France is giving €4,000 to people who trade in their car for an e-bike

Photo by JEAN-FRANCOIS MONIER / AFP via Getty Images

The subsidy for people who trade in their gas-powered cars for electric bikes was increased to as much as 4,000 per person. The money is meant to encourage people to use alternative modes of transportation.

The subsidy for the purchase of an e-bike is available to people who live in low-income households in low-emission urban zones. Non-motorized bikes are also eligible for the incentive. French citizens with higher incomes can get smaller subsidies.

The subsidy was increased recently after it was determined that more needed to be done to catch up to bike-loving rivals. The French government wants 9 percent of the country to switch to bikes by the year 2024, compared with 3 percent currently. The Netherlands has a large amount of this area.

After exchanging their old vehicle for a new electric bike, scooter, moped, motorcycle, or even public transportation credit, citizens can receive a subsidy of up to 1,000 for the purchase of a new electric bike, scooter, moped, motorcycle, or even public transportation credit.

France is spending money on more than one incentive. The city of Paris will be bikeable with an investment of 250 million dollars. The mayor of the city won reelection last year and promised to add another 130 kilometers of bike-safe pathways over the next five years.

The news comes a week after US President Joe Biden signed a huge tax and climate bill into law. There is no money for e-bike incentives in the bill.