Over the next few months the blueprint for an EU Cycling Strategy will be developed. In a series of blogposts, stakeholders involved in this process share here their thoughts and ideas in support of the strategy, sending a strong political sign for action towards the European Commission.​

Ivan Štefanec – Member of the European Parliament, Slovakia. EPP

Postgraduate from the University of Economics in Bratislava, he worked at Coca-Cola as a General Manager and a Director for European Integration. He joined the SDKÚ-DS Party in 2006 and became a member of the National Council of the Slovak Republic. Chairman of the Committee on European Affairs and member of the Parliamentary Committee on Finance, Budget and Currency, he served as a governmental plenipotentiary for the introduction of the Euro in Slovakia. He is a member of the Committee on Internal Market and Consumer Protection and a substitute on the Budgets Committee of the European Parliament. MEP since 2014.

Motoring in Europe increased with the development of living standards over the last decades. This results in a deterioration of the physical and mental health and has an impact on the nature around us. Developing countries start to support the development of environmentally friendly modes, especially cycling.

In the last few years, the European society has positively embraced cycling, which has become an everyday activity for millions of Europeans. In social and economic terms, cycling has an impact on transport, mobility, environment and climate change as well as tourism and economy. Cycling is increasingly seen as a solution to traffic congestion and pollution in urban areas, particularly for short journeys and in conjunction with public transport. Commuting by bike in the major cities will get us to our destination in half the time than by cars. Cycling is also a beautiful sport that makes us happy. People regard their bikes as trusty companions in life´s adventures.

The EU Cycling Strategy sought to spread the effective cycling support policies in the EU. The aim of the EU Cycling Strategy is to ensure a balanced and sustainable development of mobility. It is necessary to create such conditions where a bike takes full part in the transportation systems. I support the need for co-ordinated strategy on cycling. I welcome an active role that the EU has taken in promoting cycling and I appreciate the support from the EU Institutions for an EU Cycling Strategy. The ever increasing popularity of this mode of transportation is a positive phenomenon having a multilayer impact on society as a whole. Positive effects on the society go hand in hand with the conditions of cycling in the city. Increasing the comfort of cyclists has a direct impact on further positive development. I express my utmost support to all the legislative changes that can significantly facilitate cycling and take it forward and the initiatives that can improve general awareness of the population about the benefits of cycling.

Read more on the EU cycling strategy campaign on the dedicated website www.cyclingstrategy.eu