Loire by Bike: a major interregional achievement on a European scale

The idea of a cycle route running the entire length of the Loire dates back to 1995, to the results of an exploratory study undertaken jointly by the Centre and Pays de la Loire regions, which examined the possibility of making the banks of the Loire suitable for cycling. The conclusions reached by the study convinced both regions to commit to an interregional project on a grand scale, also involving all the other local authorities concerned: 6 departments (Cher, Loiret, Loir-et-Cher, Indre-et-Loire, Maine-et-Loire and Loire-Atlantique) and 6 urban centres (Orléans, Blois, Tours, Saumur, Angers and Nantes).

Eventually, Loire à Vélo (Loire by Bike) will provide a safe, signposted cycle route covering some 800 km between Cuffy in the Cher department and Saint-Brévin-les-Pins in Loire-Atlantique, for cyclists of all abilities: children and adults, families and older people, residents and tourists. 12 % of the route consists of dedicated cycle paths. The remainder is made up of cycle lanes, roads with negligible motor vehicle traffic (less than 50 per day) and roads with only light traffic (fewer than 500 vehicles per day). 300 rest areas have also been provided. The project led by the two regions represents an investment of €52 million, 60% of which has been funded from regional budgets, with the remaining 40% financed by the departments and urban centres. These have also provided project management for the works carried out and part of the signposting.

The Loire by Bike project also forms part of a wider vision of tourism aimed at the cycling community as a stakeholder in the Eurovelo Rivers Route which will link Nantes to Budapest (Hungary), a distance of 2,400 km, crossing through France, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Slovakia and Hungary, along the Loire, the Doubs, the Rhine and the Danube.

This European dimension of the Loire by Bike project links it to a major tourist development in northern Europe, the Danube by Bike route, which is used by around 200,000 tourists every year. It has been made possible by a European financing programme, led and coordinated by the Centre region.