in less than two hours, bringing an end to nearly half a century of close political and economic links. the new arrangements come into force at midnight, brussels—time. several hospitals in london and the south—east say they are under extreme pressure because of a surge in coronavirus cases. one senior intensive care doctor said anyone who ignores the rules on social distancing has "blood on their hands". wuhan, china has marked the new year with a mass street party one year after first reporting an unknown pneumonia outbreak to the world health organisation. many global celebrations have been scaled back because of coronavirus. in paris, a curfew is in place and thousands of police officers have been deployed to ensure citizens don't gather in the city to celebrate. now on bbc news, our world's anna holligan travels across europe to see how people are getting on their bikes and asks if the surge in cycling is the start

of a much bigger change in the way we travel. from the bubonic plague to tuberculosis, pandemics have historically changed the way our cities are designed, and the coronavirus has been no different. coronavirus is a moment in which every policymaker can make a u—turn. lockdown made our capitals quieter, greener, and we've seen wildlife blossoming like never before. it's like a paradise for me now. you can see maybe tens of thousands of bicycles everywhere. we are travelling around europe, meeting the people who are trying to implement the biggest changes in cities we've seen in decades. three months ago, here, you had a lot of cars in this path, 0k? now it's for bicycles. but this rapid shift towards pedal power has created a problem. i just went there and it

was empty, you know. there were no bikes. could the pandemic see a shift to more environmentally friendly modes of transport? or will we simply return to the way we were? dutch bike lanes are the envy of the world. it's so much part of us. it is as if we are all born with a bike. like, you take a shopping bag, you take your bike. but it wasn't always this way. maartje van putten was a dutch politician. this is me and my son, 1976.

"the netherlands‘ traffic is in europe the most dangerous for children." maartje was a key player in the movement that transformed dutch cities in the 1960s and ‘70s. the start was there in the ‘70s when people got alarmed about the figures of children on the way to school. the accidents — the numbers were so high that we had to do something, and that's how it begun. here, the action groups — and this is us — "we want a car—free sunday at least once a month" — that was in the oil crisis... in 1973, maartje launched a campaign called stop the child murder. we sat together and said that this can't go on. we have to do something. and so more and more actions were taken. we were blocking roads in the rush—hour — people on their way home —

drivers totally overtaken and surprised about mothers in a circle on the corner of the road, blocking it. and there you were, right at the front? maybe, yeah. me and this... maartje‘s efforts have been immortalised as the heroine of a new children's book. here we went through the tunnel, under the water, here in the — and then, on the other side, the police was there. the amount of space by the car traffic was so enormous that that was, well, eating up the space for cyclists and also pedestrians. the whole infrastructure of the netherlands was totally focused on — on, yeah, let's say, priority of cars. bikes was not an issue. today, amsterdam has 767 kilometres of cycle lanes and more bikes than people.

but even here, the pandemic is changing the way people get about. because of covid—19, it didn't feel right to go by tram any more, so it was actually the right time to now get a bakfiets cargo bike. judith and johan hartog bought an electric cargo bike at the start of lockdown. we're not really going on a — on a vacation now, so, like a staycation, we stay in holland and we do a lot by bike now, so it's — you can put a lot of things in, you can get the bags and go out, like here in the park or maybe — and we're going to the beach by bike so it's easy for days — days off. could you have imagined having this, being this dutch mum, six months ago? no, we would never have thought. so, yeah, it's fun.

it's — it's different and it's also a bit cliched, but yeah, we like it, we love it. the pandemic has been a catalyst for many people here to invest savings they wouldn't otherwise have had. it's not only mobility any more, you know, because it's also fun. they're singing in the bike and they have fun, you're in nature. it's a whole different way of going out. the netherlands already had world—renowned infrastructure, but the coronavirus has still significantly shifted behaviour. cargo bike sales have gone up by 53% this year, and the e—bike is now the most commonly sold type of bicycle. brussels, the capital of belgium. since march, it's built a0 kilometres of new cycle paths.

i've been here for two weeks and then, all of a sudden, the world changed, so of course i decided that i want to, you know, take all the measures that i can to stay healthy. when brussels went into lockdown, vesselina foteva decided cycling was the fastest, safest way to travel, and went out to buy a bike. ijust entered the bike shop and had an image of myself, you know, buying a beautiful bike and matching with the nice helmet. but i just went there, and it was empty, you know? there were no bikes. i wanted to order one, but they said that i need to wait at least two months to get the bike. so, i said, "ok. no way. i cannot wait so much because, you know, the whole summer will be gone." a friend of mine, really

by accident, told me that she heard about this subscription—based service, where you can pay a monthly fee and get the bike at your home. so, itold her that that's really cool. commuters make up the majority of those who've subscribed to this particular scheme, swa pfiets. the dutch company is expanding into three new cities to capitalise on a spike in demand that came with covid. when it was already official that we are living in a global pandemic, i decided that i will avoid as much as possible public transport. so, this is probably the main reason to decide to have a bike. but it's notjust commuters who are switching to two wheels. cycling traffic surged in brussels during the first week of the return to school, with a 75% increase compared to last year. milan was one of the first cities to embrace cycling as a way

to get its residents moving around again. this is one of italy's most polluted cities, and it's also in the heart of the region that was the epicentre of the outbreak in europe. peppino drali is one of italy's most famous bike manufacturers. now, at 92, peppino has been building bikes for more than 80 years.

and the crisis has meant an unparalleled pressure on peppino and his apprentice, alessandro... ..as the demand for their handmade bikes has soared. but peppino isn't convinced the boost in their sales is reflected in the number of actual cyclists on the streets.

are you hopeful that in the future, it will again be like it was when you were a boy? and there are many who hope peppino is right, that the surge in cycling is just a phase. claudio severgnini is slipping back into his old routine. he's been driving passengers around milan for more than two decades. that's incredible, so you have to cross the cycle lane to go into your taxi rank here? but the roads he knows like the back of his hand are being altered and he is worried about cars

being pushed out. claudio is concerned these bike lanes through the heart of his city have appeared too fast without enough consideration for cars. no? chuckles. it's already causing a lot of conflict. transforming the roads, making room for cyclists, involves taking sections away from the drivers.

and this side is also new? yes, that side is correct. the parking over side. on the pavement? oh, so now they park...? so not space. wow.

but there is an urgency in this part of italy, as everyone we meet has been touched by the pandemic. this time has forced reflection. for some, the changes are not going far or fast enough. most of milan's new bike routes are only temporary paintjobs. environmentalists are using the current situation to push for permanent infrastructure. coronavirus is a moment in which,

you know, every policymaker can make a u—turn, completely, and change their own cities. anna gerometta is an environmentalist and activist. she believes curtailing car use and backing bikes is an investment for a healthierfuture. climate groups have warned people living in polluted cities are more at risk of contracting lung infections like covid—i9. the failure to have the courage to change now, in a situation in which you have some time to prepare the people, can be really disastrous. this is a major concern for the people gathered here tonight. they are the critical mass and they are, you know, a movement that has been going on for years. they ride every thursday night

and they want to show our policymakers that citizens of milan really want a different kind of city. there are a few lanes that have been built but compared to the need and the necessity of this city and the will of people and the wish of the population of milan to have a different mobility and way to go around, they are really a drop in the ocean. it's a matter of a completely different quality of life. if you have a city where you — your air is so polluted that you get sick and your children get sick, that is an important topic that you, as a public, policymaker, you should be addressing. the regional government has so far spent 115 million euros to stimulate cycling,

but milan's urban planner told us many italians just aren't ready to get on the saddle. it's absolutely not true. probably the mentality of the politicians is too old and they are not seeing what the people really want, and their capacity of their own population and citizens to accept large changes with a very happy heart. the french capital is spending record amounts transforming the streets to try to make cycling a viable option for everyone. it's going to be so interesting to see how this massive investment in cycling is actually changing

the way people are moving around the city. it is like a revolution, you know, because before, we had a city with cars, only cars, and now we have a city with bicycles, with walking, with public transportation, but it is good for ecology. i know we have some problems but it is a priority for the next month to solve this problem, and i'm sure we can solve this. here, it's before. now, it's a new world. 0k! the most iconic change is here on the notoriously petrol—filled rue de rivoli. sections are now completely car—free. david belliard is the deputy mayor of paris. he's a green politician who has been pushing for these measures for years. three months ago, here, you had a lot of cars in this path, ok? now, it's for bicycles.

the more you give space for bicycles, the more they use it. yeah, build and they will come, they say. yeah, look at that. it's like — it's a big traffic jam, you know? people here have been telling me how they went into lockdown and then came out to this — a whole new world. these types of changes normally take decades. because of the pandemic, there was an urgency, which meant they happened here overnight. cycling levels after the lockdown increased by 27% compared to last year. paris is in a big transformation, a big bang of mobility, but a big bang with public space. we will organise city to allow you to take your bicycle safely and we will change rules and we will make you more bicycle

path and we need to give back some space to parisians. it's a profound culture shift that's taking some adjusting. we saw cyclists being pulled over for running red lights and cycling with headphones on. it's clearly not clear to everyone who has the right of way. which means for some people, it's time to go back to school. speaks french. this isjoel sick. he's an instructor at maison du velo cycling school.

since the coronavirus struck, the french government has invested 20 million euros in a push to get more parisians using bikes. these classes are now free to anyone in the city who wants to learn to ride. it's like a paradise for me now. you can see maybe tens of thousands of bicycles everywhere, so it is very becoming so popular. remy dunoyer is a bike mechanic. his repair shop in downtown paris stayed open through lockdown. in response to the pandemic, the french government started

contributing to the cost of bike repairs. we have a name for a new service which is out of the basement service. with dusty bicycles, like this one, or any other one, so we have a special service for this use in which we include help from the government — they have 50 euros to help people to fix those bicycles. sometimes they are very, very rusty and hard to fix so it is cheaper for the people to reuse this one than to buy a new one. while other businesses have been shedding staff or cutting down, remy has been hiring and opening new stores through the country. it was an opportunity for us to open a new city which is in strasbourg. we open a second one in bordeaux, so two shops in bordeaux,

one in paris and maybe soon a second one in paris and in strasbourg too. across europe, more than a billion euros has been spent and 2300 kilometres of bike lanes created since the pandemic began. reduced car use has seen pollution fall by 50% in some of europe's biggest cities. but whether this covid—related trend continues depends on the scale of the continued investment and how many of us are committed to keep cycling, changing cities possibly forever. hello. after a decidedly chilly end

to 2020, don't expect temperatures to rise very much at all through the opening days of 2021. it is going to stay cold, increasingly windy too, feeling quite raw for many by the start of next week, rain and hill snow in the forecast, equally some sunshine. but with the jet stream diving well down to the south of us, all we down into iberia, through the mediterranean, that leaves the british isles under the influence of some very chilly air. under the influence high pressure to the west to start the new year, low pressure to the east, bringing a northerly airflow, and this little frontal system here bringing thicker cloud and some outbreaks of rain, sleet and hill snow, moving southwards across england and wales through new year's day, quite murky, with some fog across parts of eastern and south—eastern england, brighter skies for northern ireland and scotland, some sunshine but some showers too, some of which will be wintry, with top temperatures between 4 and 7 degrees. then, as we go through friday night, this area of cloudy and damp weather with the odd flake of snow

over the hills, that will sink southwards. most places will see clearing skies, so it is going to turn cold, a widespread frost, some icy stretches too, temperatures minus 3, minus 4, minus 5 maybe lower than that in some spots in the countryside. so, saturday morning, then, high pressure again to the west, low pressure to the east, but notice that at this stage, the white lines, the isobars, are quite widely spaced, so not an especially windy day by any stretch on saturday. some showers though blowing into northern and eastern coasts. again, those will be wintry. the odd one for pembrokeshire and cornwall as well. temperatures at best, even in the sunshine, between and i and 6 degrees. a similar sort of day for many on sunday. the best chance of dry weather out towards the west, some sunshine here. further east, i think we will see increasingly showery conditions with some snow up over high ground, and those temperatures pegged back to between i and 6 degrees. now, a bit of a change in the orientation of our area of high pressure as we go into monday. it'll be shifting from the west

up towards the north of the british isles, with lower pressure to the south. that will drive quite a brisk east or north—easterly wind. it is that that will bring the raw feel through the start of next week, especially where we have this zone of cloud and rain, with some sleet and snow drifting westwards across england and wales particularly. it looks as though northern ireland and scotland will hold on to some drier, brighter weather. not too windy here, but further south, we will notice that brisk east or north—easterly wind, so while temperatures on the thermometer will range between 4 and 7 degrees, have a look at the "feels like" temperatures. this is what it is going to feel like. it will feel like freezing in glasgow, birmingham, cardiff and plymouth through monday afternoon. and tuesday, a similar sort of day. still quite windy across england and wales, with a lot of cloud, some spots of rain, sleet and snow. it should be drier and brighter further north and west across scotland and northern ireland, and those temperatures between 3 and 6 degrees, still below par for this time of year. now, through the second half of next

week, that area of high pressure to the north is going to split in two, one half of the high, if you like, will drift towards siberia, the other half out into the atlantic, and that will open the door to low pressure diving down from the north, allowing cold air to surge its way back across the country. so, don't expect temperatures to climb very much at all through the first ten days of 2021.

this is bbc news, with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. several hospitals in london and the south east of england say they are under extreme pressure due to the sheer weight of covid cases — patients are being moved as intensive care units reach capacity. we're on our knees begging for people to do their part... to take the pressure off. but we are shattered. in a sign of the pressure on the nhs, seriously ill patients from the south—east of england are being moved to hospitals as far the end of a nearly 50—year marriage. the uk leaves the trading bloc of the eu tonight. and goodbye 2020, hello 2021! this is the scene live in athens, as the city begins its new year celebrations. in wuhan, china, the new yearwas welcomed with a mass street party — a packed scene where the covid pandemic began.