Detailed description (English): The Malaga Bicycle Master Plan is the strategic instrument that promotes cycling as a structural axis of the urban transport system. Approved in 2025, its purpose is to plan a coherent, connected, and safe network of cycling infrastructure, promoting active mobility and reducing emissions, in line with Agenda 2030, SUMP 2021, and the Malaga Climate Plan 2050.
The Plan carries out a comprehensive diagnosis of the existing network, evaluating connectivity, level of service, and safety, and establishes an operational roadmap with phases, budget, and responsible parties, reaching a goal of 142.5 km of exclusive bike lanes.
It introduces a pioneering and integrative approach that combines infrastructure, technology, and citizen participation. It includes digitization measures such as artificial vision counting systems, smart signage, automatic traffic light adaptation, anti-theft modules, and complementary street furniture.
It includes a pilot project entitled “The same route using different modes of transport,” which uses multimodal analysis to demonstrate the competitiveness of cycling in terms of time and cost in urban environments.
As technical support, the Cycle Path Design Manual standardizes geometric, construction, and road safety criteria, ensuring the consistency and quality of future actions. The Plan thus consolidates Malaga as a resilient, healthy, and innovative city, a benchmark in sustainable cycling mobility.
Detailed description (original language): El Plan Director de la Bicicleta de Málaga es el instrumento estratégico que impulsa la movilidad ciclista como eje estructural del sistema urbano de transportes. Aprobado en 2025, su finalidad es planificar una red coherente, conectada y segura de infraestructuras ciclistas, fomentando la movilidad activa y la reducción de emisiones, en línea con la Agenda 2030, el PMUS 2021 y el Plan del Clima Málaga 2050.
El Plan realiza un diagnóstico integral de la red existente, evaluando conectividad, nivel de servicio y seguridad, y establece una hoja de ruta operativa con fases, presupuesto y responsables, alcanzando una meta de 142,5 km de carriles bici exclusivos.
Introduce un enfoque pionero e integrador que combina infraestructura, tecnología y participación ciudadana. Incluye medidas de digitalización como sistemas de conteo con visión artificial, señalización inteligente, adaptación semafórica automática, módulos antirrobo y mobiliario urbano complementario.
Incluye un proyecto piloto “Un mismo camino en diferentes modos de transporte” que demuestra, mediante análisis multimodal, la competitividad de la bicicleta en tiempo y coste en entornos urbanos.
Como soporte técnico, el Manual de Diseño de Vías Ciclistas unifica criterios geométricos, constructivos y de seguridad vial, garantizando la coherencia y calidad de las futuras actuaciones. El Plan consolida así a Málaga como una ciudad resiliente, saludable e innovadora, referente en movilidad ciclista sostenible.
Target group(s): The Malaga Bicycle Master Plan is designed to respond to the mobility needs of current and potential bicycle users, ensuring a safe, accessible, and efficient service.
It is mainly aimed at the population of Malaga city, which is now close to 600,000 inhabitants. The main objective is to promote the everyday use of bicycles as a means of transport for commuting to work or school, without forgetting the large number of tourists who visit our city.
The recreational use of bicycles is also an important factor to take into account, but what this plan seeks to encourage and facilitate is mainly everyday use and travel for necessary purposes.
In addition, the Plan is designed as a technical reference tool for the planning and implementation of new urban development projects and public space renovations. Its regulatory nature ensures that any intervention in the city takes into account the integration of the planned cycling infrastructure, ensuring consistency, connectivity, and compliance with road safety standards.
Attached to the Plan, the Cycle Path Design Manual provides detailed technical specifications on layout, construction types, intersections, signage, and complementary elements. This makes it easier for those responsible for urban planning, construction projects, and external agents to design, implement, and maintain cycling infrastructure in accordance with unified criteria, ensuring its functionality, safety, and sustainability over time.
Objectives: The Malaga Bicycle Master Plan establishes a strategic framework to consolidate cycling as an essential component of the urban transport system. Its purpose is to guide public policies towards a more efficient, healthy, and climate-neutral city model, integrating bicycles into urban planning, regulations, and culture.
Its objectives are:
- Increase the modal share of bicycles to 6% (by 2035) of all urban journeys, in line with the Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan and the 2030 Agenda.
- Reduce CO₂, PM₁₀, and NO₂ emissions, contributing to improved air quality and the fight against climate change, contributing to the objectives of the Malaga 2050 Climate Plan.
- Promote active lifestyles and universal accessibility, strengthening public health and social cohesion.
- Develop a connected and safe network of 142.5 km, establishing uniform technical criteria for design and implementation.
- Integrate cycling mobility into urban planning and regulations, ensuring modal coexistence and road safety.
- Schedule implementation in phases, prioritizing strategic sections and network continuity, anticipating future urban development needs.
- Align cycling policy with the municipality's sustainability, digitization, and urban resilience plans.
Partner: The Malaga Bicycle Master Plan has been developed under an open and collaborative governance model, integrating public administration, citizens, and the private sector in all phases of the process from the outset. This participatory approach ensures that planning responds to the real needs of the population and that cycling mobility is consolidated as a shared and sustainable public policy over time.
The project was promoted and coordinated by the Mobility Department of Malaga City Council, with the active collaboration of municipal entities such as EMTSAM, SMASSA, the Municipal Urban Planning Department, the Environment Department, the Urban Environment Observatory (UEO) and the Urban Innovation and Digitalization Department. This interdepartmental structure ensures technical consistency and the integration of the cycling network with urban strategies for sustainability, digitalization, and climate transition.
Citizens participated through an online survey campaign that gathered input from nearly 1,000 residents, identifying patterns of use, barriers, and opportunities for improvement. Meetings were also held with cycling associations and groups such as Ruedas Redondas, Familias por la Bici, Ecologistas en Acción, Greenpeace, and the Association of Official Tourist Guides of Malaga.
In addition to this, the Mobility Sector Council's Bicycle Discussion Panel meets every four months, bringing together all the entities and agents involved in cycling mobility, showcasing the progress made and gathering input from the sector. Various meetings are also held with residents and district councils to obtain local opinion.
This participatory model reinforces transparency, shared responsibility, and citizen involvement in building a more active, safe, and sustainable Malaga.
Spain