Cycling routes and trails in Małopolska Region
There are currently almost 1000 km of cycling infrastructure of a very good standard in the Małopolska Region. They consist mainly of the VeloMałopolska route and routes such as the Polish section of the Cycling Route Around the Tatras, the route around Lake Czorsztyńskie or VeloKrynica, where:
- 53% is routed on roads separated from motorised traffic,
- 31% on local roads with subdued traffic,
- 16% gravel roads.
In addition, Małopolska has approx. 3000 km bike trails with varying degree of difficulty. The best known include the Around the Cycling Route Around the Tatras, the Trail of the Eagles’ Nests, the Mineral Water Trail and the Carp Valley Bicycle Trail.
Małopolska has a well-developed infrastructure for mountain biking - MTB, including its extreme varieties Enduro and Downhill.
- 9 bike parks: Bike Park Kasina, Bike Park Kluszkowce, Bike Park Mosorny Groń and Babia Góra Trails, Bike Park Słotwiny Arena, PKL Palenica/Szczawnica Bike Parks, Gorlickie Ścieżki,
- over 450 pump tracks,
- basins of mountain biking trails e.g., MTB biking trails in Krynica - Zdrój (created as part of local government activities).
VeloMałopolska project
VeloMałopolska is a large cycling project consisting of eight routes that will run through every region of the voivodeship and connect the largest cities. The eight routes are: Vistula Cycle Route, VeloDunajec, EuroVelo4/VeloMetropolis, EuroVelo11/ VeloNatura, VeloPrądnik, VeloRaba, VeloRudawa, VeloSkawa.
As part of the VeloMałopolska cycling route network, around 670 km are already passable, with a target of 1,000 km planned, including:
- 520 km was built by the Małopolska Region - the Regional Roads Authority in Krakow, the remaining sections were built by the municipalities through which the routes run,
- bicycle service points (MOR) have been created along VeloMałopolska routes built by the Regional Roads Authority - currently there are 27 of them. There are more than 1000 other shelters providing resting places for cyclists along the routes,
- over 2250 objects certified as Cyclist-Friendly Areas (MPR) in Małopolska.
The following VeloMałopolska routes are most advanced in construction:
- VeloDunajec: 205 km completed out of the planned 240 km
- Vistula Cycle Route: 223 km completed out of the planned 230 km
- VeloRaba: 50 km from the planned 130 km
- Eurovelo11/VeloNatura: 92 km from the planned 115 km
Explanation for the statistics
The figures present information regarding the routes from the VeloMałopolska project and the VeloCzorsztyn, VeloKrynica and Polish section of the Cycling Route Around the Tatras - together, presented on the map bit.ly/velomalopolska. The statistics include what is important from the point of view of a recreational cyclist, without including purely traffic routes in large cities such as Krakow or Tarnów. The aggregated kilometres do not distinguish between individual investors or administrative/ local government boundaries.
Brief overview of the statisticsk