Londoners have been posting images of the awkward places they have to keep their bikes, as part of a campaign to improve cycle storage in the capital.
A Freedom of Information request by the Clean Air Coalition has shown that more than 60,000 people in the city are on a waiting list for bike storage hangars.
The Clean Cities Campaign is urging councillors to make bike storage “cheap” and “convenient” for cyclists.
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an all too familiar experience for many cyclists in london the daily commute down the stairs difficult messy and tiring catty uses her bike to get to work i can’t store it um downstairs on the street because it’s quite dangerous we have a local community group and they all report a lot that it’s like a little bike has been stolen so oops sometimes i’m even lazy to take my bike downstairs and then upstairs so i rather not cycle which is i think is bad because i love cycling londoners have become pretty creative when it comes to the places they store their bikes from the balcony to the wardrobe and even the bathroom photos posted on social media using the hashtag this is awkward are hoping to pedal the message that it shouldn’t be this difficult for cyclists so why don’t they just use one of these they’re on street lockable bike hangers you can store six bikes in each and you apply to the council to get a space in one now the price differs massively from burrito borough but here in islington it’ll cost you pounds a year to store your bike but it’s getting hold of a space that’s the problem there are more than 60 000 people currently on waiting lists that’s nearly three times as many people waiting as there are spaces provided across london and in some areas it can cost almost four times more to store a bike than for a car parking permit this is a rare sighting right i mean look at this street you see any other bike hangers around here what our campaign’s asking for is many more of these clean cities campaign wants local councils to clear the backlog of people waiting and make prices fairer there are figures that are around at least half of londoners are put off cycling because they can’t find anywhere secure to park that bike there’s 400 bike thefts a week in london you know you can imagine if you’re putting some money into a bike a few hundred quid and then you’ve got nowhere to keep it cycling campaigner ailey agrees many councils have declared a climate emergency and we need lots and lots of different actions to work together in order to deliver the changes that we need to see to combat the climate emergency and cycle hangars for me is a big enabler of getting more people on their bikes and out of their cars councils say more storage is coming but for now catty will have to keep contending with this alice orfield bbc london
37 Comments
What bike storage issues do you face? Read more: https://bbc.in/3um4Xrd
To be contrary, from an ugly American point of view: They look like something from "Gomer Pyle". Bikes should be stored indoors, especially in damp and cold climate regions. The longer the commute, the more important that the bike is well maintained. Storing a bike outdoors, even covered, will make it run poorly all the time, require constant maintenance and ensure an early retirement of the bike. I am a cyclist and have zero bikes I would put in that thing. Also, the location of the unit looks questionable at best, as it appears to be placed on the street, directly in the path of run off water, blocking drainage inlets. This will cause flooding and drainage issues down the road, especially as the units begin to multiply along the street. It will bunch up water around the unit during heavy rain storms, flooding the bikes and the street. The units need to be elevated, like cars, to let the water pass. Furthermore, city and neighborhood parking is already heated and contentious at best. Removing more parking spaces to accommodate vehicles that can and should be stored in an atmosphere controlled environment is not the best plan imo. Furthermore, I wouldn't want that thing in front of my house on my street in my parking space, especially if I didn't own a bike. I hope the person's space it does wind up in, has a bike. Otherwise they will be parking down the block in front of someone else's house for no reason. I mean, they can't put something on the sidewalk or in different space?! it always has to be in the street. Always trying to pit cyclists against motorists, trying to force people onto sides, causing tension. Every cyclist I know has a car or truck, which makes them also a motorist. Also, who is responsible for maintenance of the unit? It looks like something that will look worn very quickly as the sun and the rains (snow) beat down. The road side will be consistently splashed by passing cars in the rain with added road salt. The paint will begin to deteriorate and corrosion will set in quickly, if not maintained often. They are already not pretty and may wind up looking like a huge rusty shed blighting the neighborhood. It also looks like a noisy congregation point for families and teens on an otherwise quiet street. At night it will probably be a dark covered target for bike theft. And, I am positive someone will figure out how to just cart the whole thing away, stealing everyone's bike on the block. The nicer the neighborhood, the more of a target the unit will be. The more time one's bike spends stored out in public, the more likely it is to be stolen. It's difficult enough to safely store a bike in public with the elements at the destination point, let alone at home. Give your bike a warm dry, safe place to rest. An elevated version may work in a predominantly cycling community if everyone had like Amsterdam bikes or something. Otherwise, they would have to be climate controlled and more substantial, like being cemented into the ground like a building. Instead if a temporary unit that could just be carried away. I still wouldn't put my bikes there, sorry….just keep your bike as close to your heart as possible. It won't get stolen and it will feel easier to commute, because it will run well. If you care to exercise to work, carrying your bike downstairs should be seen as part of the regiment. Throwing your bike out in the street is not the answer imo. I don't live there, but imagine these units in snow packed crime ridden NY City or Chicago or even sunny LA. People there would probably be living in the units anyway and you would still have no where to park your bike lol.
so now there charging us tax payers to lock our bikes up the u.k is a joke legal scammers dirty government
I’m confused, space aside, New Yorkers have been doing this forever? I used to live in a walk-up would carry my bike up and down the walk up because I dorky feel comfortable with it on the street.
This is a counter productive mess, expensive inappropriate bike lanes, in exchange for storage issues and potential theft. With charges and fees on top 😳😳
Their stealing bikes. So we'll steal your money to protect it. Makes sense.
not mention dangerous… I know why does Moggy boi sort it he is good with helping people and giving practical advice lol
Muslims
I have a collapsible, Schwinn folding bike. I don't collapse it a lot, actually I've never had to use it but it's convenient if you live in a small space and have limited storage area. Going back to the video, the girl does have a collapsible bike with attachments like baskets. That can become an inconvenience if you can't take it off quickly. I have a back basket, more like a crate attached with bungee cords and Velcro straps. It's secure to my bike but getting it off from my bike is a nightmare. And I just leave it on but then I can't fold my bike.
stop the bike thieves instead of build lockers. this is like petitioning for chastity belt when people are getting violated.
Here I thought this was about people stealing bicycles
Wasn’t Boris who promoted cycling 🚴🏽?
I don't know when the bike thief culture came in I know it's always been around I live up here in Oregon and it's horrible you see thieves riding around on 1000$ spray painted bikes even worse just parted out frames in the bushes.
She need to get a liter bike mines weight like 25lb
My partner and I also live in london, have 2 bikes and struggle to store them in our flat. On top of that the roads are quite dangerous to cycle on, with no continuous cycling routes and sometimes cars parked in them. I love cycling as a sport and commute method but it’s a struggle in London
Really serious problem. thanks for addressing bbc.
So why do we tolerate bike theft? If there were serious repercussions people would stop stealing bikes. Start putting bars and obstacles around the thieves instead of the average citizen.
They used to hang horse thieves. Just sayin'.
everything should not be about money all the time. every age group just talk abt money. cost. hustle. now a days. shame we have reached this junction as humanity
Imported crime…
😂😂😂😂
The Police was so reduced by the will of the people that the thieves have green light to steal bikes now.
This is why you should vote for a person who can implement a system smartly that doesn't hinder the bikers
London, the weather is cycling friendly 95% of the year. Its the place to get people out of their cars.
While in Kenya Africa bike parking is free and easy than in first world
This is pretty common in the third world country that I live in. Sadiq Khan is just providing some diversity and cultural enrichment.
Lock your bike with a chain and the nearest tree to your house!
DEFUND THE BBC
Bikes on balconies looks terrible. Parking spaces should be replaced with cycle storage. No excuse, Government needs to pull its finger out to make cycling easier.
As K Rob had pointed out compact/foldable/modular bikes are on market. The upfront cost of bike seem to be a issue so scale up production to reduce cost. In case of bike theft put decentralized personalized tracker for bike owners in their cold data storage to activate and recover could even have use history to prove ownership but all that data is private/offline under owner until needed.
In the video, the bike parking shortage is a problem but I see the solution mass bike roadside storage containers as a potential vulnerability. Hypothetically speaking if I work for organized crime I would deploy squads that breaks into these centralized storage locations. If everyone stored their own bikes in trackable pieces then stealing bikes wouldn't be viable for profit.
I've no practical mechanical experience with bikes or mechanical engineering/design background so thanks in advance to those suggesting solutions to problems presented in this video. I hope for $600 modular bikes with that I can take apart and fit in a backpack with tracking device implanted that keeps my use data private but can prove that I own the bike in case of theft and disputes. Thanks for reading.
End the BBC poll tax licence feel stop the Goons scamming vulnerable elderly pensioners.
Buy a lighter bike.
I often travel into/visit towns/cities including London with my bicycle because it makes getting around town so easy. Thus far I've gone through the hassle of carrying in my rucsac at least three different types of lock/chain/cable and although that's all rather heavy and cumbersome, it proves quite effective because by comparison most other cyclists tend to use single and/or cheap security products which wouldn't resist a blunt hacksaw so my bike doesn't really get any attention from thieves. I love London but I'm glad I don't live there.
Erm 🫤 they moved to London 🤔
Same here, a bike locker would be nice- the car park in front of my building occupies an area as large as the building! If you can set aside all of that land for the sole purpose of storing motorvehicles, you can find space for some bike lockers! Cars get entirely too much space and infrastructure, how about sharing the street with others?
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If you’re not capable of carrying a push bike down a small set of stairs, you certainly aren’t capable of riding one unless ur under 10 years old of course?