Wear and Tear

One of the major, apparently unanticipated problems with Paris' Vélib' bike-sharing system is that a surprising number of bikes are too damaged to ride. Those who run the program (the City of Paris and advertising company JC Decaux) have been quick to blame disaffected youth from primarily poor and immigrant neighborhoods. To counter the damage, there's now an advertising campaign urging individual responsibility and respect:

Top: "It's easy to beat on a velib - it can't defend itself." Bottom: "16,000 bikes vandalized, 8,000 missing. Velib' belongs to you - protect it!"

It's possible that this ad campaign has worked, and/or the novelty of vandalism has worn off. Most of the damaged bikes I've seen have straightforward problems, like flat tires, discombobulated gear chains, and unbalanced or worn-down brakes. On a message board devoted to complaints about Vélib' an entire thread is devoted to brake problems that could not be the result of vandalism. This suggests that basic wear and tear could be the next big challenge for Vélib's operators to overcome.

Some kinds of wear and tear are unavoidable, while others are extremely avoidable. Am I crazy to suggest that the city's drivers and cyclists would all benefit if Paris finished paving its roads? Hey, Paris - the 19th century called, they want their cobblestone streets back!

Cobblestone streets should only exist in pedestrian-only zones. The sooner Paris lays down some asphalt on the Rue du Faubourg du Temple and other guilty stretches of road, the sooner they'll have bikes in better condition, and the less my brain will bounce around in my head on my way to the library every day.