According to a study by the Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy published last week, 281,000 people were employed in the different sectors of the cycling economy in Germany in 2019. The cycle tourism sector alone stood for 204,000 jobs, and manufacturing, trade and cycling-related services for the remaining 66,000. In the last three sectors, employment grew by an impressive 20% between 2014 and 2019.

Especially in countries with a big automotive sector like Germany, the potential loss of jobs is often discussed as a challenge of the mobility transition. At the same time, sustainable mobility options offer a big potential for job creation. Against this background, the recently published report "Sector Study Bicycle Economy in Germany" by the Wuppertal Institute and the Institute for Work and Technology of the Westphalian University of Applied Sciences examines the employment figures in subsectors of the cycling economy as well as the development of turnover.

281,000 people were employed in the cycling economy in Germany in 2019. Around 66,000 employees worked in the three core sectors of manufacturing, trade and services, which saw employment grow by 20% compared to 2014 (55,000 employees). Another result of the study: in 2019, cycle tourism was the largest sector of the cycling economy, employing 204,000 people.

In terms of turnover, the study identified a total taxable turnover of the bicycle economy in Germany in 2018 of approximately € 37.7 billion. The biggest contributors were wholesale and retail trade in bicycles (€ 16.7 billion) and cycle tourism (€ 11.6 billion). Between 2013 and 2018, there has been a remarkable growth in turnover of more than 600% in the cycling-related services sector. The study links this, amongst others, to the introduction of tax benefits for company bicycles and the subsequent development of the bicycle leasing business.

There are also other factors responsible for the positive development of the sector: "E-bikes are a clear growth driver," emphasised Dr Frederic Rudolph, Senior Researcher in the Mobility and International Cooperation Research Unit in the Energy, Transport and Climate Policy Department at the Wuppertal Institute and project leader of the study. Bicycle tourism also plays a significant role. Cycling tours and holidays in Germany have been in fashion not only since the outbreak of the Covid 19 pandemic.

The results of this new report, which was commissioned by the three industry associations Bundesverband Zukunft Fahrrad e.V. (BVZF), Verbund Service und Fahrrad e.V. (VSF) and Zweirad-Industrie-Verband e. V. (ZIV), are in line with earlier studies at the European level on the socio-economic benefits of cycling, and on job creation in the cycling economy.

In light of the current cycling boom, the results also show the need for substantial investments in cycling in order to increase cycling levels permanently and create even more jobs all around Europe. Together with its partners in the cycling industry, ECF therefore calls upon national governments to make cycling investments an integral part of their National Recovery and Resilience Plans.