Subsidies for Italian businesses purchasing cargo bikes

Any Italian company or business activity that invested in the purchase of a cargo bike for its daily activities in 2021 will now be able to receive up to 30% of the total expense, up to a maximum of EUR 2,000.

The decree published in the Italian Official Gazette states that the incentive will be released 'in the form of a tax credit' and it applies to the purchase of cargo bikes and power-assisted ones. The Italian government allocated EUR 2 million for companies that purchased cargo bikes in 2021. The internet portal where companies will have to submit their application to obtain the tax credit will be created shortly, and the deadline for submitting the requests is 20 June 2022.

Manufacturers around Europe have already made optimistic forecasts about the future success that the cargo bikes will have. One the one hand, companies are increasingly using cargo bikes for first and last kilometre deliveries and, on the other hand, families can replace the second car with more convenient and sustainable vehicles such as cargo bikes (it is important to specify that the Italian measure only applies to businesses).

Elisa Gallo, the president of the FIAB Torino Bike Pride – the Italian Association of Cycling Friends (which recently organised a cargo bike day), and newly elected national councillor of the Italian Environment and Bicycle Federation, commented on the news to RivistaBC: “It is certainly useful to invest in cargo bikes. Italians are beginning to be interested in cargo bikes, however, much more needs to be done. Delivery companies are also more sensitive to their environmental impact. It is certainly desirable for the incentive to be renewed also for 2022.”

Indeed, ANCMA, the National Association for Cycle and Motorcycle Accessories, remarked that the incentive is still far away from contributing to reach the environmental objectives or the ecological transition. According to ANCMA, more incentives are needed in order to encourage cycling. For the time-being, with the energy crisis we are currently facing, this could potentially favour a radical change in the way people and goods move, particularly in urban areas.

For more information check the Italian Ministry of Ecological Transition (MiTE) website.