Saxony's cities are not yet turning: City bikes urgently need more participants

Saxony's cities are not yet turning: City bikes urgently need more participants

City bike in Saxony: Potential and challenges

The campaign city cycling, which motivates more and more people nationwide to ride a bike in a climate -friendly manner, still shows significant development reserves in Saxony. 18 municipalities took part in the current campaign round, an increase compared to 11 in the previous year, but the number is behind expectations compared to other federal states.

Overview of participation in Saxony

The Stadyradles initiative aims to raise awareness of environmentally friendly transportation options. The framework conditions are simple: If you live in a participating municipality, you can document the kilometers covered on the bike over a period of 21 days. The recipe for success is the recording of the performance, which is used annually to determine the winning municipalities in different categories. Leipzig was the first city in Saxony in 2009, which took part in the campaign, and over 3.5 million kilometers were covered by cyclists last year alone.

comparison of nationwide participation

In the championship comparison, Saxony with its 18 participating cities shows a modest participation. According to the climate alliance, 124 municipalities take part in Rhineland-Palatinate, which has a similar population. Thuringia and Saxony-Anhalt follow the trend with 36 and 31 cities involved. This difference raises questions about the attractiveness and incentives in Saxony.

promotion of participation: an unsolved problem

A crucial factor for reduced participation in Saxony could be the lack of financial support for the municipalities, while in numerous other federal states, funding has significantly increased. In Saxony-Anhalt, for example, the beginning of financial support in 2023 led to an increase in the number of participants. The Saxon Ministry of Transport recognizes the positive effects of city cycling, but has explained that promoting participation fees for various reasons has not yet been implemented. It is currently sought how future support for Saxon municipalities could look like. However, the consideration must always be carried out under the premise of economy.

The importance of city cycles for the future

City bike is more than just a short -term action; It is part of a greater movement towards more sustainability in everyday life. The initiative serves to raise awareness of cycling as an environmentally friendly alternative. Last year, 2,835 municipalities had cycled nationwide, which corresponds to 1.1 million people and a total of 228 million kilometers. The question arises how Saxony can capitalize on this excellent basis in order to increase the number of participants and achieve climate goals.

The future of cycling in Saxony could depend on greater support and better awareness among the population. It remains to be seen whether and how the Saxon government will tackle this in the future in order to join the nationwide trend.

© dpa

- Nag