| Since 1996, the Mairie de Paris has made great efforts to introduce dedicated cycle lanes in Paris. You can pick up a free leaflet, Paris à Vélo, outlining the routes, from town halls, the tourist office or bike rental outlets. Unfortunately, very few stretches are separate from the roads and, given the way Parisians park and drive, the new lanes are very much a token gesture. The best road-free cycle routes are the promenade plantée along the old railway line from Vincennes into the 12e arrondissement (though the viaduct section between the Jardin de Reuilly and the Bastille is for pedestrians only), rue Vercingétorix from place de Catalogne to Porte de Vanves in the 14e, and the quais of Canal St-Martin, the Bassin de la Villette and the Canal de l'Ourcq. The new bridge across the Seine, Pont Charles-de-Gaulle between the Gare de Lyon and Gare d'Austerlitz, has separate lanes, as do boulevard d'Auriol, rue Albert-Bayer, avenue Edison, and rues Baudricourt, Château-des-Rentiers and Nationale in the 13e. The Seine is a favourite spot with cyclists on Sundays: cars are banned from the central quais, as well as the quais along the Canal St-Martin, between 10am and 4pm. If you prefer cycling in a more natural environment, you'll find extensive cycle tracks in the Bois de Boulogne and the Bois de Vincennes. Cycle tracks are also widely used by rollerbladers. For details of bike rental and guided cycling Tours, see "Activities and sports".
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