this post was submitted on 05 Apr 2026
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Solarpunk Urbanism
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A community to discuss solarpunk and other new and alternative urbanisms that seek to break away from our currently ecologically destructive urbanisms.
- Henri Lefebvre, The Right to the City — In brief, the right to the city is the right to the production of a city. The labor of a worker is the source of most of the value of a commodity that is expropriated by the owner. The worker, therefore, has a right to benefit from that value denied to them. In the same way, the urban citizen produces and reproduces the city through their own daily actions. However, the the city is expropriated from the urbanite by the rich and the state. The right to the city is therefore the right to appropriate the city by and for those who make and remake it.
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In Romania, bikes are treated as vehicles in the legislation. That means that if you don't have any amenities you are required to ride on the first lane of every road, as close to the curb as possible. Of course, some people take the sidewalk too, but they're really risking it. If they encounter a policeman that is actually determined to do their job that day, they're kinda screwed.
Same thing in France. I also live and Paris and don't really know what the other commenter is talking about: bikes and electric scooters are not supposed to be ridden on the sidewalk, and from my experience rarely are if there's an available bike lane. The only places I regularly see bikes on the sidewalk are those where the road infrastructure makes it too dangerous to ride a bike on a street
They are not supposed but they do.
Since I have no stats or pictures to share, for anyone else reading French wanting to have an idea “what I’m talking about”, here are a few of the results I was served searching for "Paris accidents velo et trotinettes", in no particular order. BTW, I have not read all of those articles I just want to make it clear I’m not imagining things like the previous comment seems to imply (sorry for the lack of layout, I made it real quick):
And btw, "abandonned" (rental) bikes (abandonned in the middle of the sidewalks, or even at the entrance/exit of a crosswalk) are another issue on their own.
All I’m saying is that this behavior (and I insist the issue pedestrians are most concerned with is with electrical, not with actual bike users: they already have enough trouble dealing with cars) is a real danger and should notbe tolerated or minimized. Even if we like bikes more than cars.
So, it’s ok to make it “too dangerous” for pedestrians instead? Not my logic, but as a pedestrian I’m obviously biased.
Also, keep in mind the code makes it clear it is ok to push a bike on sidewalk, that does not make it OK to ride it. Even less so when it’s an electrical one, which makes it go so much faster.
Then I don't get why is that person not reporting stuff like that to the police, especially on streets where this is a more common occurrence...