Study shows bike sharing delivers €305 million in annual benefits across Europe

A new study published by EIT Urban Mobility and Cycling Industries Europe (CIE) finds that bike sharing creates €305 million in benefits each year across Europe. Bike sharing schemes are now running in over 150 European cities with 438,000 bikes, from large systems like Paris with over 40,000 bikes to smaller towns operating fewer than 50.

The study reports that shared bikes help cut 46,000 tons of CO₂ and 200 tons of air pollutants each year. Together with encouraging active mobility, this helps to prevent up to 1,000 cases of chronic diseases, worth €40 million in healthcare savings. They also ease congestion, with 760,000 hours not lost to traffic valued at around €30 million in productivity gains. Furthermore, these systems support approximately 6,000 full-time jobs reduce mobility costs for riders by up to 90% compared with cars. For cities, every euro invested today brings approximately a 10% yearly return, and with continued growth to 2030, the benefits could reach €1 billion a year. 

Four growth factors are highlighted:

• rising demand due to urbanisation and awareness
• greater supply through regulatory support and wider coverage
• fleet electrification in response to strong user interest
• territorial expansion to close existing service gaps

The findings demonstrate that with the right policies and investment, bike sharing can support healthier citizens, more efficient transport systems, and stronger local economies.

Author: Anna Vasilenka

Views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) and do not reflect those of the European Commission.