With both rounds of Paris’ mayoral elections taking place in March 2020, five candidates including incumbent Anne Hidalgo, visited Reid Hall yesterday to discuss the place of bicycles and cycling in the French capital.

Paris was a world pioneer in developing its successful bike-share system, known as Vélib, in the first decade of the twenty-first century. Representing an important part of the Parisian psyche, each candidate presented his or her plan to make cycling easier and more accessible to Parisians. Forming part of a global trend, Parisians increasingly rely on bicycles to go to work, class, and move freely about the city. To that end, Paris continues to develop bicycle-only lanes across its paved surfaces.

As with all events held at our Paris Centre, University of Kent Paris School of Arts and Culture students had the opportunity to attend the event and ask questions.