Officials in Zaragoza, northern Spain, have proposed measures to make cycling insurance obligatory in the city. Under the new regulations, put forward by far-right group Vox and supported by the right-wing People’s Party, all cyclists and users of electric scooters would need to be covered by a personal cycling liability insurance and be obliged to carry proof of it with them.
If the moves are approved, Zaragoza would be the only place in Europe to impose mandatory insurance on cyclists, after Switzerland abolished their version in 2012.
€20 per year, per person
Estimates put the cost of cycling insurance at around €20 per year, per person – not an insurmountable financial burden for many but one, according to critics of the plan, that could be bureaucratic enough to disincentivise people from getting on their bikes, at a time when climate and public health concerns make sustainable and healthier forms of transport more important than ever.
What’s more, opponents say, the requirement to subscribe to a separate cycling insurance is unnecessary since most people who have any form of public liability insurance are already covered for bike accidents.
Accident statistics do not hold up
Cycling advocates have even raised concerns about the legality of the proposed law, which includes no exception for children or learners. Some have gone as far as to suggest the plan could be a resigning matter for the councillors behind it. Laura Vergara, a representative from Conbici, a pro-cycling body in Spain, told Euronews Green that the impact of the proposal is disproportionate to the risk, given that there are “no accident statistics that demonstrate the need to provide mandatory insurance.”
Spain is in the midst of a culture war over cycling and other green measures, in the wake of a climate law passed in 2021 that imposed low-emission zones in every city. The European Union funded the scheme to the tune of €1.5 billion, but some city councils are reneging on their eco promises. A right-wing run council in Valladolid has even spent hundreds of thousands removing cycling infrastructure to make room for more cars, which has led the EU to announce it is looking into accusations of misuse of funds and may claw funding back.
Public uproar
Meanwhile, the plans for cyclists and scooter riders in Zaragoza are not yet set in stone. They will now undergo a 30-day public consultation period before they can be given any final green light, but Vergara has predicted the matter will create such a degree of “great public uproar and confusion among people” that “the unviable measure” will not go through.
In signs that the council may already be rethinking the optics of the proposals, Spanish news outlet Heraldo has reported that at least one PP (centre right) councillor has toned down some of the rhetoric, emphasizing that the wording of the law put forward “is not definitive” and could be changed.
