Bicycles of all sizes, scooters, cargo bikes, carts… Some 300 cyclists, including many children, joyfully demonstrated this Sunday morning in the streets of Nantes to demand more secure cycling facilities for the youngest and their children. families. The event, christened Kidical Mass, consisted of a six-kilometer festive ride through the streets. It took place simultaneously in several major European cities this week-end. And it was the first time it was held in France.
“For a first we are super happy, reports Corinne, one of the organizers of the Kidical Mass. I hope it will make an impression and help to move things forward with the public authorities. Securing bicycle trips is not just a subject for eco-friendly parents. It’s in everyone’s interest, the well-being of our children, public health, the environment. All cities are affected. »
School trips, a big concern
The participants in the Kidical Mass are calling for protected cycle paths, a reduction in the speed of automobile traffic, respect for the sidewalks… “I transport my children in cargo bikes to school but they could very well go there with their own the path was safer. That has to change,” says Yannick, a father. “In Nantes, we are lucky to have a lot of cycle paths. But these are often only strips that are not at all reassuring. A gap is quickly made with a child and, if a car brushes it, it’s guaranteed disaster, “adds Justine, a young mother.
“It’s also a question of the balance of power,” says Simon, a resident of Rezé. The more cyclists there are in the street, the easier and safer it will be to get started. But, for the moment, there are not enough families who dare. Some parents are afraid, others give in to the ease of the car, even if the school or the gym is in the neighborhood. That’s a shame. »
School streets and safe axes
Event Observer, Simon Citeau, Deputy Mayor of Nantes in charge of soft travel, “welcomes this citizen movement”. “Bicycling has become a major subject for the inhabitants. We are now asked to develop it in all districts, without exception. We know that there is, in particular, a real subject on trips to school. We are going to develop school streets, without cars, to appease the approaches of the school and allow the pupils, the parents, to reclaim the street. »
The elected official also recalls that a commitment was made to develop 50 kilometers of secure axes, “that is to say, separated from traffic”, by 2026 throughout the metropolis. “This will materialize, for example, on the Bottière-Dalby-Gare axis, a route that is today complicated for cyclists. A first car-free Sunday will also be organized in Nantes in September.
As for the Kidical Mass, it should know a second act on September 25th.