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Paris on 2 Wheels a Day

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A new bicycle rental service, called Velib', a combination of the words 'velo' (bike) and 'liberte' (liberty), is an initiative pushed by Paris' mayor who has made fighting traffic and pollution his No. 1 goal.
joshsoskin

34 responses // Paris on 2 Wheels a Day

  • They're not the only ones..
    Other European cities are doing similar things - check out the link to see people jumping on their bikes and going green.
    Padders100
  • Yes indeed very interesting ,killing two birds with the same bullet ,traffic and pollution
    nmarchany
  • I wonder if we could implement the same concept in a US city. Three birds w/ one stone :
    -Environment
    -Traffic
    -Public Health

    Let's give it a shot.
  • I'm thinkin two things (about this topic):
    1) Great idea ...seems like a no brainer. Green and AWESOME for fitness.Love it.

    2) Metropolitan americans are sometimes fat, lazy and dishonest...measures (like lojack) would have to be taken to make sure the bikes weren't stolen (or randomly left somewhere because the rider said "screw this"and took a cab).
    honeybrownhnm
  • Geneva, Switzerland
    An organization called Genève Roule offers free bikes from April 30 to Oct. 30 at four locations around the city. All you need to do is show up with a piece of identification and a deposit of 50 francs (about $40) that will be returned at the end of the day. You can choose from adult bikes, children's bikes, even bikes with a child seat or trailer — and locks and helmets are thrown in at no charge.
    Vierotchka
  • I am Lucas James Xavier Kolasa.

    Paris is very smart. and I am glad chin invented a similar service.
    --
    About 2 years ago,, I won a Bronze Coin award... I wrote the 3rd best poem.. called FIX IT.
    --
    Well.. I live in the USA.. and I went to NewPort Rhode Island. I had fun by myself, and I rode a bus back to Providence, rhode island.
    On the bus.. there was a group of 4 tourist gurls from PARIS.
    We sat and talked about pollution and the earth, and how we must do better.
    -- we became instant friends.
    We had a slight language barrior.. but it was OK.
    I told them that I won this award, and showed them my Bronze Coin.
    I told them to keep it as a symbol of our friendship, and peace.
    I thanked them because they were French, and France gave us the statue of liberty.
    They knew it was all i had.
    And it was a big deal.
    -- no one had a pen, and we could not share our email addresses or phone numbers..
    and soon it was too late.. and we had gone our own ways.
    I gave them some photos of art.. and well..
    Paris.. hello.. it is me.. Lucas.
    *~*
    One of the pictures i gave them is in this site..
    it is called.. lady submerged in blue:
    http://www.freewebs.com/luckasart/

    that site also has the poem that i wrote..
    i was unable to recite it.. but they do have the coin and they will recognize the photo..
    Lady Submerged in BLUE.

    I want to thank PARIS and FRANCE for being there for me.
    inside my site, you will see new technology for a zero-pollution car.
    Peace.. and Hope for all the good people of the world.
    here is the poem now::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::





    Fix It


    -----------------------------------



    earth spinning on its axis, while doing
    circles around the sun as if it were prey.
    with these affects, always, somewhere on
    the planet it appears as if the sun is
    always rising. night constantly falling!
    points of perception.
    day break! day constantly breaking into
    tiny pieces of imagination, and when night
    falls; it hits the earth in darkness.
    truth. humans have created too many
    weapons, too much destruction, too many
    pollutants... and witnesses every day watch
    the day break!
    another broken day.
    and "They" still don't have the time to
    hear the tiny voices saying simple words...................
    "fix it"! ............................................


    written by:: Lucas James Kolasa

    Copyright ©2006 Lucas James Kolasa




    ;


    | copyright© |


    thanks current tv.
    this is really a great interactive form of communication..........................................................................................................................
    from:
    Lucas James Xavier Kolasa
    Luckasa
  • CLICK ON THIS LINK .. *~* this green link *~* http://www.freewebs.com/luckasart/
    It has a poem that won me 3rd in the world.. and it has some artwork, art that is GREEN-ART.. environmentally friendly,, made with recycled materials.. and regualr pictures like this one here.. and oil painting called:
    LADY SUBMERGED IN BLUE
    , and a link to a team that i am on that makes a zero-pollution car...........................................................................................
    I am Lucas James Xavier Kolasa


    ;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;
    ps.
    Bonjour, comment allez-vous?
    Je parle Francais un petite et mal.
    Pardon moi.
    Viva la France.
    peace to all the good people out there.
    Luckasa
  • this is very interesting, it is...but would you really use it? We tend to get very exited with this things at the beginning but we forget about them very easily. It is cold in Paris in winter, it rains a lot, and most of us are out of shape. "Yeah come on, let s do it" sounds amazing, right? but the truth is that the nature of the human kind is to be lazy...if you get me a bike with electric engine, i will probalby use it, but not this one, and so are you...like it or not
    tico
  • Tico--- it's funny actually because after shooting this pod I ended up moving to Barcelona where I now live and work. They have the same system here (but call it Bicin instead) and believe it or not there's a waiting list to get a membership and we're in the dead of winter. The city has had to start being super selective and now only offer it to EU residents.
    I finally got my card after a bit of swindelling and can't even tell you how cool it is. I've never been the biking type either but I literally use it to go everywhere. frankly, its more of a convenience for me than a conscious choice not to drive (as i don't have a car here) but it really is picking up lots of speed here in europe and apparently about to hit in chicago and sf...
    joshsoskin
  • good stuff, Josh.
    Gabe
  • Green is the New Gold
    LittleShane
  • Hey Josh, great pod. What camera are you packing these days?

    Jason
    Jason_Boone
  • this is a great idea but what about places where it gets really bad in the winter?
    elissa_D
  • yo jason. using the panasonic dvx100b as my main camera. we got some of the pick ups and a few interviews with our second camera, the panasonic gs400.
    joshsoskin
  • That makes me happy, because I am about to drop some cash and get a Panasonic HVX200. I really like the picture that these Panasonics can put out.
    Jason_Boone
  • Elissa D and Tico when the weather is bad, you just dress warmly and if neccessary rain-proofly and cycling around is perfectly effective

    Nice pod Josh, I envy you!
    SusanB
  • Great Pod. NYC could use a similar system. Any other New Yorkers interested in pressing government for such a solution, please give us a shout!
  • Wouldn't be great to live in a city where all they have is public transportation and bicycles?
    hack26
  • I would love to see something like this in Silicon Valley. It's so flat and easily bikeable, and public transit is a total mess, so everyone drives everywhere. I would definitely pay to use a bike I didn't have to maintain myself!
    MaggieAthena
  • we should definitley give these Velibs a shot in NYC!
    jennben826
  • Awesome bikes for city life!
    http://www.skeppshultbikes.com/index.htm

    The bikes for girls even have dipped bars to accommodate dresses & skirts and the wheel has a skirt guard!
    whaledreams
  • Velib is such a smart idea in every way. I want to move back to Paris!

    I posted an article a little while back about how San Francisco was thinking about doing this as well. Check it out!

    julietp
  • yesyes! I heard Mayor Bloomberg of NYC visited Paris for this reason also..I really hope this happens in NYC sooner than later...
    FilipinotNoir
  • OH Snap, US? Take Notes! This is a very innovative and smart idea, definitely needs to be utilized in small suburban neighborhoods as a test... as for the video, the landscaping is beautiful (Paris is such an "awesome" place to shoot) and the camera angles are really well taken. Definitely the work of an artist, good job!
  • the french have got it goin on man. love it.
    Joydejavu17
  • Great piece in showing how feasible it is to implement environmental friendly idea the masses. It's great if more US cities implement this concept. Again, the filmmaker's shots are beautifully composed. He has an eye for capturing aesthetically-pleasing elements of the scenes.
    MickeyLin
  • Absolutely FANTASTIC!!!!!! Anybody with a head and a heart will applaud the city for having started the velib. How I wish my city had such leaders...
    sujit
  • It works, it's healthy for humans and for the environment, and it's funnn!
    Every city should catch on and make it easier for their citizens to do right by their home
    nwillens
  • Excccellent pod and wonderful bike idea!!! Luv it! Some jerk stole my bike! Arghh! Where ever you are bicycle, I miss you and love you... This one's for you!!
    dove
  • Starting next month, the Velib which was so popular in Paris will be launching in Washington DC...
    julietp
  • i think Velib' could do very well in cities across the US as well. it really is a revolutionary idea and a great way to get around town at a low cost.
    More parking, less pollution, healthy people...great goal.
    katevalentine
  • I hope things like this really start to take off in the states!
    jcmoisan
  • What a great business. There's so much money in going green. I'm happy people are taking advantage for themselves and for the rest of us.
  • Someone just needs to come up with the funding on their own here in the U.S.

    When it's a success, maybe the local governments will catch on.
    nickwe3d