CITY CYCLING - Chemnitz gets on its bike
31 August to 20 September
The 2026 STADTRADELN campaign has come to an end, and Chemnitz can celebrate a new record result. Between 31 August and 20 September, 4,882 active cyclists covered a total of 762,411 kilometres, thereby avoiding around 125 tonnes of CO₂ emissions compared to travelling by car.
This set new records for both the number of active cyclists and the kilometres cycled. Compared with 2025, the number of active cyclists has risen by 1,233, or almost 34 per cent. Participation has more than doubled in the space of two years: in 2024, there were 2,181 active cyclists; by 2025, this figure had risen to 3,649; and in 2026, it reached 4,882.
The previous year’s distance record was also broken. Following 705,741 kilometres in 2025, a total of 762,411 kilometres were clocked up in 2026 – around 56,670 kilometres more.
Participation by schools in Chemnitz saw particularly strong growth
2,587 cyclists in 31 school teams took part in 2026. The previous year, there were 1,503 cyclists in 28 school teams. This means the number of cyclists in the school teams rose by around 72 per cent within a year. Together, the school teams covered 237,154 kilometres.
Many thanks to everyone who took part, clocked up kilometres and helped achieve this result!
Your feedback on STADTRADELN
Whether it’s praise, criticism, requests or specific suggestions for improvement: every year we receive a great deal of feedback on STADTRADELN in Chemnitz. It shows us what’s working well, where there’s still room for improvement, and what matters to you when it comes to cycling in Chemnitz.
We’d like to share a few comments from the past two years with you here.
Now it’s your turn!
What was your experience of STADTRADELN 2026?
What did you particularly enjoy? What could we do better? What sort of activities would you like to see next year? And what has been your experience of cycling in Chemnitz?
Your feedback will help us evaluate the STADTRADELN campaign and develop it further.
→ Take part in the survey now:
Once the survey is complete, we’ll analyse your feedback. We’ll then address frequently asked questions, comments and suggestions here on the website and provide a response.
What happens to the tracked routes?
Anyone who tracked their journeys using the app during STADTRADELN has not only clocked up kilometres, but has also provided data on cycling in Chemnitz.
With the participants’ consent, the routes cycled are recorded via GPS and processed in accordance with data protection regulations. Kilometres entered manually are not included in this analysis, as no location data is available for them. The recorded journeys are then mapped onto the road and path network and made available to the City of Chemnitz in statistical form via the Bike Monitor.
This analysis does not only consider journeys made by residents of Chemnitz. All journeys tracked within the city limits during the campaign period are recorded. This means, for example, that journeys made by commuters or visitors are also included. As participation increases, this provides an increasingly comprehensive picture of where people cycle in Chemnitz and which routes are used particularly frequently. Connections between Chemnitz and the surrounding area also become apparent.
The data can be presented in various ways:
Heatmap: This shows the distribution of all recorded GPS points and makes it clear at a glance which areas and routes are used most frequently. What happens to the data_A66.… The example heatmap for Chemnitz shows the GPS points recorded during the 2025 campaign period.
Traffic volumes: The traffic volume map shows how many journeys were recorded on the individual sections of Chemnitz’s road and path network. This makes it possible, for example, to identify heavily used main routes and to compare trends between different years.
Speeds: Average speeds travelled can also be analysed, broken down by direction of travel. Significant differences in speed may, for example, indicate gradients or the quality of the existing infrastructure, and help to identify potential problem areas.
Since 2025, waiting times at traffic lights have also been analysed statistically. This reveals at which traffic lights cyclists have to wait for particularly long periods. This information can be used to examine individual traffic light locations and the green phases for cyclists in more detail.
Data for transport planning
The data collected during STADTRADELN is therefore more than just a record of the distances cycled. It is already being used as an information tool in transport planning and can serve as a basis for evaluating new infrastructure projects and regeneration measures. The data will also be taken into account when updating the cycling strategy.
The kilometres you have tracked therefore not only contribute to the STADTRADELN results, but also provide additional information on how the bicycle is actually used within Chemnitz’s transport network.
A look back at City Cycling 2026
Aside from clocking up the kilometres, there was plenty going on this year.
A particular highlight was the STADTRADELN rally on 13 September. Under the slogan “11 rides. One goal.”, cyclists from Chemnitz and the surrounding region set off for the Jutta-Müller Ice Sports Centre. There, the participants met up with the peloton of the European Peace Ride and cycled a lap of the stadium together.
To round things off, on 17 September, everyone cycled through Chemnitz together once more as part of the #chemnitzdrehtamradtour. Starting from the main railway station, the roughly 13-kilometre-long tour wound its way through the city at a leisurely pace. DJ Shusta provided the music before the start and after the return.
You can find more impressions, photos and stories from the three weeks of STADTRADELN on our blog.
![[Translate to English:] Sternfahrt](https://d2vw8mc5mcb3gm.cloudfront.net/fileadmin/chemnitz/media/unsere-stadt/fuss-und-rad/stadtradeln/2026/Sternfahrt_Claudia_Schlett__85_.jpg)
What is STADTRADELN?
STADTRADELN is an international campaign run by the Climate Alliance. The aim is to make as many everyday journeys as possible by bike, thereby promoting cycling, physical activity and sustainable mobility as part of daily life.
Chemnitz is set to take part in STADTRADELN again in 2027. We will publish information about the next campaign period here in good time.
The current mileage
Dates 2026
| 17. July | Friday evening ride (ADFC Chemnitz) |
| 31 July | Critical Mass (Critical Mass) |
| 1 August | Bicycle Cinema at the Yorck Centre (Chemnitz Bicycle Cinema) |
| 9 August | Bike Cinema at the Puschen Festival (Chemnitz Bike Cinema) |
| 12 August | Bicycle Cinema “enter the streets” at Konkordiapark (Chemnitz Bicycle Cinema) |
| 22 August | Bicycle Cinema “Wanderspace Burgstädt” (Chemnitz Bicycle Cinema) |
| 28 August | Critical Maas (Critical Maas) |
| 5 September | KIRCHEerfahren (Evangelical Lutheran parishes in the Chemnitz-Mitte region) |
| 5 September | Sports united (Sport united) |
| 13 September | 3rd Rally – Welcome the EPR and cycle two laps together |
| 11–13 September | European Peace Ride – A symbol of peace, community and Europe |
| 17 September | #chemnitzdrehtamradtour – Closing tour of STADTRADELN |
| 25 September | Critical Mass (Critical Mass) |
Use your Komoot account and tour suggestions: > Komoot
CITY CYCLING blog
The CITY CYCLING blog publishes articles about the CITY CYCLING campaign in Chemnitz and general cycling-related topics, especially during the campaign period. From short articles to video clips, everything is included!More information about cycling in Chemnitz can be found in the CITY CYCLING blog.
The CITY CYCLING blog publishes articles on the CITY CYCLING campaign in Chemnitz and on cycling-related topics in general, especially during the campaign period. From short articles to video clips, everything is included.
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Cycling in everyday life
FAQ
The campaign created by Climate Alliance sensitises citizens to the use of bicycles in everyday life and brings the topics of bicycle use and bicycle traffic planning more strongly into the municipal parliaments. The importance of cycling for climate protection and quality of life as well as people's own mobility behaviour is to be brought to the fore. Since the start of the campaign in 2008, the number of participating municipalities has risen from 23 at the beginning to over 2500 today.
Walking and cycling are at the heart of sustainable mobility and characterise the urbanity and vitality of the city. Almost 60% of all journeys made in Saxony's cities are less than five kilometres long, and the majority of these can be reached quickly and easily by bicycle. In addition, 80 % of German households own a bicycle. A high degree of flexibility in mobility is achieved in particular through the simple link with local public transport. This is precisely where the CITY CYCLING campaign comes in - in everyday mobility behaviour. Participants in the campaign change their perspective and experience their everyday life by bike over the three-week campaign period.
Chemnitz is to become a bicycle-friendly city - that is the declared goal of local politics.
Everyone who lives, works, studies or belongs to a club in Chemnitz.
Yes, wheelchair users were allowed to take part in CITY CYCLING for the first time in 2023.
Download the app: www.stadtradeln.de/app
- Go to "Registration"
- Select Saxony under "State" and Chemntiz under "Municipality", click on "Next"
- Join an existing team, for example the school team, or create a new one, click on "Next"
Please note: If you are setting up a new team, make sure you select the correct category, e.g. when registering a daycare centre as a team, select the "Kindergartens/Kitas" tag - Enter your personal data and click on "Next"
- Confirm the data protection and the rules of the game, click on "Complete registration"
Yes, all vehicles within the meaning of Section 63a of the Road Traffic Licensing Regulations are deemed to be bicycles. In addition to bicycles powered solely by muscle power, this also includes e-bikes. Children's kilometres travelled on bicycles may also be recorded.
You can register via the CITY CYCLING website or via the CITY CYCLING app. The registration process is the same for both methods:
- Go to "Registration"
- Select Saxony under "Federal state" and Chemntiz under "Municipality", click on "Continue"
- Join an existing team, for example the school team, or create a new one, click on "Next"
Please note: If you are setting up a new team, make sure you enter the correct day, for example, when registering a daycare centre as a team, enter the day "Kindergärten/Kitas". - Enter your personal data and click on "Next"
- Confirm the data protection and the rules of the game, click on "Complete registration"
And you are now registered for CITY CYCLING.
The aim of CITY CYCLING is for the people of Chemnitz to cycle together for a more bicycle-friendly and liveable city - climate protection and cycling promotion are teamwork! Two people can join together to form a team. Alternatively, you can join the open team.
CITY CYCLING helps to further improve cycling in Chemnitz: Journeys are recorded anonymously via the CITY CYCLING app. This makes it possible to analyse heavily or lightly used roads and cycle paths, waiting times at traffic lights or problem areas. These findings help to further develop the cycling infrastructure in line with demand. Thank you for taking part!
In principle, everything that includes a start and end point counts as a journey. The start point can also be the finish point. Cycling competitions and training on stationary bicycles are excluded.
Via the CITY CYCLING app and the online kilometre log.
It is possible to claim the kilometres cycled whilst on holiday as part of the ‘Stadtradeln’ scheme. The condition is that you live, work, attend school or belong to a club in Chemnitz. Of course, using the app whilst on holiday doesn’t really make sense, as the kilometres tracked cannot then be used for our city’s cycling planning. In this case, we recommend entering the kilometres manually in your browser or the app.
Here’s how to set up a sub-team:
When registering, first assign yourself to a team. Once logged in, you can then go to ‘My Team’ and ‘create a new sub-team’. You will then automatically become the team captain of the sub-team.
Alternatively, the team captain of a main team can also set up associated sub-teams. In this case, that person remains captain of the main team and does not automatically move to the sub-team, but has access to the data of the sub-team’s members.
How kilometres and rides are counted:
The journeys you’ve cycled and the kilometres you’ve covered count towards your sub-team. Once logged in, you can compare the results of your sub-teams with one another. In your local authority’s overall competition, your main team competes as a single unit, with the combined rides and kilometres from all its sub-teams as well as those who cycle directly in the main team. Accordingly, only the results of the main teams – and not those of the sub-teams – are visible on the local authority’s sub-page.
Quite simply by passing on the CITY CYCLING data to the RiDE portal. Simply authorise it in the CITY CYCLING app and help improve cycling together!
There is also the option of reporting acute damage, etc. via the City of Chemnitz's defect reporter or contacting the Traffic and Civil Engineering Office by email.
CITY CYCLING helps to further improve cycling in Chemnitz: Journeys are recorded anonymously via the CITY CYCLING app. This makes it possible to analyse heavily or lightly used roads and cycle paths, waiting times at traffic lights or problem areas. These findings help to further develop the cycling infrastructure in line with demand. Thank you for taking part!
CITY CYCLING is inclusive because people with and without disabilities can take part together - even with a handbike, tricycle or e-assistance. The decisive factor is not the speed, but that every kilometre counts.
In addition to the positive effects on your own health and the commitment to climate protection, there are also attractive prize categories:
- The most active cyclists (people with the most kilometres cycled)
- The team with the most active cyclists (team with the most kilometres cycled per person)
- The team with the most total kilometres cycled
- The most bike-active daycare centre
- The most cycling-active primary school
- The most bicycle-active secondary school
- The most cycling-active grammar school
- The most cycling-active special school
- The most active cycling club
- The most cycling-active company
- Active everyday cyclists (people who have cycled more than 50 kilometres and were drawn by lot)
From this year onwards, the category of the most bicycle-active school will be split up to ensure fairer competition between the schools. You can find more information on the scoring of the categories in the conditions of participation.
CITY CYCLING review
A review of CITY CYCLING 2025 can be found in our CITY CYCLING blog.
