Comments on: Paris: The Latest on Velib’, the Rental Bike Phenomenon https://www.eurocheapo.com/blog/paris-the-latest-on-velib-the-rental-bike-phenomenon.html EuroCheapo editors take on the world of budget travel. Sat, 06 Sep 2025 14:19:49 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=4.8.3 By: A Bad Sign for a Government Commuting Option - Northern Virginia - Virginia (VA) - City-Data Forum https://www.eurocheapo.com/blog/paris-the-latest-on-velib-the-rental-bike-phenomenon.html#comment-50550 Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:47:04 +0000 http://www.eurocheapo.com/blog/paris-the-latest-on-velib-the-rental-bike-phenomenon.html#comment-50550 […] Copenhagen pioneered such a program – free bike rentals, Bycyklen Kobenhavn. You pay a small deposit and get it back upon returning the bike. Vienna (Austria) has a similar (but not free) program, as does Amsterdam. As to the "failure of the program", I’ll quote the article: "Still, with more than 63 million rentals since the program was begun in mid-2007, the V?lib? is an established part of Parisian life, and the program has been extended to provide 4,000 V?lib?s in 29 towns on the city?s edges." Some more views: Paris: The Latest on Velib?, the Rental Bike Phenomenon | Budget Travel Tips – EuroCheapo […]

]]> 1377 50550 2009-11-03 15:47:04 By: Nicolas https://www.eurocheapo.com/blog/paris-the-latest-on-velib-the-rental-bike-phenomenon.html#comment-50341 Thu, 08 Oct 2009 15:27:59 +0000 http://www.eurocheapo.com/blog/paris-the-latest-on-velib-the-rental-bike-phenomenon.html#comment-50341 The Vélib bike system doesn’t actually charge your card, it pre-authorises the 150 euros and only debits it if you fail to return the bicycle. Usually, what happens is that people fail to plug the bicycles properly back into the stands and wait for the light to go green, indicating that the bicycle has been recognised. Someone else then comes along, spots an improperly returned bicycle, “borrows” it and drives it off a bridge while his friend films it for YouTube.

They’ve found loads of the bicycles at the bottom of the Seine.

What’s also worth noting is that JC Decaux, who run the system, made an absolute fortune because they received huge quantities of free advertising real estate all over Paris in return for the 10 year obligation to run the system. It’s only “free” insofar as the end users are concerned, the city of Paris is paying through the nose for the operation.

A little shameless plug : when you’re in Paris, you can find the nearest Vé’Lib stations and the number of bicycles/slots available at each by using your location-aware mobile phone (e.g. iPhone) and pointing it to the website http://velib.sapir.fr.

]]> 1377 50341 2009-10-08 15:27:59 By: Fergus https://www.eurocheapo.com/blog/paris-the-latest-on-velib-the-rental-bike-phenomenon.html#comment-50064 Fri, 04 Sep 2009 16:31:36 +0000 http://www.eurocheapo.com/blog/paris-the-latest-on-velib-the-rental-bike-phenomenon.html#comment-50064 BEWARE!!!!!!
My girlfriend rented 2 Velib bikes last APRIL. She paid 300 euro deposit. This deposit was charged to her card and never returned! I have called numerous times, faxed and emailed but they don’t reply. You might never get your money back!

]]> 1377 50064 2009-09-04 16:31:36 By: Nicky Gardner and Susanne Kries https://www.eurocheapo.com/blog/paris-the-latest-on-velib-the-rental-bike-phenomenon.html#comment-17158 Mon, 22 Oct 2007 09:38:36 +0000 http://www.eurocheapo.com/blog/paris-the-latest-on-velib-the-rental-bike-phenomenon.html#comment-17158 Actually, we see that Vélib is in the running for one of the tourism awards made each November by the British Guild of Travel Writers (BGTW). Among the other European contenders for this year’s round of BGTW Awards are the Balkans Peace Park (www.balkanspeacepark.org) and a small company that offer tailor-made cruises for small groups through Scotland’s Hebridean islands (www.themajesticline.co.uk).
Nicky and Susanne (editors – hidden europe magazine)

]]> 1377 17158 2007-10-22 09:38:36