The European Cyclists' Federation (ECF) is a

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

member-based umbrella federation of local, regional and national civil society organizations that promote

cycling Cycling, also known as bicycling or biking, is the activity of riding a bicycle or other types of pedal-driven human-powered vehicles such as balance bikes, unicycles, tricycles, and quadricycles. Cycling is practised around the world fo ...

for both transportation and leisure. ECF has around 70 member organizations across more than 40 countries that it represents at the

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

an level and internationally. ECF’s activities include conducting cycling advocacy and research, providing tools and resources, developing the EuroVelo network and organizing the Velo-city conference series. Based in Brussels and founded in 1983, ECF’s slogan is “more and better cycling for all.” In 2013 they founded the World Cycling Alliance.

Organization

ECF is a legal entity registered under Belgian law as an ASBL (

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

). Its statutes are published in the Moniteur Belge of 24 April 1997. 2013 ECF Board

ECF states that its vision is to “improve and increase cycling across the whole of Europe.” The organization defines the following main goals for 2030: * “ Cycling levels in Europe should increase by at least 50% compared to 2017 levels. * The rate of cyclists killed or seriously injured in road collisions should be reduced by at least 50% compared to 2019. * Cycling should be prioritized by policymakers at all levels across Europe as a sustainable and healthy part of the mobility mix, not only for everyday cycling but also for recreational cycling and sustainable cycling tourism. * Public investments in safe and comfortable

infrastructure Infrastructure is the set of facilities and systems that serve a country, city, or other area, and encompasses the services and facilities necessary for its economy, households and firms to function. Infrastructure is composed of public and pri ...

and other measures to improve and enable more cycling should increase greatly.”

Activities

Advocacy

As one of its primary activities, ECF works to influence legislation in favour of cycling. Apart from raising general awareness around the benefits of cycling, its

advocacy Advocacy is an Action (philosophy), activity by an individual or advocacy group, group that aims to influence decision making, decisions within political, economic, and social institutions. Advocacy includes activities and publications to infl ...

involves

lobbying Lobbying is a form of advocacy, which lawfully attempts to directly influence legislators or government officials, such as regulatory agency, regulatory agencies or judiciary. Lobbying involves direct, face-to-face contact and is carried out by va ...

and engaging with

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

s, policymakers and other stakeholders at the EU and

an level as well as international fora such as the

United Nations Climate Change conference The United Nations Climate Change Conferences are yearly conferences held in the framework of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). They serve as the formal meeting of the UNFCCC parties – the conference of the par ...

ECF campaign graphic for World Bicycle Day on 3 June 2021

ECF defines seven policy areas for its advocacy: * Modal shift * Safety * Cycling tourism and rural connectivity * Infrastructure * Cycling as part of urban mobility * Thought leadership and knowledge transfer * Cross-cutting issues

EuroVelo

EuroVelo is a network of 17 long-distance cycle routes that criss-cross

. When completed, the total length of the EuroVelo network will be 90,000 km (56,000 mi). As of 2021, more than 51,000 km (31,700 mi) of cycle routes were developed. EuroVelo routes are used by commuters, tourists and recreational cyclists. The EuroVelo network was officially launched in

Logroño Logroño ( , , ) is the capital of the autonomous community of La Rioja (Spain), La Rioja, Spain. Located in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, primarily in the right (South) bank of the Ebro River, Logroño has historically been a place of pa ...

on 21 November 1997, and its first route, the EuroVelo 12 – North Sea Cycle Route, was inaugurated in 2001. EuroVelo is coordinated by ECF, while the development and operation of individual EuroVelo routes is carried out by National EuroVelo Coordination Centres and Coordinators, which are usually

NGOs A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...

, commercial service providers or national, regional or local

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

Velo-city

The Velo-city conference series, also known as the annual world cycling summit, is organised by ECF with a different host city every year. Velo-city brings together civil society organizations, cities, academics, experts and the cycling industry to discuss and share the latest ideas and developments from the world of cycling for transport and leisure. Each conference takes place with a particular theme over the course of four days with a programme that consists of plenary sessions, side sessions, an exhibition area, technical visits, social events and a bike parade. Bringing together all those who are involved in the policy, promotion and provision of cycling, Velo-city conferences usually attract around 1,400 delegates, including cycling advocates,

cities A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

, decisionmakers and industry leaders. Velo-city 2021 Lisboa exhibition hall

Velo-city began in 1980 and has played an important part in the promotion of cycling ever since. Since the first Velo-city Global took place in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

in 2010, the conference has taken place in numerous locations: * 2011:

Seville Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...

* 2012:

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

* 2013:

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

* 2014:

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

* 2015:

Nantes Nantes (, ; ; or ; ) is a city in the Loire-Atlantique department of France on the Loire, from the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast. The city is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, sixth largest in France, with a pop ...

* 2016:

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* 2017:

Arnhem Arnhem ( ; ; Central Dutch dialects, Ernems: ''Èrnem'') is a Cities of the Netherlands, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands, near the German border. It is the capita ...

Nijmegen Nijmegen ( , ; Nijmeegs: ) is the largest city in the Dutch province of Gelderland and the ninth largest of the Netherlands as a whole. Located on the Waal River close to the German border, Nijmegen is one of the oldest cities in the ...

* 2018:

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

* 2019:

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

* 2021:

Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...

* 2022:

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* 2023:

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

* 2024:

Ghent Ghent ( ; ; historically known as ''Gaunt'' in English) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the Provinces of Belgium, province ...

Velo-city 2020 Ljubljana was forced to be postponed to 2022 as a result of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. Because of the pandemic, Velo-city 2021 Lisboa was held with special COVID-19 safety protocols and as a hybrid event with online and digital elements that included live streaming and session recordings within a dedicated mobile app.

Projects

ECF participates in various EU-funded projects together with other organizations and institutions.

Networks

ECF manages several international networks, apart from its own members:

Cities & Regions for Cyclists

The Cities & Regions for Cyclists network is managed by ECF and consists of cities and regions, mainly in Europe, that work to “promote the bicycle as a mode of transport and leisure.”

Cycle-Friendly Employer Consortium

The Cycle-Friendly Employer Certification Framework is a “European standard for cycle friendly companies.” The certification scheme is run by ECF and implemented on the national level by national coordinators.

Scientists for Cycling

The Scientists for Cycling group works to exchange their knowledge and research in order to improve cycling. The main aims of the network are: to build a strong academic community doing research on cycling-related topics; to bridge the gap between the research on cycling issues, cycling advocates and decision makers; to disseminate the latest academic publications on cycling; to assist in developing the Velo-city conference program; to build up a more research based approach to cycling advocacy and policy.

Members

ECF is a member-based organization with around 70 full and associate members in over 40 countries. The organization claims that it is “the world’s largest and best-known cyclists’ advocacy organization.” Full membership is open to European associations of cycle users. Full members are entitled to vote at the ECF Annual General Meetings (AGM). Associate membership is open to: * European organizations that do not meet the criteria for full membership but support the aims of ECF * Cycling organizations from outside Europe * Other bodies with an interest in cycling Associate members pay the subscription, receive material and may attend the AGM or working groups meetings but do not have voting rights.

References

External links

*
DG transport/ European Commission
{{Authority control Cycling organizations International organizations based in Europe Organizations established in 1983 1983 establishments in Europe Members of World Cycling Alliance