ECF is pleased to publish today the 3^rd edition of our “The state of national cycling strategies (2023)” report. Following the adoption of the Pan-European Master Plan for Cycling Promotion in May 2021, the ECF report is monitoring how 54 countries in the pan-European region are implementing one of the key recommendations of the Master Plan: “Develop and implement a national cycling policy, supported by a national cycling plan”.

With this 2023 edition, we are in a position to add four more countries to the list of countries with a current national cycling strategy: Belarus, Croatia, Hungary and Israel. Three more countries have adopted policies similar to a national cycling strategy: Ireland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland.

Out of the 54 European countries covered by this report:

• 14 countries now have a national cycling strategy in place.
• Seven countries have a strategy similar to a national cycling strategy in place.
• Four countries used to have a national cycling strategy but it has expired and needs updating.
• In eight countries a first national cycling strategy is under development.
• In 21 countries none of the above applies; a national cycling strategy/similar document is neither in place nor is under development.

(Photo: Self-service bike rentals. Dublin, Ireland.)

Trajectory

While the adoption and implementation of national cycling strategies can still not be considered mainstream, ECF is pleased to see a notable uptake since 2021: from ten in 2021 (specific and similar), to 14 in 2022 and 21 in 2023.

The Western Balkans, Caucasus and Central Asia remains the region where national cycling strategies remain non-existent.  

Interventions and investments

Among the 21 strategies identified, interventions on infrastructure (21), road safety (17), intermodality (16) and traffic laws/highway codes (16) are among the most popular ones. At the other spectrum, bike theft has been addressed in only four strategies.

In terms of central government investments in cycling and active mobility – the perhaps single most important indicator – Ireland is the top investor with some €72 per capita annually in investments, followed by Luxembourg (€52), the Belgian region of Flanders (€48), Scotland (€40) and Slovenia (€23). In 22 countries listed in the report, annual central government investments are below €10 per capita.