EuroVelo, the European cycle route network, is a project of the European Cyclists' Federation to develop 12 long-distance cycle routes crossing the whole continent of Europe. The total length of these routes is over 60,000 km, of which more than 20,000 km is in place.
The EuroVelo routes are intended for bicycle touring across the continent, though they are also used locally. The routes are made up of both existing bike paths and roads together with proposed and planned cycle routes necessary to connect them all together. All the routes are unfinished but some are much more complete than others.
Though not currently funded by the European Union EuroVelo hopes to get EU support in the future.
:EV 1 - Atlantic Coast Route: North Cape - Sagres 8,186 km:EV 3 - Pilgrims Route: Trondheim - Santiago de Compostela 5,122 km:EV 5 - Via Romea Francigena: London - Rome and Brindisi 3,900 km:EV 7 - Middle Europe Route: North Cape - Malta 6,000 km:EV 9 - Baltic Sea to Adriatic Sea (Amber Route): Gdańsk - Pula 1,930 km:EV 11 - East Europe Route: North Cape - Athens 5,964 km
The aim of EuroVelo is to encourage people to try cycling instead of driving for more of their journeys. Although some people will have the wonderful experience of cycling right across the continent, most journeys on EuroVelo will be local - to school, work, shops or for leisure. But every journey on a EuroVelo route will be slightly more exciting and enchanting, because the user will know that he or she could keep on cycling to Moscow, Athens or Santiago de Compostela.
Development of the EuroVelo routes is carried out by national, regional and local governments and NGOs in all the European countries. The international status of routes selected to form part of EuroVelo helps in the preparation of funds and political support for construction. Only routes approved by the EuroVelo route coordinator have the right to call themselves EuroVelo; this is an important badge of quality for both the cyclist and the route promoter.
Between The Hague and the German-Polish border EV 2 follows the path of the "Euro-Route R1", an international cycle path connecting Boulogne-Sur-Mer with St. Petersburg. *Euro-Route R1
EuroVelo 3
EuroVelo 3 is called The Pilgrim's Route. It goes from Trondheim in Norway to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. The route follows traces of old roads which were used for big pilgrimages in the Middle Ages. The route passes through seven countries: Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Belgium, France and Spain. Most of these countries have a developed net of bicycle routes which are used as part of EV3. * The Frie Fugle
EuroVelo 4
EuroVelo 5
EuroVelo 6
EuroVelo 6 is not called the Rivers Route for nothing. It runs from Nantes on the mouth of the Loire, along the river eastward through France. It continues on to Lake Constance in Switzerland and then all the way down the Danube through Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Serbia, Bulgaria and Romania to the UNESCO Heritage site of the Danube Delta, and ends in Constanţa, on the Black Sea. The EV6 includes the popular Donauradweg, the bicycle path along the River Danube; this stretches from Passau in Germany through Austria to Vienna and continues on to Bratislava in Slovakia.
EuroVelo 12, the North Sea Cycle Route, was the first great European route to open. Opened in June 2001, the 6,000 km route runs through England, Scotland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands, and features in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest unbroken signposted cycling route.
