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MONCEAU-FONTAINES ASBL
MONCEAU-FONTAINES ASBL
Monceau-Fontaines is an association that develops a site dedicated to the social economy on an industrial wasteland that extends over 2.5 hectares to offer 5500 m² of renovated premises. This site gathers 18 organizations of solidarity economy that wish to develop their social projects in a partnership dynamics and the sharing of common values. The main activities of the Monceau-Fontaines asbl are: the real estate management of the site, the search of funds for the development of projects, the renting of activity rooms, the organization of events in favor of the partners, the promotion of the social economy project, the sensitization of the beneficiary public…
Field of activity
Local development
Work team
5 employees
City
Monceau-sur-Sambre
Good ecological practices
The association wishes to encourage the use of bicycles for its employees’ trips and those of the site’s partners by developing a shared bicycle service in 2021.
The actions implemented by the association in the area of mobility involved:
interviews with employees about their mobility practices and their needs in order to offer appropriate solutions
purchase and make available electric bicycles for the employees, users and beneficiaries of the site’s associations. Monceau-Fontaines could expand the fleet and ask for a contribution according to the users’ possibilities
install a secure bicycle parking area
invest in a bike rack for cars to make it possible to use the bike by mixing it with the car
inform, raise awareness and organize activities during which the public of the site can test the bikes
What was the trigger?
This initiative is in line with the association’s missions: to offer mutualized services and to support partners. The project was initiated by the Monceau-Fontaines association which launched the reflection at the site level.
Running the project
The project manager leads the process with the support of her team members. Since the beginning of the reflexion, the associations on the site are integrated in the process. Before the project was set up, an informal survey was carried out: employees of other structures on the site were questioned on the issue of mobility in order to diagnose practices and to look for appropriate solutions.
Keys of success
- meet different mobility actors on the territory
- meet with service providers in the area: Brillo SCRL (bike recycling and cargo bike delivery services), the Mobility Unit of the Walloon Region and company bike suppliers
- obtain funding to provide bicycles and secure parking
- train the project manager in the overall implementation of a company mobility policy. This “mobility manager” training course is an initiative of the Walloon region, developed in collaboration with the Mobility Unit of the Walloon Business Union and the Mobility Managers Network.
Financial support
The association received support from Proximity (City of Charleroi/Be Planet) to launch the project and purchase the first bikes. Private funding from the Cera cooperative enabled the construction of a secure space for bikes on the site.
Encountered barriers
Poor weather conditions, difficulties in personal organization and the unsafe cycling environment make it difficult to use bicycles on a daily basis. Monceau-Fontaines employees only use bicycles for occasional trips: outdoor meetings, home/work trips.
External financial support is essential to expand the bicycle fleet.
Measures of changes
Since the service was launched, it has been active mainly during periods of good weather. Employees find the approach motivating and stimulating, and the bikes have been borrowed a few times for occasional trips (trips to the train station, test rides to and from work, departure for meetings).
