Update (Oct. 17, 2007): Last summer, Paris launched a bicycle-sharing program, called Vélib' —a pun on "free bicycle." Budget Travel noted the program in its July/August issue.

After the program started, we learned that the kiosks that unlock the bikes only recognize credit and bank cards with microchips in them. Americans were, in effect, banned from renting Vélib' bikes because most U.S. credit and bank cards lack these chips.

(courtesy Mairie de Paris) [enlarge photo]

Since then, JCDecaux, the company that set up the bike system for the city, has been working to accommodate non-chip credit cards in its kiosks.

In a terrific first step, the company updated its kiosks to accept U.S.-issued American Express cards (with and without chips), according to a recent New York Times article.

Our own sources tell us that some hotels may begin selling short-term subscriptions (described below) to American guests.

Below you will find details on Paris's program, along with a rundown of similar bike-sharing and bike-rental programs in Lyon, Brussels, Vienna, Helsinki, Oslo, Bergen, Trondheim, Drammen, and Copenhagen.

PARIS

As part of its new Vélib' program, Paris is rolling out bikes by mid-July for the public to use. First you have to subscribe for the city bicycle service on a daily (€1), weekly (€5), or (€29) yearly basis. These subscription plans get you all the half-hour rentals you can handle; keeping a bike longer incurs fees. The bikes will be available at more than 750 stands around the city, and the system will expand through the year.

For daily and weekly subscriptions, go to a curbside meter at any station—there will be one every three or four streets—insert your bankcard, and type in your personal identification number. The machine will ask you to create an access code (instructions are in eight languages), and then it'll spit out a Vélib' card.

Wave the card in front of the screen at a bike stand; then punch in your access code. The machine will list the available bikes at that station. Choose one and then race over to it: You have about a minute to press the button that detaches it from the stand. There's no charge for the first half hour of each "rental." The second half hour costs €1, the third €2, and every half hour thereafter is €4. There's no limit to the number of times you can rent a bike, but kids under 14 aren't allowed to use them.

Returning the bike is simple: Take it to any of the stations and reattach it to an empty stand. It'll beep and flash to let you know you've locked it back up properly.

LYON