Marseille expands electric bike fleet to 1,500 as Voi and Pony replace Lime
Marseille has expanded its electric bike-sharing network with 500 additional bikes since July 1, when Swedish company Voi and French operator Pony replaced American provider Lime as the city's authorized operators.
The two companies now provide 750 electric bikes each, bringing Marseille's total shared e-bike fleet to 1,500—a 50% increase from the 1,000 bikes Lime operated since May 2021. Their contracts run until October 2027.
Voi, founded in 2018, operates in over 100 towns and cities across 12 countries and has served more than 8 million riders with 240 million trips to date. Pony, established the same year by Paul-Adrien Cormerais and Clara Vaisse, emphasizes French manufacturing, with bikes produced by Manufacture Française du Cycle and batteries made by Bordeaux-based Gouach.
The city selected both operators for their focus on innovation. Pony's signature Double Pony two-seater electric bike, launched in 2021, has attracted over one million riders, with approximately three-quarters of trips involving two passengers. The company already operates in 23 cities.
To accommodate the expanded fleet, Marseille created 150 new bike stations. The municipality also operates Levélo, its public bicycle service relaunched in December 2022 with 2,000 all-electric bikes across 200 stations. City officials announced plans to add 1,200 more bikes to the Levélo network by year's end.
A city hall spokeswoman confirmed there were no political motives behind dropping Lime, whose authorization expired on June 30. During Lime's five-year tenure, the service saw a 170% increase in active bike users, with approximately 80% being Marseille residents rather than tourists, and an average user age of 31-32 years.
Scooter ban planned amid safety concerns
The bike expansion comes as socialist mayor Benoît Payan pursues his campaign pledge to suspend free-access electric scooters by 2027, responding to mounting complaints from pedestrians and drivers. Many scooters have been found submerged in the Vieux-Port, destroyed or abandoned, while drivers have reported reckless behavior from some riders.
Marseille joins a growing number of French cities restricting scooter access. Paris officially banned rental electric scooters on September 1, 2023, becoming the first European capital to do so after nearly 90% of referendum participants voted for the ban in April 2023. Before the Paris ban, city authorities reported 459 accidents involving e-scooters in 2022, including three fatalities. Across France, 24 people died in scooter-related accidents in 2021.
Nice and Toulouse never permitted free-floating electric scooters to operate, while cities like Montélimar banned them after initial deployment. Other municipalities including Valence and Saint-Brieuc have increasingly restricted scooters to certain areas, particularly banning them from pedestrian zones in city centers.
