With more than 195 million users recording activities across 185+ countries, Strava is the world's largest community for human-powered movement. Through Strava Metro — its free, de-identified dataset of pedestrian and cycling trips — the company works with over 4,000 city planners, national transport agencies, and infrastructure decision-makers worldwide to help shape safer, more connected streets. Nearly one billion people globally have been positively impacted through the work of Strava Metro and its partners.

This June, Strava Metro returns to Velo-city as Gold Partner, ready to share how data and community can help cities deliver on their urban dreams.

  Velo-city sits at the intersection of the Strava Metro mission: the people planning cycling infrastructure, the policymakers funding it, and the communities who use it every day. The week-long event is where all of these voices come together in the same room. Strava's mission is to see a world connected by movement. That vision needs towns and cities building networks that make cycling safe, accessible, and efficient — which is precisely what the Velo-city community works towards year after year. Partnering with Velo-city is a natural extension of that shared purpose, and an opportunity to connect directly with the planners and decision-makers who are using Strava Metro data to make real change on the ground.

  This year's conference theme — Delivering the Urban Dream — is a perfect fit for the story Strava Metro is able to tell. Turning active transport plans into reality requires evidence, and that's exactly what movement data provides: 
 

• A Conference Session on Data-Driven Cycling in London
  Strava Metro is proud to be presenting in Session 7.1 in the afternoon of Wednesday 17 June, sharing the story of its collaboration with Transport for London (TfL) — one of the world's most prominent transport authorities. In 2024, TfL launched Cycle Sundays, a campaign built in partnership with Strava to encourage more Londoners to explore the city on two wheels. Working alongside British Cycling, London Cycling Campaign, and Sustrans, TfL curated over 70 routes on Strava showcasing the best of London — from quiet streets and parks to iconic landmarks.
  
  The initiative demonstrates how transport authorities can use Strava's platform not only to understand where people ride, but to actively shape behaviour and inspire new cyclists to get in the saddle. Every ride shared on Strava feeds back into Strava Metro's dataset, helping TfL understand cycling patterns across the capital and guiding investment in safer, more connected infrastructure. It's a virtuous circle: better data leads to better infrastructure, which leads to more cycling, which generates better data. The session will explore how this partnership model can inspire other cities to combine open data, community engagement, and strategic planning to grow everyday cycling.
   

 

• The First-Ever Strava Metro: Commute Report 
  Delegates in Rimini will also hear about findings from the inaugural Strava Metro: Commute Report, published in April 2026. The report revealed that cyclists worldwide logged an extraordinary 885 million kilometres of bike commutes on Strava in 2025 — the equivalent of circling the Earth 22,000 times. Among the headline insights: it's Boomers, not Gen Z, who are leading the active commuting charge, and e-bike commuting is surging globally, with Iceland, Belgium, and Norway topping the charts. These kinds of insights matter for the policymakers at Velo-city because they challenge assumptions about who cycles and why — and they point towards the infrastructure investments that will have the greatest impact.

How does this year's theme connect to Strava Metro's work?
Delivering the Urban Dream calls for strategic plans backed by evidence, effective governance, and long-term commitment. Strava Metro provides one of the most comprehensive, globally consistent datasets available to help cities do exactly that. Whether it's understanding commuter corridors in London, mapping recreational riding patterns along Rimini's transformed waterfront, or identifying gaps in a city's cycling network, Strava Metro gives planners the evidence they need to make the case for investment — and to measure whether that investment is working. The fact that Strava Metro is completely free of charge, as part of Strava's social impact commitments, means that cities of all sizes and budgets can access these insights. From major metropolises to mid-sized cities like Rimini itself, the data is there to support smarter decision-making.


What are you most looking forward to at Velo-city 2026?
Rimini's own transformation — from a car-dominated coastal city to one of Italy's most bicycle-friendly municipalities — is genuinely inspiring. The pedestrianised waterfront, the expanded cycling network, the integration of active mobility into the city's DNA — it's a powerful example of what happens when political leadership meets community ambition. We can't wait to experience it firsthand. And of course, Velo-city wouldn't be Velo-city without the Bike Parade. We'll be there — and we hope you will be too. Make sure to record your ride and share it on Strava!


Come and meet the Strava Metro team at Booth 73 throughout the conference, and join the Velo-city Strava Club to connect with fellow Velo-citizens, plan your route to Rimini, and explore the technical tours.


Learn more about Strava Metro at metro.strava.com. Read the full Strava Metro: Commute Report at stories.strava.com.