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Map of EuroVelo bicycle routes ^[1]

EuroVelo is a project of the European Cyclists' Federation to develop a cycle route network consisting of 13 long-distance routes crossing Europe. The total length will exceed 70,000 km (43,496 mi),^[2] of which more than 45,000 km (27,962 mi) are in place.^[3]

EuroVelo routes are intended for bicycle touring across the continent, though they are also used locally. The routes are made of both existing bike paths and roads together with proposed and planned cycle routes to connect them.

In September 2008 the European Union Committee for Transport and Tourism earmarked €300,000 to support EuroVelo.^[4]

EuroVelo's aims and administration

The aim of EuroVelo is to encourage people to try cycling instead of driving. Although some will cycle across the continent, most journeys will be local.

Development is by national, regional and local governments and NGOs in all European countries. The international status helps in funds and political support for construction. Only routes approved by the EuroVelo route coordinator can call themselves EuroVelo.

Requirements

Requirements for a EuroVelo route are:

• have no gradient above 6%
• be wide enough for two cyclists
• have an average of no more than 1,000 motorised vehicles a day
• be sealed for 80% of its length
• be open 365 days a year, have provision points every 30 km (19 mi), accommodation every 50 km (31 mi), and public transport every 150 km (93 mi).^[5]

Main points on the EuroVelo routes

Legend - Green: North-South / Blue: West-East / Red: Circuits

Route information

The Euro-Route R1, part of EV2

EuroVelo 2

Between The Hague and the German-Polish border EV2 follows Euro-Route R1^[9], an international cycle path connecting Boulogne-sur-Mer with St Petersburg.

EuroVelo 3

EuroVelo 3 is The Pilgrim's Route. It goes from Trondheim in Norway to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. The route follows traces of old roads used for pilgrimages in the Middle Ages. The route passes through Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Belgium, France and Spain. Most of these countries have a developed net of bicycle routes used as part of EV3.

EuroVelo 5

This route^[10] is inspired by the Via Francigena, a pilgrim route from London to Rome (and beyond) although not used as much as the Santiago route. It was first recorded by Archbishop Sigeric in the 10th century AD. However, the route of the Via Francigena is an almost straight line path from London to Rome. The Eurovelo 5 route takes a more easterly route that passes through Brussels, Luxembourg and Strasbourg in Alsace. Then it follows the Franco-German border, cuts through Switzerland (following the Swiss National Cycle Network Route 3) and crosses the Alps at the Gotthard Pass. In Italy it follows the as-yet unmarked or unmapped Via dei Pellegrini Cycle Route (number 3 of the Italian network) passing through Rome and following a mainly inland route towards the west of the country before heading east to Brindisi. The route in Italy follows more closely the traditional route of the Via Francigena, a route which has recently been awarded EU funds to reinstate hostelry organisation and for route improvement. More information about this route can be found at Eurovelo5.com.

EuroVelo 6

EuroVelo 6 route sign in France, near the German border

EuroVelo 6 is the Rivers Route. It runs from Nantes on the mouth of the Loire, along the river eastward through France. It continues on to Lake Constance in Switzerland and then down the Danube through Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Serbia, Bulgaria, where it passes the UNESCO Heritage site Srebarna Nature Reserve then into Romania to the UNESCO Heritage site of the Danube Delta, and ends in Constanţa, on the Black Sea. EV6 includes the Donauradweg, the bicycle path along the Danube; this stretches from Donaueschingen and Passau in Germany through Austria to Vienna and continues on to Bratislava in Slovakia.^[11]

EuroVelo 10

EuroVelo 10 runs around Baltic Sea. Some of its parts are mapped on OpenStreetMap project [4]. On the state of the route there is an OpenStreetMap wiki page Peter Horn User talk 01:12, 27 December 2011 (UTC)^[12]

EuroVelo 11

EuroVelo 11 is called 11 the East Europe Route and connect (theoretically) the North Cape with Athens. On the state of the route there is an OpenStreetMap wiki page.^[13]

A road sign indicating a EuroVelo route

EuroVelo 12

EuroVelo 12, the North Sea Cycle Route^[14], was the first European route, opened in June 2001, Template:Vonvert route through England, Scotland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. It features in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest unbroken signposted cycling route. The second phase of European Union funding through the Interreg initiative came to a close in December 2006.

EuroVelo 13

EuroVelo 13, the Iron Curtain Trail,  follows the old Iron Curtain, the divided borders of Europe during the Cold War.^[15] The ICT runs from Kirkenes, Norway on the Barents Sea, along the Finno-Russian border through to the Baltic Sea, then hugs the length of the Baltic coast to Lübeck in Germany. It then follows the old border between West Germany and the former East Germany, the current borders between the Czech Republic and both Germany then Austria, the Austrian-Slovakian and Austrian-Hungarian borders before following the borders of the former Yugoslavia, Romania and Bulgaria. It finishes at Carevo in Bulgaria on the Black Sea after following the border with Greece.^[16]

EuroVelo 15

The international Rhine cycle route, EuroVelo 15^[17], with an overall length of about 1,320 km (820 mi) passes through four countries from the headwaters of the Rhine in Andermatt in the Swiss Alps to the estuary in Rotterdam in the Netherlands, via France ^[18] and Germany. The Rhine is Europe’s most well-known and most historic river. Throughout its steady north-south course from the Alps to the North Sea, it is one of the most attractive rivers for tourists with its most charming countryside. It has been one of the most important traffic routes for cultural exchange between the Mediterranean region and Northern Europe for two thousand years. The fluvial topography of the Rhine is amongst the most enchanting and invites to visit the bordering cities and villages with numerous UNESCO world heritage sites, like Strasbourg, Speyer cathedral, the Rhine Gorge and Cologne cathedral^[19].

See also

• Route Verte
• United States Numbered Bicycle Routes

References

External links

• EuroVelo — European Cycle Route Network
• ECF European Cyclists' Federation
• CyclingEurope.org
• Eurovelo 5
• Eurovelo 8
• Eurovelo 15 from Andermatt to Rotterdam
• Mapping project of EuroVelo on OpenStreetMap
• Italian Greenways
• Eurovelos 1-15 by the people who have cycled them