Since the first Iberian Congress on "The Bicycle and the City", which took place in Lisbon, Portugal in 1996 these venues have been important instruments to provide greater awareness and exchange of best practices in bicycle mobility as a central means of sustainable transport and urban policies adopted by municipal, regional and national authorities in both Portugal and Spain.

This year's Congress will take place in Lisbon 2nd-4th May, where various projects on sustainable mobility and the integration of the bicycle in public transportation systems have been put into place, such as the national multimode policies on all suburban, regional and Inter City trains. Recently in Lisbon, bicycles can also travel at no extra cost at all times on the entire subway network, while multimode bicycle travel on boats and some bike-bus routes have existed in the city for some years now. The broadening of sustainable transportation policies, which include the bicycle are one of the major points of discussion at the Iberian Congress on "Bicycling and the City".

There will be participation from both Portuguese and Spanish specialists, as well national, regional and municipal politicians and decision-makers from both of the Iberian countries, and a specialist from Brazil. The European Cyclists´Federation and EuroVelo, the European cycle route network, will be also attending this important event.

The themes to be addressed at the workshops on the last day will be on Mobility Networks and Systems, The Bicycle in Society, and Mobility Culture, followed by a bicycle tour around the city of Lisbon.

 About the Author

The Federação Portuguesa de Cicloturismo e Utilizadores de Bicicleta (FPCUB) is a member of the European Cyclists' Federation and National EuroVelo Coordinators in Portugal