A great way to get around Nice is by using the bike lanes and the Velo Bleu public bicycles. Cheap, safe, environmentally friendly, fun and good for exercise - here's how to use them.

If you want to rent a bike for an hour or a year, you have to sign up.

How to sign up: 

By internet go to www.velobleu.org and chose “Je m’inscris”. Here you have two choices:

• 1 month or 1 year: pay by internet, by post, or by phone calling 04 30 00 30 01 while in front of Vélo Bleu station
• 1 day or 1 month – by internet or by mobile phone by calling 04 30 00 30 01 while in front of Vélo Bleu station 

Photo : Ivy PecanhaOnce you have registered your banking details by internet you can immediately use the Vélo Bleu via your phone (so you’ll need your phone with you when you rent a bike). You will be sent a Vélo Bleu card by post which you can then use in place of the phone.

Once you have registered your banking details by mobile phone you can immediately use the Vélo Bleu via your phone. You will be asked to activate your account at the terminal directly by calling the number that appears on the Vélo Bleu screen. This number will always be different.

Registering by post, you will be sent a card to use. 

How to use the terminal

See http://www.velobleu.org/presentation/?rub_code=52

Turn it on by the blue button in upper right hand corner. It takes a few minutes.

Either hold your card in front of the blue circle under the number zero on the key pad or telephone the number on the screen from the phone you registered your account with.

You can see how to turn it on here: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xaxvpf_bornes-velo-bleu-nice_news

Choose “Louer” to take a bike. If there is more than one bike at the terminal, the machine will ask which bike you want to take. Press number 1, 2, or 3 and then okay. Pull the lock cable and you’re off.

Choose “Restituer” if you are returning a bike. The machine will tell you to insert lock cable in 1, 2 or 3. Then wait for confirmation “Merci d’utiliser Vélo Bleu”.

Vélo Bleu Rates

€25 /year (with Ligne d’Azur card only €15)
€10 /month
€5 /week
€1 /day
Between 30-60 minutes €1 and then €2 for each extra hour

The first 30 minutes is free, so technically you could stop every 30 minutes and relock the bike at a Velo Blue station and then re-rent it and start the clock at zero and pay nothing. But, as you will find, some of the terminals don’t work, or locks get stuck, and then you’d be out of luck because you can only rent one bike at a time.

Find a bike: On the Vélo Bleu website 

VéloBleu Nice app on iTunes that shows availability at 175 stations across the city. You can ride as far as the Hippodrome in Cagnes sur Mer, with stations along the way in St Laurent du Var.

Troubleshooting

- Sometimes terminals don’t work so best to turn a few on simultaneously.

- If the bike doesn’t lock or unlock, gently rotate cable to jolt it. If it doesn’t work, go to the terminal beside.

- If you lock your bike to return it and it doesn’t accept it, and you can’t unlock it, call the Vélo Bleu number 04 93 72 06 06 and report the bike number (on the side of bike) the bourne (terminal) you are at and the time of day. Customer service runs from Mon-Sat 7h-20h on 04 93 72 06 06. If it’s after hours or on Sunday, leave a message, and even follow up with an email. Don’t panic. It’s very unlikely they’ll charge you, even if you can’t rent another bike with your account at that moment.

- It’s just a technical glitch. 

- Check tires and seat adjustment before selecting a bike.

- If there’s a lone bike in a row of terminals, there’s probably something wrong with that terminal. Don’t try and rent or return a bike here.

Swipe & Bike 

For one day and one week subscriptions, you can now pay directly with a credit card directly for your Vélo Blue at the seven busiest stations: Place Massena, Blvd Dubouchage, Nice-Ville and Riquier train stations, Saint-Laurent du Var, Promenade des Anglais (Gambetta) and the boardwalk in Cagnes-sur-mer.

From mid-March three additional stations in Nice will offer this service: Blvd Jean Jaures, Quai des Etats-Unis and Promenade des Anglais (west end).