Paris plans to launch the world's largest electric bike rental system

Residents of Paris and its suburbs may soon have access to up to 20,000 electric bicycles. Public transport company Ile-de-FranceMobilités (IDFM) is launching an electric bike rental program called Véligo, with plans to initially deploy 10,000 electric bikes. If successful, IDFM will expand the program to 20,000 bikes, making it the largest electric bike rental system in the world.

The purpose of this plan is to reduce car usage and pollution in the French capital. Véligo will pay tribute to Paris' Vélib' bike-sharing program, but unlike Vélib's hourly rental and docked system, Véligo electric bikes will cost 40 euros per month and users can keep them at home. Like fixed-term tickets in the Paris region, employers can pay half the cost so that users only need to pay 20 euros per month.

The electric bike looks like a regular Vélib bike, but can run for 9 kilometers (6 miles) on a single charge and can be used even in mountainous areas. The six-year plan will have a budget of up to 111 million euros, depending on the number of bikes, and will be managed by a consortium including LaPoste, the French postal group.