Jan Oostenbrink - Ministry of the German speaking Community of Belgium, BE

The Advice Case “Tackling cross-border obstacles regarding E-bike sharing infrastructure” submitted by the Ministry of the German-speaking Community (BE) in the course of the II Call for proposals of the initiative b-solutions was selected to receive consultancy by Jan Oostenbrink, an expert with sound knowledge of cross-border matters contracted by the Association of European Border Regions (AEBR).

Obstacles were encountered by the Ministry of the German speaking Community while establishing a cross-border e-bike system connecting four Belgian municipalities and the neighbouring country.

The analysis of Oostenbrink shows that the hurdles lie in:

• the area characteristics, the type of cooperation and the involvement and communication between the competent authorities;
• differences in the national private laws which regulate the establishment of businesses abroad.

Solutions proposed are:

• proceeding with a further analysis at a regional level of matters concerning accidents, liability and related insurance questions
• fostering a more intense communication between the parties involved;
• looking at the initiatives within the German-speaking Community of Belgium on Business Mobility Management (betriebliches Mobilitätsmanagement) and car-sharing as they can play a role towards possible solutions.

Finally, it should be noted that the proposal to set up such an e-bike sharing network follows a model which is more appropriate for regular internationalisation. However, the tool of internationalisation can be anyway used to furtherly explore also the cross-border dimension.

To learn more about “Tackling cross-border obstacles regarding E-bike sharing infrastructure” and read the in-depth analysis of Jan Oostenbrink, download the full report here.

The information here provided have been developed in the framework of b-solutions, an initiative of the European Comission’s DG REGIO managed by the Association of European Border Regions (AEBR).

The reports here included are the result of a consultation provided by legal/cross-border cooperation experts on obstacles of a legal or administrative nature– referred to as Advice Cases - selected in the framework of the II Call for Proposals of the initiative b-solutions.