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Is a friendly cohabitation possible between buses and bikes in Paris?

undefined undefined 18 juillet 2025 undefined 09h30

The Editor

© Oliverouge 3 / Shutterstock

For a few months now, as bicycles have been multiplying on the streets of the capital, tensions have been rising between cyclists and bus drivers. Often forced to share the same lane, these different road users are in a relentless battle against each other, prompting some institutions to decide to take action.

At the beginning of the year, Jean Castex, president of the RATP, lamented the speed of Parisian buses, stating that they “are traveling slower in 2025 than in 1925.” This is quite a notable slowdown, largely because the bus traffic has been neglected in recent years, especially in favor of bike development. As a result, there’s been a relentless battle between the two factions, sometimes leading to unpleasant situations. However, representatives from both the buses and the bikers have decided to move hand in hand to try and find a way out of this.


A Complex Coexistence

Since the Covid crisis, Anne Hidalgo and David Belliard, deputy &

The town hall in charge of transport has worked day and night to make Paris the capital of cycling. These drastic transformations bring joy to cyclists, even if it means eliminating entire bus lanes or imposing sometimes a bit nonsensical lane changes on these poor vehicles.

According to several studies, currently, 80% of bus lanes are still shared with bikes all over Paris. This is an extremely dangerous situation, especially for biking enthusiasts, but it also creates a big factor of slowdown since buses have to adapt to the pace of cyclists without always being able to overtake them safely. It’s a precarious situation that inevitably creates some tensions.


Towards a better coexistence

To address this critical situation, Jean Castex, president of the RATP has decided to sign a new protocol this Tuesday, July 15, established with several cycling associations. The goal is simple: to implement a balanced and safe sharing of the road by joining forces. To achieve this, three associations, Collectif vélo Île-de-France, Mieux se déplacer à bicyclette, and Paris en Selle, have come together to work with the Paris transport authority.

To achieve the goal of « zero serious or fatal accidents », the new protocol aims to enhance awareness and training for both bus drivers and cyclists. For cyclists, for instance, different themed courses will cover topics such as blind spots, bus clearance, preventing unsafe passing distances, door openings, and group cycling. We hope this measure can bring a little peace of mind to everyone.