Rethinking intermediate mobility: a plea for a new regulatory framework

This article concludes a series of three surveys devoted to speedbikes.
If you’re new to the subject here, I’d recommend starting with the first article, which analyzes why the French market is stalled, and then with the second, which details the concrete obstacles encountered by entrepreneurs.

► Links to Article 1 and Article 2

Introduction: the paradox of progress

After six months of research, dozens of exchanges with specialist consultancies and two published articles, one question remains:

Is the speedbike a bike?

Legally, no. It’s a light moped (L1e-B). Technically, yes. It’s an electrically-assisted bicycle. Philosophically? That’s where it gets complicated.

In the first article, I showed you the shadow market: France at 500 speedbikes/year, Belgium at 15,672. In the second, I revealed the obstacle course: €45,000 in testing, €65,000 in total barriers for an entrepreneur who wants to launch 20-50 bikes.

The diagnosis has been made. Now let’s talk solutions.

Because we can’t leave it at that. The speedbike is not a gadget for wealthy geeks. It’s a massive decarbonization tool for 20-50 km journeys. It’s a credible alternative to the car for millions of Europeans.

And today, it is stifled by inadequate regulation.

Regulations hinder innovation more than they protect it. It prevents responsible players from existing, while thousands of unbridled bikes circulate with impunity.

It’s time to rethink the framework.

Mobility between two worlds

The boundary object

The speedbike is what sociology calls a “frontier object”: it exists at the intersection of two worlds, without really belonging to either.

No bike, no scooter.

Too fast to be a bike (45 km/h vs. 25 km/h). Too clean and quiet to be a scooter (zero emissions vs. combustion engine). Too light to be considered a real motor vehicle (25-30 kg vs. 100 kg+).

The result? Regulatory schizophrenia.

It has the obligations of a moped:

• Registration
• Compulsory liability insurance
• Approved motorcycle helmet
• Prohibition of bicycle lanes
• Approved lights (ECE R113, R50, R28…)
• Regulatory horn

But it is denied the advantages of a moped:

• No priority motorcycle parking
• No access to reserved 2-wheeler lanes
• No purchase aid as for electric scooters

And he is also denied the benefits of cycling:

• No bike paths
• No dual right-of-way for cyclists
• No free bike parking in town
• No VAE ecological bonus

It’s the worst of both worlds.

Why users remove the plate

I have an anecdote to tell you. It was told to me by several French speedbike users.

These people have legally purchased an approved speedbike. License plate, insurance, motorcycle helmet – everything is in order. For a few weeks, they rode on the road, squeezed between the cars that passed them and the buses that overtook them at 10 cm.

And then one day, they crack.

They remove the plate.

Why? Because with a plate, they’re not allowed to use the safe cycle path that runs alongside their daily commute. Without a plate, they become “invisible” again. They ride on the bike path, at 35-40 km/h instead of 45, and nobody says a word.

Illegal? Yes.

It’s the civil disobedience of mobility. Law-abiding people discover that the law puts them in danger. So they choose safety over conformity.

What does it reveal?

That the tension between the desire for freedom and the weight of obligations has become unbearable. That current regulations do not correspond to actual usage. That users are voting with their feet – or rather, with their license plates removed.

It’s not a problem of education. It’s a problem of regulatory design.

What solutions have you come up with?

Enough about the problem. Let’s talk solutions.

Here are four concrete ways to unblock the speedbike market in Europe, inspired by what’s already working elsewhere or what innovative players are starting to experiment with.

Proposal 1: Create an adapted “Urban Speedbike” sub-category

Today, all speedbikes are lumped together in the same L1e-B basket as 50cc electric scooters. This is absurd.

My proposal: create a sub-category L1e-B.1 “Speedbike” with proportionate requirements.

Lightweight specifications :

• Obligatory pedal assistance (no trigger like a scooter)
• Power limitation: 500W continuous max, 1000W peak
• Weight limit: 35 kg max
• Effective but adapted braking (not the same requirements as an 80 kg scooter)
• EMC and electrical safety (maintained)
• Lighting and signalling (simplified: 1 front light, 1 rear light with stop, horn)

Simplified certification :

• 10 tests instead of 16
• Budget: €20,000 instead of €45,000
• Shared certificate of conformity (see proposal 2)

Infrastructure authorization :

• Cycle lanes authorized on roads > 50 km/h (as in Belgium)
• Wide bike lanes (> 2m) authorized
• Two-way traffic prohibited (safety)
• Urban roads < 50 km/h (normal)

This sub-category would finally recognize the specificity of the speedbike: a halfway vehicle that deserves a halfway frame.

Proposal 2: Pool audits for SMEs

The problem with the €45,000 certification is that it’s untenable for SMEs aiming for 20-50 bikes a year.

The solution already exists: that’s what L’Usine à Vélo is doing in France.

L’Usine à Vélo is France’s leading provider of shared audits for small businesses. Around it gravitate several companies, notably VELI and other electrification players, who pool their resources to obtain certifications.

The model :

1. A central organization (L’Usine à Vélo) obtains ISO 9001 certification and the Certificate of Production Conformity.
2. Partner SMEs (Syklo, VELI, etc.) entrust final assembly to this organization.
3. Fixed costs (audits, monitoring, administration) are spread over several players
4. Each SME retains ownership of its brand, design and technology.

Result:

• Cost per SME: €2,000-5,000/year instead of €8,000-12,000/year
• Sufficient collective volume to justify audits
• Shared expertise on regulatory compliance

What needs to be done: encourage this model on a European scale. Create a “Speedbike Certified Collective” label to recognize this collaborative approach.

Imagine a network of 10 European SMEs, each producing 30-50 speedbikes/year. Total: 300-500 bikes. Shared costs divided by 10. Suddenly, the economy holds.

Proposal 3: Mixed infrastructures dedicated to mobility > 30 km/h

The speedbike rolls too fast for conventional cycle paths (danger for cyclists 20 km/h), but too slow to be at ease on the road with cars (50-70 km/h).

Solution: dedicated “green strips”.

Several European cities are already experimenting with infrastructures adapted to fast mobility:

• Utrecht (Netherlands): Official pilot project where speedbikes can use certain cycle paths by dispensation (Province of Utrecht, 2023)
• Copenhagen (Denmark): Network of extended “Superhighways” (3-4m, more than 850 km planned) that accommodate all types of bicycles, including fast e-bikes.
• Belgium: On roads with speeds over 50 km/h, speedbikes are allowed – and even obliged – to use cycle paths where they exist.

The concept:

• Width: 2.5-3m minimum (for safe overtaking)
• Surfacing: smooth asphalt (no cobblestones)
• Physical separation: curb or guardrail for cars
• Signage: “Voie mobilité > 30 km/h” (mobility lane > 30 km/h)
• Authorized users: Speedbikes (with conditions), fast bikes, high-performance scooters, electric cargo bikes

Advantages :

• Safety for all (separation of slow and fast flows)
• Modal shift car → speedbike facilitated
• Urban land optimization
• Strong political signal: recognition of intermediate mobility

Cost: €100-150/linear meter (much less expensive than a bus or tramway track)

Proposal 4: Supervised regional experiments

Rather than waiting for a European reform that will take 5-10 years, let’s authorize regions to experiment.

The model :

• Duration: 3 years
• Scope: One region or metropolis on a voluntary basis
• Conditions: Mandatory scientific monitoring (accidents, usage, modal shift, satisfaction)
• Possible exemptions: access to cycle paths, lighter homologation, purchase aid

Examples of desirable experiments:

Île-de-France: “Speedbike RER

• Speedbikes allowed on cycle paths along RER routes (A, B, C)
• 1,000€ purchase subsidy for commutes > 20 km
• Secure speedbike parking facilities at 50 stations
• Goal: 5,000 speedbikes on the road in 3 years

Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region: “Speedbike Rural

• Simplified certification for regional manufacturers (Syklo, etc.)
• Green strips on departmental roads
• Speedbike leasing for rural workers (Belgian model)
• Objective: Modal shift 10% of 20-40 km car journeys

Lille Metropole: “Speedbike Transfrontalier” (Cross-border Speedbike)

• Partnership with Belgium (already mature on the subject)
• Speedbike corridors Lille-Tournai, Lille-Courtrai
• Pooling expertise with Belgian players
• Objective: Create a coherent cross-border network

The idea: learn through experimentation. Measure. Adjust. Duplicate what works.

How about a change of scale?

All these proposals are useful. But they remain marginal adjustments.

What if we thought bigger?

What if we finally recognized that the speedbike is not a niche, but a major lever in the decarbonization of mobility?

Speedbikes in European climate policy

Europe has set itself ambitious targets: -55% CO₂ emissions by 2030 (vs 1990). Transport accounts for 30% of European emissions, 72% of which come from road transport.

Modal shift is at the heart of our strategy.

We are investing heavily in :

• Trains (TGV, regional trains)
• Electric buses
• Streetcars
• Electric cars (ecological bonus, recharging infrastructure)

But we’re forgetting about intermediate mobility: 20-50 km.

This is precisely the distance where :

• The car still dominates (60-70% of journeys)
• Classic cycling is too slow (2 hours for 40 km)
• The classic VAE is limited (1h30-1h45 for 40 km, arrives sweaty)
• Poor public transport (rural, suburban)

The speedbike is perfect for this distance:

• 40 km in 1h-1h10 (average speed 35-38 km/h)
• Zero emissions
• Moderate physical activity (electric assistance)
• Ridiculous running costs (electricity: €0.15/100 km)

Potential gains: let’s talk numbers

Let’s do an exercise in projection. Let’s imagine that Europe were to invest seriously in speedbikes.

Scenario 2030: 2 million speedbikes in Europe

(Today: ~100,000 speedbikes on the road, concentrated in Belgium, Switzerland and the Netherlands)

Assumptions :

• Average use: 8,000 km/year/speedbike
• Replacing combustion-powered car journeys: 70% of km (the remainder replaces EAB, train, bus)
• Average car consumption: 6L/100km (diesel/petrol)
• Emissions: 140g CO₂/km

Earnings CO₂ :

• 2 million × 8,000 km × 70% × 140g = 1.6 million tons of CO₂ avoided/year
• Equivalent: Take 350,000 cars off the road

Public health benefits :

• Regular physical activity: 30-45 min/day
• Reducing cardiovascular disease, diabetes and obesity
• Estimated economic savings: €500-800/person/year (health costs avoided)
• Total: €1-1.6 billion/year

Quality of life gains :

• Less urban congestion
• Less noise
• Less air pollution (fine particles)
• Optimization of public space (1 speedbike = 1/10 the footprint of a car)

Investment required :

• Infrastructure: 500 km of green strips × 100 towns × €100,000/km = €5 billion
• Purchase subsidies: 2 million × €1,000 = €2 billion
• R&D, regulation, training: €500 million
• Total: €7.5 billion over 5 years

That’s €1.5 billion a year.

Compare with :

• French national cycling plan: €250 million/year
• Electric car bonus France: €1 billion/year
• RTE budget (rail network): €15 billion/year

The speedbike is an under-exploited opportunity.

Recognition in public policy

For this scenario to become a reality, we need clear political recognition of intermediary mobility.

In concrete terms, this means :

At European level:

• Revision of regulation 168/2013 to create subcategory L1e-B.1 “Speedbike”.
• Infrastructure directive including “intermediate mobility lanes
• Integration into the European Green Deal

At national level :

• Speedbike eco-bonus: €1,000-1,500 (as for EABs, but more)
• Employer’s mileage allowance: €0.35/km exempt (Belgian model)
• Speedbike infrastructure plan: €100 million/year over 5 years

At local level :

• Regional experiments encouraged
• Secure speedbike parking facilities (railway stations, public parking lots)
• Communication: “Who’s the speedbike for?” campaigns

The political message must be clear:

“The speedbike is not a gadget. It’s a tool for decarbonization, public health, and energy sovereignty.”

Conclusion: manifesto for the 21st century

The speedbike is not a gadget.

It’s an eye-opener.

That of a mobility system still formatted for the 20th century. A system that thinks in silos: bike OR car. Cycling OR road. Light OR heavy. Slow OR fast.

But the reality of usage is more nuanced.

There’s an in-between. A gray zone. Massive demand for 20-50 km journeys that are neither urban (classic bike), nor long-distance (train), nor isolated rural (obligatory car).

The speedbike can meet this demand.

But not within the current framework. Not with €45,000 worth of tests. Not with the ban on bicycle lanes. Not with a dead market in France and a dying one in Germany.

We need to rethink the framework.

Create a real speedbike category. Pool audits. Build suitable infrastructures. Experiment. Measure. Learn.

And above all, political recognition that intermediary mobility is a pillar of decarbonization.

So here’s my call.

To political decision-makers: Open up the debate. Launch experiments. Give us 3 years and €10 million to prove that it works.

To mobility contractors: Let’s unite. Pool our certifications. Let’s create a “Speedbike Responsible” collective to show that we can do things differently.

To users: Make your voice heard. Explain why you need a speedbike. Tell us about your daily 40 km commute by car, which you dream of doing differently.

To researchers: Document. Measure usage. Calculate CO₂ gains. Produce the knowledge that’s missing to convince.

And to the skeptics: Come and try it. Get on a speedbike, ride 30 km in 50 minutes, and tell me if this isn’t the future of suburban mobility.

The speedbike is not the only solution.

But it’s an essential piece of the carbon-free mobility puzzle. A piece that is ignored, hindered and suffocated by inappropriate rules.

The speedbike is just waiting to be given a chance.

Sources

• Cleanrider: “Sales of electric speed-bikes in Belgium: a mixed picture” (2025)
• Transitionvelo: “Speedbikes can’t escape the crisis” (2025)
• Bicytrust : “Speedbike : Complete Guide 2025” (2025)
• ANUMME: “EDPM rapide: comment aller légalement au-delà de 25 km/h?” (2019, historical context)