World's largest cycle parking facility opens for business (video)
Utrecht central station's new underground bike store can currently hold 6,000 cycles, but will expand to hold over 12,000 by 2018
The world's biggest underground bike parking facility has opened for business this week in Utrecht, the Netherlands.
The bike store is situated underneath Utrecht central station and opened with spaces for 6,000 cycles. This will be expanded in 2018 to accommodate 12,500 bikes.
Work started on the store in 2014, and it features several levels with double-decker bike racks in order to house the huge quantity of bikes.
>>> Nine bike storage solutions: hooks, racks and sheds
Users of the facility can park their cycle there for free for the first 24 hours, and thereafter it costs €1.25, or around £1.14 per day. Customers can ride into the garage via a clearly marked one-way cycle lane system.
The store was necessary to keep track of the expanding use of bikes by commuters in Utrecht, with the Guardian reporting that 43 per cent of journeys travelled under 7.5km are now by bike.
Despite the size of the facility, some people still think that it is not big enough and it will not keep pace with the growth in cycling in Utrecht.
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
>>> Tokyo’s amazing underground bike park (video)
"By the time the politicians have made their decisions, and by the time things are built, there are more people cycling," Martijn van Es of Dutch cycling organisation Fietsersbond told the Guardian.
“It goes up every year in Netherlands. I look at a lot of cities in the Netherlands and they are just talking about building the infrastructure, but at the same time the figures are still rising."
With London suffering a stark shortage of secure cycle parking, could something like the Utrecht central station garage one day appear in the British capital?
Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Nigel Wynn worked as associate editor on CyclingWeekly.com, he worked almost single-handedly on the Cycling Weekly website in its early days. His passion for cycling, his writing and his creativity, as well as his hard work and dedication, were the original driving force behind the website’s success. Without him, CyclingWeekly.com would certainly not exist on the size and scale that it enjoys today. Nigel sadly passed away, following a brave battle with a cancer-related illness, in 2018. He was a highly valued colleague, and more importantly, an exceptional person to work with - his presence is sorely missed.
-
'The bike’s been the biggest therapeutic element for me': Former pro and DS Allan Peiper's battle against prostate cancer
Allan Peiper has won stages and Grand Tours, both as a rider and a DS. Since 2014, though, his biggest challenge has been a recurring battle with prostate cancer. He talks candidly to Chris Marshall-Bell about the ups and downs of his struggle
By Chris Marshall-Bell Published
-
Our 'van life' dream failed, so we tried to make surfing and cycle touring compatible — this is what happened
If cycle touring teaches anything, it is that life rarely goes according to plan, as Isobel Duxfield found out when riding what soon become a pedal-propelled sail around the Pacific Coast
By Isobel Duxfield Published
-
How the Cycle to Work Scheme works: The tax free way to get a new bike
The Cycle to Work scheme has now been going for over 20 years but it still gives a chance to save cash
By Tim Bonville-Ginn Published
-
Number of people cycling in England has decreased over the past year, finds survey
Sport England 'Active Lives' survey shows a drop in the number of people cycling
By Nigel Wynn Published
-
Watch: Comedian's film about cycling in London is an internet hit
Comedian and singer Jay Foreman turns the attention of his 'Unfinished London' video series to look at why more people don't cycling in Britain's capital
By Nigel Wynn Published
-
Increase in Scotland's bike use is 'start of a cycling revolution'
Transport Scotland statistics released this week show that the use of cycles increased in 2016, with Cycling UK saying that the figures are encouraging
By Nigel Wynn Published
-
Safety fears are main reason Scottish children don't cycle to school, finds survey
Results of survey conducted by Sustrans Scotland and the Scottish Parent Teacher Council finds that over 42 per cent of parents unsafe cycling routes prevent children from riding to school
By Nigel Wynn Published
-
What is the evidence that wearing hi-vis clothing makes you a safer cyclist?
Roads minister suggests making bright kit mandatory for cyclists in Britain - but what's the evidence to back up the claim that this could help increase safety?
By Vern Pitt Published
-
Are Britain’s roads getting more dangerous for cyclists? What can be done about it?
With still much to be achieved in improving the safety of Britain's road for cyclists, we asked Cycling Weekly readers what they thought could be done
By Nigel Wynn Published
-
Could this be Britain's most 'useless' cycle park?
Large cycle park in basement of new building in Cambridge can only be accessed by steep stairs, making it hard for people to get their bikes into it
By Nigel Wynn Published