IN BRIEF
Nantes Métropole is handing its bike-share service to operator VOI, which takes over from JC Decaux and its Bicloo system. Between October 2026 and January 2027, 2400 electric-assist bikes will be rolled out across 658 stations, spread for the first time across all 24 municipalities in the metropolitan area. The fleet will mix 1600 standard-format bikes and 800 lighter models, dubbed “plume” (feather), designed to be easier to step over. Fares will be detailed in October, with benefits planned for Naolib season-ticket holders. According to the metropolitan authority, cycling use there has more than doubled in ten years.
The orange Bicloo bikes are about to disappear from the streets of Nantes. In Sainte-Luce-sur-Loire, Nantes Métropole unveiled the new bike-share fleet that will replace, from this autumn, the Bicloo system operated until now by JC Decaux. The new operator, Sweden’s VOI, will roll out 2400 electric-assist bikes across 658 stations, spread over all 24 municipalities in the metropolitan area.
VOI brings its electric fleet to all 24 Nantes municipalities
The clearest change is geographical coverage. Until now concentrated in the heart of the metropolitan area, the bike-share service will expand, between October 2026 and January 2027, to the 24 municipalities of Nantes Métropole. The 658 planned stations will be five times as many as today, with a maximum of 6 bikes each, sited close to cycle routes and pedestrian crossings.
96% of the population will be less than 500 metres from a VOI station. In the least densely populated municipalities there will be at least 3 stations, making it possible to get around your own town and not only travel between municipalities.
Simon Citeau, vice-president of Nantes Métropole with responsibility for mobility
The service will be rounded out in April 2027 by 60 e-scooters, in areas already covered by Naolib Micromob. Full details of how the new service will work are expected in October, according to Nantes Métropole.
“Plume” bikes to make stepping over easier
Of the 2400 bikes announced, 1600 will be the standard format and 800 will be a lighter model, dubbed “plume”. A choice that responds directly to user feedback.
These lighter bikes are simpler to handle and to step over, and they were developed with our users, women in particular.
Thibaut Chevalier, director of VOI France
Fares still to be confirmed, free helmets in the meantime
Nantes Métropole is announcing several pricing tiers to suit users’ needs, along with a means-tested fare aligned with the thresholds the metropolitan authority already applies. Benefits are planned for holders of Naolib public transport passes and for current Naolib vélo users. The exact prices have not been announced yet: the answer is due in October.
In the meantime, a VOI house is due to open in central Nantes, where helmets will be made available free of charge to subscribers to the service. A mobile house will also tour the 24 municipalities to publicise the offer.
Cycling has more than doubled in ten years across the metropolitan area
The project draws on a recent mobility survey by the metropolitan authority: cycling’s share of trips rose from 3% to 7% between 2015 and 2025, peaking at 9% inside the ring road and reaching as much as 11% for home-to-work journeys alone.
Cycling use has more than doubled in 10 years, and it needs to double again to meet the targets of the Plan de déplacements urbains, the local urban mobility plan. With this new service and the development of the Grandes voies vélos cycle highways, we are offering a real alternative to the private car in the fight against CO2 emissions.
Simon Citeau, vice-president of Nantes Métropole with responsibility for mobility
In Sainte-Luce-sur-Loire, where the new fleet was unveiled, mayor Anthony Descloziers stressed local expectations: “We need to strengthen local links between municipalities with these bikes, the cycle paths and the future line 8 to Bouguenais for our town.”
