris has been in chaos for months but disgruntled users can now get their money back. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180412/paris-velib-chaos-how-you-can-now-get-your-money-back Thu, 12 Apr 2018 11:46:55 +0200 paris-velib-chaos-how-you-can-now-get-your-money-back Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo has pledged to tackle the city's smog with bike-sharing and car-free riverbanks. But with the Velib' fiasco and simmering resentment among drivers, her push to make the French capital go green is faltering. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180314/tempers-flare-as-paris-push-to-go-green-falters Wed, 14 Mar 2018 17:51:42 +0100 tempers-flare-as-paris-push-to-go-green-falters Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo promised Thursday to get the city's bike-sharing service back on track by May after a change of operator brought the popular system to a near standstill. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180308/calamitous-paris-bike-hire-rollout-will-be-complete-by-may Thu, 08 Mar 2018 15:16:12 +0100 calamitous-paris-bike-hire-rollout-will-be-complete-by-may Paris city hall is taking over the installation of new stations for the Velib bike-hire system, following weeks of disastrous efforts by its new operator that have the city's cyclists seeing red. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180302/paris-takes-over-rollout-for-disastrous-velib-bike-hire-system Fri, 02 Mar 2018 10:29:37 +0100 paris-takes-over-rollout-for-disastrous-velib-bike-hire-system Paris authorities threatened sanctions Wednesday against the new operator of the city's Velib bike hire system over a chaotic rollout that has left cyclists seething. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180110/its-a-nightmare-cyclists-furious-over-bike-hire-chaos-in-paris Wed, 10 Jan 2018 15:06:32 +0100 its-a-nightmare-cyclists-furious-over-bike-hire-chaos-in-paris A new year means new prices, so life in France is going to get a little more expensive in 2018. Here are the fee changes to look out for, and what they mean for your wallet. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180102/whats-getting-more-expensive-in-france-this-year-all-the-price-rises-to-look-out-for-in-2018 Tue, 02 Jan 2018 15:29:40 +0100 whats-getting-more-expensive-in-france-this-year-all-the-price-rises-to-look-out-for-in-2018 The Velib' cycle sharing scheme in Paris has broken down and customers will be reimbursed, city councillors confirmed. https://www.thelocal.fr/20171121/velib-customers-to-be-reimbursed-as-paris-cycle-service-falls-apart Tue, 21 Nov 2017 16:38:50 +0100 velib-customers-to-be-reimbursed-as-paris-cycle-service-falls-apart Ten years after Paris launched the wildly popular Velib bicycle-sharing scheme, the grey two-wheelers that have spawned imitators worldwide are getting an electric makeover. https://www.thelocal.fr/20171026/paris-velib-city-bikes-get-an-electric-makeover Thu, 26 Oct 2017 11:00:40 +0200 paris-velib-city-bikes-get-an-electric-makeover Wondering what your trips around Paris will look like now the popular bike-sharing scheme has changed hands? We're here to tell you. https://www.thelocal.fr/20170511/paris-heres-how-the-velib-bike-share-is-set-to-change Thu, 11 May 2017 16:26:43 +0200 paris-heres-how-the-velib-bike-share-is-set-to-change The popular Velib bike rental system in Paris is going to get a major upgrade with a new fleet of bikes to be rolled out. But what will they look like? https://www.thelocal.fr/20170302/paris-to-get-new-fleet-of-rent-a-bikes-but-what-will-they-look-like Thu, 02 Mar 2017 16:25:07 +0100 paris-to-get-new-fleet-of-rent-a-bikes-but-what-will-they-look-like The Velib scheme in Paris costs the city €15 million a year, a new report has found. https://www.thelocal.fr/20160914/velib-bike-scheme-costs-paris-15-million-a-year Wed, 14 Sep 2016 18:23:13 +0200 velib-bike-scheme-costs-paris-15-million-a-year Paris has officially opened the first segment of its new "bike highway" in France, a 600-metre stretch near Bastille. https://www.thelocal.fr/20160524/paris-unveils-first-stretch-of-bicycle-highway Tue, 24 May 2016 19:02:33 +0200 paris-unveils-first-stretch-of-bicycle-highway The team cleaning out the Canal Saint-Martin has already found 98 Velib' bikes. And there are potentially more to come. https://www.thelocal.fr/20160118/nearly-100-velib-bikes-found-dumped-in-paris-canal Mon, 18 Jan 2016 11:36:51 +0100 nearly-100-velib-bikes-found-dumped-in-paris-canal A mammoth operation begins on Monday to drain and clean out the picturesque Canal Saint-Martin in Paris. But what will happen to the fish and what will the cleaners find? https://www.thelocal.fr/20160104/what-will-the-murky-waters-of-paris-canal-saint-martin-reveal Mon, 04 Jan 2016 13:52:04 +0100 what-will-the-murky-waters-of-paris-canal-saint-martin-reveal Paris's Velib' bike rental scheme turned seven on Tuesday and after a rocky start it is now firmly part of the City of Light's transport network. Here's seven key figures to mark the occasion including which foreign nationality is the fondest for the bikes. https://www.thelocal.fr/20140715/velib-seven-stats-for-bikes-7th-birthday Tue, 15 Jul 2014 19:40:00 +0200 velib-seven-stats-for-bikes-7th-birthday Paris’s popular Velib' bike rental system has been such a giant success, that the city has decided to create a version for smaller cyclists. The ‘P’tit Velib’ for kids will hit the pavements and parks on Wednesday. https://www.thelocal.fr/20140617/paris-to-offer-mini-velib-for-kids Tue, 17 Jun 2014 18:53:00 +0200 paris-to-offer-mini-velib-for-kids Far-left activists slashed the tires on over 360 Velib’ bikes in Paris this week in protest of the ‘slave’ labour the programme’s operator uses to repair vandalized bikes. The vandals could themselves end up 'slave' labour. https://www.thelocal.fr/20140418/velib-tires-slashed-paris-slavery-protest Fri, 18 Apr 2014 16:05:00 +0200 velib-tires-slashed-paris-slavery-protest