22 million bicycles were sold in Europe last year, the highest number in twenty years. The turnover of the bicycle manufacturers in the European Union and the United Kingdom increased by 40 percent compared to 2019, to 18.3 billion euros. This is what the federation of the European bicycle industry Conebi reports.
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According to the chairman, Erhard Büchel, the increase is due to the increased interest in bicycles among Europeans, which in turn is a direct result of the corona crisis and the ban on (international) tourism. Furthermore, Büchel points to the increased investment in cycling infrastructure and the greater political commitment to support green mobility. In 2020 1.5 billion euros was invested in bicycle infrastructure, compared to 1 billion the year before.
The European bicycle industry has just over a thousand (often small) manufacturing companies, which account for 155,000 direct and indirect jobs. If bicycle tourism and bicycle sales are also included, this comes to 850,000 jobs.
Conebi advocates investing even more in local bicycle production. We have come a long way in the field of electric bicycles, it says. Of the 4.5 million e-bikes sold in the European Union and the UK, 80 percent were produced in Europe.
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