Bike-sharing more popular than ever, but Villo lags behind

The use of shared electric bikes is booming in Brussels, but regional bike-sharing programme Villo is missing out on the rise in popularity, experiencing a 40% drop in rides over the last six years.

According to figures from the Brussels statistics office BISA, an average of 5,422 trips per day were recorded in 2024 across all bike-sharing services, an increase of 61% compared to 2023.

The combined fleet from brands such as Lime, Bolt, Voi and Dott had an average of 3,698 bikes in circulation last year, Bruzz reports.

But Villo, which still operates with fixed pick-up and drop-off points rather than general drop-off and pick-up zones like the others, has seen its popularity decline since it entered the Brussels market in 2009.

A study by Brussels Mobility previously showed that a Villo bike is rented on average less than once a day, considerably less than similar schemes in other European cities such as Paris, Barcelona or Marseille.

The reasons are well known: the electric Villo bikes are heavy and impractical, users have to remove and charge the built-in battery themselves, and the distance between stations is sometimes large.

There is also a big difference in terms of parking options. Villo has 344 fixed stations, while free-floating bikes from other companies can be left at 2,082 active drop zones, where scooters are also allowed.

Scooters remain very popular and are by far the most popular means of shared transport, with an average of 24,789 trips per day and 13,528 available scooters in 2024.

However, usage has declined slightly due to stricter regulations since February 2024, which limited the supply to two operators and 8,000 scooters in order to curb the public nuisance of abandoned scooters strewn across city pavements.