Many bicycles populate the streets of the capital. Whether they are attached to dedicated places, along barriers or around posts, the town hall has the right to remove some of them to free up space, but under certain conditions.
While the city's policy tends towards soft mobility, the bicycle has become the preferred transport solution for many Parisians. With 11.2% of trips made by bicycle per day, according to municipal figures, compared to 4.3% for the car, storage solutions are lacking.
Faced with this observation, the town hall regularly removes certain items, described as wrecks. Last week, the City was also targeted by an Internet user denouncing the removal of attached bicycles by agents, comparing the action to theft.
In its response, the municipality obviously denounced a harmful accusation, recalling that it damaged the image of its agents.
A bike sitting still for too long
On its website, the Paris town hall is clear regarding the reasons for a kidnapping. “Your bike was removed because it had remained in the same location for too long, it was considered a wreck and its owner could not be identified,” she explains.
The town hall of the 12th arrondissement specifies that if the agents are unable to find the owner of the bicycle, – in the absence of a plate bearing coordinates or the FUBICY code (French Federation of Bicycle Users) – they will affix a sticker “removal “, leaving one day for the owner to move the cycle.
Generally, it is local residents who denounce the presence of a bicycle that has not been moved from its location. The operation can be done via teleservice On my street.
After the two-wheelers have been removed by City services, they are then sent to a recycling center, then to traditional metal recycling channels. If they are considered wrecks, they cannot be recovered by the owners.
works or events
In other cases, dedicated services have the authority to move bicycles present in areas where work is being carried out. To find out if your bicycle has been removed in this context, simply send a request by email to the following address: [email protected].
The wrecker from the Paris Police Prefecture will be able to tell the cyclist in which impound their bike has been stored.
Attached two-wheelers can also be moved for safety reasons. During demonstrations, the police may decide to move bicycles to prevent them from being used as projectiles, or prevent the smooth circulation of processions.
A bicycle can also be removed if it is on the route of an influential political figure, such as a head of state's visit to the capital.
In these two specific cases, he will be in a Parisian police station, and not in a pound, specifies the City. As for wrecks, they can be entrusted to associations for reuse, instead of being taken to a recycling center.
