Elbe cycle path: usage drops after boom during the pandemic

While the Elbe Cycle Path was particularly popular at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, the number of cyclists using the cycle counting stations in Saxony-Anhalt fell significantly in some cases after the pandemic. At the three counting stations in the state, the number of cyclists recorded fell by between 15 and almost 19 percent, according to an answer from the state government to a minor question from the Green Party. One reason: in recent years, the tourist cycle path network in Germany and Europe has expanded considerably, according to Heike Grunow, project coordinator for the Elbe Cycle Path at the Saxon Switzerland Tourism Association.

"Cycling is booming, but the masses are spread out over a wide area," says Grunow. At the same time, the bicycle market has changed with racing bikes, gravel bikes and e-bikes. Depending on the type of bike, the demands on the route and terrain also vary. This development shows that cyclists have become more experienced and specialized. "Many are already familiar with the Elbe Cycle Path or individual sections."

Sections are used to different degrees

The use of individual sections varies significantly. According to the state government, around 25,000 cyclists were counted at the Storkau counting point near Tangermünde (Stendal district) in 2023. In Bittkau near Tangerhütte, the figure was just over 17,000 and in Coswig (Anhalt-Bitterfeld) over 34,000.

In addition, the Elbe Cycle Path is rarely used continuously from its source to its mouth. Many end their tour in tourist towns such as Dresden, Dessau or Lutherstadt Wittenberg. Short trips often used train stations at the start or end points. If this connection was missing, they chose other sections instead, such as Magdeburg-Dessau, Meißen-Bad Schandau or Dresden-Prague.

ADFC: Tough competition in the tourism market

The Elbe Cycle Path was voted the most popular cycle path in Germany 14 times in a row in the ADFC's cycle travel analysis: from 2005 to 2018. It is now only in second place behind the Weser Cycle Path. According to Stephan Marahrens from ADFC Saxony-Anhalt, the figures from the counting points show that the tourism market has become very tough. Corona was initially a catalyst, but when air tourism became possible again later on, the number of cyclists fell again. It is therefore important to do your homework regularly if you want to position yourself as a tourist destination in the future. "You can't rest on the fact that you were first or second in popularity for many years."

The Elbe Cycle Path runs from the Giant Mountains in the Czech Republic via Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Lower Saxony and Hamburg over a distance of almost 1,300 kilometers to the North Sea.