In September 2021, Velo-city 2021 Lisboa brought the global cycling community to Lisbon, Portugal. Velo-city 2021 Lisboa took place under the theme “Cycle Diversity” from 6-9 September 2021. The conference was a great success and offered an important platform for global knowledge exchange and a chance to inspire cities, decision-makers, researchers as well as industry leaders to push for more climate-friendly mobility. Velo-city 2021 Lisboa presentations are now available online. You are invited to access them here.
The City of Lisbon, also known as the city of seven hills, is a truly unique place full of history and stories where the past, present and future can be experienced on one cycle trip. Over the last decade, Lisbon started its journey towards becoming a green, inclusive and cycling-friendly city. Especially during the COVID19 crisis, Lisbon showed great ambition and grasped the opportunity to introduce infrastructural measures that put people first. At Velo-city 2021, participants had the possibility to learn more about Lisbon’s journey towards becoming a bike-friendly city.
Hear from the Organizers:
Velo-city 2021 Lisboa was jointly organized by the Municipality of Lisbon, the European Cyclists' Federation (ECF) and the Empresa Municipal de Mobilidade e Estacionamento de Lisboa (EMEL).
"The current pandemic has shed light on how crucial cycling is as a healthy, safe, reliable and fast transport mode. Since the progressive lifting of the lockdown, everywhere in Europe we have seen a strong increase in trips by bicycle. Citizens are ready to change the way they move and live. Lisbon is one of the forward-thinking cities that recognized the essential role of cycling for the resilience of our communities and grasped the opportunity to reshape its streets. Velo-city 2021 Lisboa has been, therefore, a great place to learn and exchange knowledge on the key role the bicycle plays in building a more livable world. It has been a pleasure to welcome you there!"
Christophe Najdovski - ECF President and Deputy Mayor, City of Paris (France)
"Diversity, inclusion, tolerance, and multiculturalism are part of Lisbon's DNA. Velo-city 2021’s theme could not be, therefore, more adjusted to our ideal of the city. This event has been an opportunity for Lisbon. An opportunity to show that we are on the right path, that we are working to transform Lisbon into a fairer, more sustainable and balanced city, where bicycles are definitely part of the options available to everyone and are also part of the mobility solution. We are living in times of change, of transformation. We are living a new normal, the result of a pandemic that has forced us to rethink the way society is organised, how we live, how we move. In every crisis there are opportunities, and this is our opportunity for change. If we want to leave a positive legacy for future generations, this is the time for a change. Welcome to Velo-city 2021. Welcome to Lisboa."
Fernando Medina - Mayor of Lisbon (Portugal)
"EMEL has been working, together with Lisbon Municipality, so that Lisbon, a city open to the world, increasingly asserts itself in the change of mobility paradigm, to a model that offers greater security and is more environmentally sustainable, essential to the survival of our planet. We were proud of, but also challenged to organize Velo-city 2021, at a time when the bicycle was conquering the deserved public space and people's daily lives, for the evident benefits it provides in terms of preventing disease, reducing pollution and increasing well-being. We were glad to welcome you to this international meeting, which we did everything in our power to make it a great celebration of diversity, people, thoughts and cultures."
Luís Natal Marques - EMEL President