Barcelona is paving the way for electric bicycles: by 2027, the public rental service will no longer have bicycles without engines
14/11/2026 13:00
Updated to
14/11/2026 13:00
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In the summer of 2027, the nearly 3,000 non-motorized bikes in Barcelona’s public rental service called Bicing will disappear. This means that by then, the service will focus exclusively on electric bikes, as the option preferred by citizens is the “electrified” bike.
According to the city hall itself, the public Bicing system is the third most used mode of transportation in Barcelona, behind the subway and buses.
The prospects for 2026 are promising, which has also driven the decision to replace the entire fleet with electric bikes: this year, it will eliminate around twenty and a half million trips. To date, nearly 85% of these trips are made using eBikes, which account for 62.5% of the fleet. According to city data, each eBike is used an average of 16 times on weekdays.
Users complain that during peak hours, it’s difficult to find electric bikes at the stations. To address this, the public service will undergo gradual renovations, which have required the city council to invest nearly 6 million euros.
Areas to be addressed for full electrification
This investment will cover various essential aspects to make the fleet 100% electric by the summer of 2027: the 3,000 traditional bikes will be phased out, and up to 400 new eBikes will be acquired in the meantime.
The existing bicycles will also be upgraded, with at least 2,000 batteries replaced and other aspects of the bikes improved—essentially giving them a thorough overhaul in areas such as braking systems and wheels, as well as enhancing the functionality of the rental app, which has been experiencing issues.
Recently, due to the high demand for electric bicycles, various problems have arisen in the fleet (battery defects and widespread lack of maintenance), resulting in a fine of 150,000 euros imposed on the company responsible for the service.