A deceased loved one needs the ultimate farewell but at the same time, we can’t jeopardize the planet and living beings to create the perfect send-off for a dead person.
Isabelle Plumereau, a 51-year-old undertaker in France, proposed a unique solution with two wheels. She was seen riding around a bicycle hearse that she believes will be an environmentally friendly way of conducting funerals in the French capital.
The bicycle hearse isn’t a new innovation, as the service exists in other European countries, like Switzerland and Denmark. However, her creation would be the first in France.
“For me, it makes sense to combine the bicycle and the hearse because, when we talk about bicycles in Paris, we are talking about soft mobility and if there is one day when we need softness it’s the day when we accompany someone we love to their final resting place,” Plumereau said.
A slow pace to grieving since it’s a journey that we can’t always accelerate. “Everyone walks at the same pace (behind a bicycle hearse)and we hear each other, we hear the sounds of nature around us, the wind in the trees, the birds. In my view, this is the best way to console yourself.”
Although she believes that it is the best solution, other Parisians aren’t fully sold on the idea. People passing by were puzzled by the bicycle hearse. Elyes Meziou, a 49-year-old, acknowledged that “it’s quite innovative” but he wouldn’t want it for his funeral. Take the stranger but hands off his corpse.