The Netherlands: largest bicycle parking garage in the world opens in Utrecht

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Source: World’s biggest bike garage opens in Utrecht with 12,500 parking spaces
World’s biggest bike garage opens in Utrecht with 12,500 parking spaces

By Janene Pieters on August 19, 2019 - 11:57

utrecht_bike_garage_main.jpg

Bike garage at Utrecht Central. (Photo: CU2030 / Youtube)


The largest bicycle parking garage in the world is opening in Utrecht on Monday. With 12,656 parking spaces, including 480 spaces for larger or oddly shaped bicycles like cargo bikes and tandems, the parking facility on Utrecht's station square easily breaks the previous record, held by a bike parking garage in Tokyo with 9,400 parking spaces, Trouw reports [in Dutch].

"From abroad, they look with jealousy at everything we do here for cycling", project leader Lidwien van Kessel of ProRail said to the newspaper. "We are at the forefront here."

From Monday it will also be possible for cyclists to cycle through the bicycle garage under Stationsplein from Moreelsepark to Smakkelaarsveld and vice versa. The two directions of the main cycle path are separated in the garage by bicycle racks.

Cyclists with a disability and cyclists with a subscription will be allowed to park next to the main cycle path. Other cyclists can opt for a slow ramp to the first floor or to the basement and park their bikes there. Parking in the new bike garage is free for the first 24 hours, after that it costs 1.25 euros per 24 hours.

To help cyclists navigate the three-floor high bike garage, there are electronic signs to indicate free spaces and large numbers on the floor near the bike racks to help cyclists find their bikes.

According to Van Kessel, who helped develop the parking facility, the design specifically took into account that everyone should feel safe in the garage. "It is light everywhere and you can look through to different levels in different places. In addition, the parking facility is guarded and there are cameras. As a woman, I will also just pick up my bike here at ten in the evening."

The parking in the biggest bike garage in the world is expected to quickly fill up, Richard Maree of bicycle storage manager RataPlan said to Trouw. In total there are now 22 thousand bicycle parking spots around Utrecht Central Station. ProRail estimates that some 30 thousand are needed.

Utrecht Train Station's brand new bike parking opens Aug 19. It will have 12,500 bike parking spaces covering 17,000m².
Apple HQ opened in 2017. It has 11,000 car parking spaces covering 325,000m².
Who is building the smart city, again? pic.twitter.com/3DilIGI7W2
— Mitchell Reardon (@MitchellReardon) August 12, 2019

Ik 4, jij 4t, wij 4en allemaal om 4 uur vanmiddag…!
Dat éín-dé-líjk de nieuwe rijen met rekken voor jou en je bike zijn! Direct na de officiële opening van het 2e deel van de stalling is de grootste van de wereld helemaal van jou: de Stationspleinstalling. pic.twitter.com/h4TQ8amRYF
— CU2030 (@CU2030) August 19, 2019
I celebrate, you celebrate, the 4 of us all celebrate at 4:00 this afternoon...!
That at long last the new rows of racks are for you and your bike! Immediately after the official opening of the 2nd part of the parking facility, the biggest one in the world is all yours: the Stationspleinstalling. pic.twitter.com/h4TQ8amRYF
— CU2030 (@CU2030) August 19, 2019

Het lichtje staat op rood - Het lichtje staat op groen – In de Stationspleinstalling is altijd wat te doen. Hoe bedenk en bouw je de grootste fietsenstalling ter wereld? Marc van ProRail vertelt over de inrichting en hoe dat nou precies zit met dat rode & groene licht. pic.twitter.com/o9kCHJAIKn
— CU2030 (@CU2030) August 8, 2019
The light is on red - The light is on green - In the Stationspleinstalling there is always something to do . How do you conceive and build the largest bicycle parking facility in the world? Marc van ProRail talks about the design and the exact situation with the red & green light. pic.twitter.com/o9kCHJAIKn
— CU2030 (@CU2030) August 8, 2019

Both translated with DeepL Translator

utrechtbikegarage1.jpg

Bike garage at Utrecht Central. (Photo: CU2030 / Youtube)

utrecht_bike_garage_2.jpg

Bike garage at Utrecht Central. (Photo: CU2030 / Youtube)


Additional info:
Animated video 4:38 min.
Utrecht Central Station will get the largest bicycle parking facility in the World;
it will house some 12.500 bicycles. The first part was opened in 2017, in 2018
the entire parking facility and the square on top of it will be ready.


Photo's and diagram from the Trouw article:

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The exit on the side of the Moreelse Park. Image Werry Crone

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The bicycle garage on the Stationsplein in Utrecht. Image Sander Soewargana


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One of the exits of the bicycle garage on station square in Utrecht. Image Werry Crone
 
I watched the footage, but I still wouldn't want to get my bike out of the garage in the evenings, especially with all the turmoil going on. I prefer a spot where I am still highly visible to others, but maybe that's just me. It's just insane the amounts of money they are wasting on prestige projects like this one. :shock:
 
Source: NS pledges action after queues form to leave world's biggest bike park - DutchNews.nl

NS pledges action after queues form to leave world’s biggest bike park

September 4, 2019

Dutch railway company NS says it will take steps to alleviate the long jams forming at the exit to the world’s biggest bike park in Utrecht, under the city’s main railway station.

‘Multiple solutions’ are being worked on and more staff will be on hand to help cyclists check out, NS said. In addition the routing within the bike park, over three storeys, will be worked on to make sure everyone comes from the same direction.

Checking out of the bike park has to be done on an individual basis because people who leave their bikes longer than 24 hours have to pay.

Cyclist Willem Heesen, who photographed the jam, said that there is usually no queue.

Files in grootste #fietsenstalling ter wereld in #Utrecht – en nog een! #trending ;-).
Maar meestal gaat het goed! Files in grootste fietsenstalling ter wereld in Utrecht
— Willem Heesen (@willem_heesen) September 4, 2019

A major extension to the bike park opened on Monday, making it the biggest underground garage for bikes in the world, with space for 12,656 two-wheelers.

The total includes 480 spaces for cargo bikes and other bikes which don’t fit into regular spaces. The first 24 hours is free to park, after that the cost is €1.25 per day. Cyclists can follow electronic signs to the nearest empty spaces.
 
Source: Cracks appear in floor of world's largest bicycle parking garage in Utrecht

Wednesday, April 6, 2022 - 11:10 AM

Cracks appear in floor of world's largest bicycle parking garage in Utrecht


The world's largest bicycle parking, near Utrecht Central Station, is showing signs of damage just three years after its opening. Cracks have appeared in various floor sections of the structure. The cracked corridors have been cordoned off. There are no safety risks, a spokesperson for the municipality of Utrecht said to RTV Utrecht (in Dutch).

The problem seems to lie with the expansion joints in the parking facility, which are supposed to absorb the effects of the concrete floor's expansion and contraction during temperature changes. The expansion joints aren't functioning optimally, resulting in cracks in some places and bumps where concrete pushed up in others, the municipality said.

Seven joints need to be replaced, according to the broadcaster. The municipality launched a liability procedure to recover the costs from the architect and commissioned a contractor to repair the defects. The work should be completed at the end of July.

The concrete bicycle parking garage under Stationsplein is the largest in the world, with room for 12,500 bicycles. It opened in August 2019.
 
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