Historiographical Needs in the Study of Bicycling Mobility in France

Abstract

In historical research on cycling in France, most attention has been given to the development of bicycles themselves and the industry that built them, mainly in the nineteenth century, or on cycling as a sport. Some historians have studied the bicycle as a social object. But the works dealing with cycling as a means of transport are scarce. The special double session on 'Cycling History and Cycling Policies' at the 2012 annual conference of the International Association for the History of Transport, Traffic and Mobility in Madrid was an opportunity to exchange findings from various countries. For the case of France, attention to the following five important questions is needed: 1. What are the main research deficits in the history of cycling for transport ? 2. What can historians say about the factors in the rise and decline of cycling for transport ? 3. What roles did cycling activists, politicians, traffic planners, the bicycle industry,and typical cyclists play ? 4. How can historians investigate how conditions such as city density, affordability of bicycles, public policy, and traffic planning intertwine with cycling’s social acceptability and cultural meaning ? 5. How can historians assess bicycle lanes in the promotion of cycling ?