Le Bourget-du-Lac, a model for active mobility
March 2025
Agence pour l’Environnement et la Maîtrise de l’Energie (ADEME)
Reducing car use, promoting walking and cycling, making travel safer… Since 2020, the Savoyard municipality of Le Bourget-du-Lac has been radically transforming its public spaces to encourage active mobility. This proactive policy has just been recognised with the Grand Prix des Talents de la Marche, the highest award from the Club des Villes et Territoires Cyclables et Marchables (Club of Cycling and Walking Towns and Regions).
One million euros invested in the Bourget-du-Lac pedestrian plan
Le Bourget-du-Lac, a municipality with 5,400 inhabitants, sees its population double every weekend with the influx of visitors attracted by its lake. During the week, it also welcomes 10,000 workers thanks to its dynamic technology park. Faced with these mobility challenges, Mayor Nicolas Mercat made mobility a priority from the start of his term in 2020. This led to the launch of the pedestrian plan, which aims to transform travel in the town to encourage the entrances to the town safer and pedestrianising the lakefront, but also small improvements that make a big difference, such as redesigning certain streets to facilitate road sharing,’ explains the mayor. This proactive policy has been allocated nearly €1 million between 2020 and 2026 and earned Le Bourget-du-Lac the Grand Prix des Talents de la Marche (Walking Talent Award) in 2024.
The first results are in
Today, the town has introduced a 30 km/h speed limit throughout the town and a 20 km/h limit in all residential areas. Only a few roads remain at 50 km/h, and departmental roads are still at 70 km/h between towns, although this is still under discussion. The lakefront has been renaturalised and pedestrianised, and parking spaces in the area have been moved back, redesigned and, in some cases, designated for hyper-spikes and relocated to the technology park, from where a free shuttle bus runs to places of interest. Several improvements have also been made to minimise disruption to pedestrian and cycle routes, for example at intersections. The road network is also gradually being made accessible to people with disabilities.
Citizens are invited to get involved in each project through public meetings, explanatory walks and consultations, sometimes bringing together several hundred citizens. At the same time, younger people are also consulted through workshops on safety and urban planning organised at schools. In addition, the Écomobilité Savoie Mont Blanc agency, a local public company responsible for supporting local areas in their transition to more sustainable mobility, raises awareness of sustainable mobility among schoolchildren.
Work will continue in the coming years
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Several other developments are already in the pipeline:
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Creating a completely pedestrianised route linking the centre to the lake
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Improving pedestrian access between residential areas and the centre.
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Transforming the southern entrance to the town by limiting the speed of motorists and making it safer for cyclists and pedestrians to cross.
While the municipality is carrying out a number of projects, mobility initiatives also concern the Greater Lake area and the department. Each year, £30 per inhabitant is invested in the inter-municipal cycle network, while the bus network is being developed and a carpooling policy has been launched: ‘As part of a partnership with Blablacar Daily, €0.10 per km carpooled is paid back to the driver,’ explains the mayor of Le Bourget-du-Lac, who is also in charge of eco-mobility for the urban area.