Cycling as a Smart and Green Mode of Transport in Small Touristic Cities

Cycling as a mode of transport is a low-cost, health-improving way to travel and offers environmental benefits for the cities that promote it. It is only recently, though, with concerns over climate change, pollution, congestion, and obesity among others, that have cities throughout the world have begun to implement policies to promote cycling. In Greece, however, the use of the bicycle is limited. In Preveza, a small touristic city in Northwestern Greece where the use of the bicycle is prominent when compared to other Greek cities, there are efforts to promote cycling. Through the aid of a structured questionnaire, the residents evaluated the suitability of the city for cycling, the existing infrastructure, appropriate education, and behavior of cyclists and drivers. More than half of the residents use bicycles as their transportation and stated that bicycles are an inexpensive way of transport in the city and had the opinion that the state should encourage bicycle use by supporting subvention in bicycle acquisition. Two-thirds of the residents evaluated the cycling facilities of their city as adequate, but unsafe for young cyclists who do not follow the rules of transport. Adult cyclists, in contrast, were more loyal to the code, but stated that drivers did not respect their presence on the roads. This research provides important information on the perceived shortcomings of cycling as a transport mode in Preveza that may be of interest to towns/cities with similar characteristics.