Gilets Jaunes – Paris tells cyclists to don reflective gear as clock go back French capital has been transformed for cycling in recent years, but gets kickback on latest advice
Paris – a city where levels of cycling have exploded in recent years thanks to the policy of the French capital’s mayor – is getting kickback on social media after cyclists riding through the city were stopped this week and advised to don reflective clothing to make themselves visible to drivers ahead of the clocks going back tonight.
The City of Lights has quite rightly become the poster child of how to encourage more people to travel by active means, whether that be by bike or by foot, with Mayor Anna Hidalgo implementing an ambitious plan of protected cycleways across the centre, as well as removing motor traffic from the banks of the Seine to create riverside parks in what is one of the world’s most iconic cities.
No-one who has become familiar with the city over the past couple of decades and returned there in the last year or two can fail to have noticed the transformation, with two wheels now the transport of choice for many Parisians as streets including the Rue de Rivoli have had protected cycle lanes installed and restrictions placed on motor vehicles.
And to anyone who cycles in a British city – London, or Edinburgh, for example – helmets and hi-viz or reflective clothing are noticeable through their absence; it is the very model of people riding bikes in everyday clothes to which the recently established Active Travel England, headed by Chris Boardman, aspires.
This week, however, Twitter account American Fietser shared a video from broadcaster BFM showing city hall officials and police stopping cyclists and telling them they should wear reflective clothing to make themselves seen to motorists as the nights darken.Pushing people on bikes in Paris to wear hi-vis apparel? The answer isn't in the clothing, but rather in your infrastructure design.