CASE. Cycling towards a more sustainable lifestyle with the development of cycling in Sète

Tourists and locals share the same cycle paths on the beaches. Midi Libre – Kelman Marti

the essential Does cycling have its place in Sète? Obviously, yes! But we still need to give him more – what cyclists, associations and the town hall want. Because, like many other cities, the integration of this mode of transport into local policy only happened very recently on the scale of the history of the municipality .

"Overall, France was late in the development of the bicycle. In Sète, 20 years ago, there were no developments, contextualizes Vincent Sabatier, second deputy mayor, notably delegate for mobility and road development. The first significant works were the creation of a greenway along the Maréchal-Leclerc promenade in 2003, and that of the Lido at the end of this decade when the road was moved.

"It started the tour of the mountain and the Etang de Thau and made people want to cycle there" ,analyzes the chosen one. Also note the first contraflow cycle in 2008 at the exit of the Villeroy district. Over the last two decades, developments have multiplied to facilitate and democratize the practice of cycling. "It‘is true that there is an increase in the number of cycling in recent years", remarks Jacques Gatto, a driving school instructor with 51 years of experience who knows the streets of Sète like the back of his hand.

The figure: 41,000

This is the number of cyclists who have borrowed the Lido greenway between March and May. Among the different types of users, there are long-term tourists. the Canal du Midi or the Eurov&elo 8, or who go around the pond, like many locals.

Cycling contraflows which have sparked debate

2017 then comes as an important date in the history of cycling in Sète. While the two parties collaborated until that moment, La Roue libre de Thau, an association which promotes the practice of two-wheeling in the area, is taking legal action against the municipality.

"We had filed an appeal with the administrative court to obtain two-way bicycles on the streets in zone 30, because the City was not respecting the law. In 2020, she was convicted by the administrative court of Montpellier, recalls Daniel Rigaud, one of the members of the office of La Roue Libre de Thau. The place of cycling in Sète has improved and continues to improve, for example with the creation of the northern greenway in 2021. This can also be seen with the barometer score cycle (this citizen survey is based on feedback from users, Editor's note)."

According to Daniel Rigaud, "mobility in Sète remains a situation of the last century"

"The city went from unfavorable to somewhat unfavorable. But there remain black spots: the mentality of certain motorists, the heart of the city, the passage under the Theater of the Sea, the discontinuity between the cycle paths… In my opinion, mobility in Sète remains a situation from the last century where the car was dominant, continues Daniel Rigaud.

"Everyone wants to go in the same direction: to be able to cycle more easily, but not in the same way. Our role is not to pit the Sétois against each other. It’s about satisfying everyone’s needs. So, we put the cursor in the middle for all", comments Vincent Sabatier.

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