Urban context 

The urban context refers to the cycling infrastructure and policies in place, which are crucial to creating safe, efficient and attractive conditions for riding a cargo bike. Ghent has made several efforts to improve the urban context. The city adopted a sustainable urban mobility plan (SUMP) that emphasises the accessibility, safety, sustainability and child-friendliness of the transport system. The mobility plan focuses on shifting from car travel to more sustainable alternatives and creating more space for pedestrians, cyclists and public transport.  

As part of the SUMP, Ghent introduced low-emission zones throughout the inner city to improve air quality. Likewise, to increase the safety of city streets, car speed has been limited to 30 km/h. Cyclists get to enjoy great freedom with over 400 km of cycling network. Cargo bikes are recognised in the mobility policies, particularly concerning parking on public domain. The city is dedicated to expanding the number of oversized parking spaces for cargo bikes, aiming for a total share of 10%.  
 

Encouraging car-free living  

Another way to promote the use of cargo bikes is through incentives and projects. Ghent introduced a scrappage scheme to help people switch from cars to bikes by offering households a maximum of €500 to scrap their car for a sustainable alternative, such as cargo bikes. For those who occasionally need one, cargo bikes are available for rent through several bike-sharing services in the city.
 
Combined with the cycle-friendly urban context, these incentives are paying off. Over the past years, car ownership of families in Ghent has decreased from an average of 1.23 in 2012 to 1.02 in 2021. The number of families without a car has doubled from 12% to 24%.

Local cargo bikers Griet and Maarten explain how they got rid of their car in favour of cycling:  

“It has been a gradual process. We didn't suddenly give up on our car. In the beginning, the car was still there, but we tried to use it as little as possible. We already had an electric cargo bike to do the shopping and transport our daughter. We started using them more and more. It turned out that everything could be done with the cargo bike. We often even got to our destination more easily than by car. “ 

Cargo-bike based businesses  

Businesses are also encouraged to use cargo bikes. Through the Spits Testkaravaan project, the city and the Cycling Embassy of Ghent enable companies to test sustainable mobility fleets for two weeks, including electric cargo bikes. In 2023, the Cargo Bike Challenge was set up to incentivise businesses further to shift to cargo bikes for their services by offering a temporary discount on rentals, with seven different cargo bike models to choose from.  
 

Leading by example 

The city itself is not standing still either. Staff can use a fleet of bicycles, including cargo bikes, for work-related commutes. Even city services such as the maintenance of greenery, volunteering points and employment assistance switched to cargo bikes. People with reduced mobility can experience greater freedom with cargo bike taxi service, and children get to spend their holidays playing in a mobile playground brought with a cargo bike. The city of Ghent is clearly committed to the potential of cargo bikes, and actively encourages their uptake as first adopters. 
   

Sustainable urban logistics 

Thanks to their action plan, Ghent is also progressing on sustainable urban logistics. With projects like the microhub at the Ham, Ghent facilitates the need for transfer points near the city centre. These spaces are essential for bike-based delivery logistics yet often challenging to locate. Currently, logistics company PostNL utilises the hub to deliver packages on their six cargo bikes, covering approximately one third of the city centre (300 streets). Soon, the city plans to expand these efforts with a second microhub and a larger mesohub for shared use, ultimately aiming to serve the entire city centre with cargo bike deliveries! 

Find more information about Ghent’s urban context, projects and incentives on ECF’s Cargo bike friendly cities Tracker. The tracker also lets you explore other European cities’ strategies for promoting the use of cargo bikes.  

At Velo-city 2024, the conversation about cargo bikes continues. Sessions such as ‘CIE: How cycling is transforming urban logistics across europe’ and ‘Sustainable urban logistics: Unveiling the potential of cargo bikes’ delve into the usage of cargo bikes for urban logistics, while other sessions touch upon cargo bikes’ broader potential too. Don’t miss out on these engaging discussions!