Stockholm’s new parking lot will be different to others in the city in one key regard: instead of cars, it will house 700 bicycles.
‘The city of the future is not one built around the car as a means of transportation,’ said Roger Mogert, City Planning Commissioner for Stockholm. ‘This requires that we make it easier to travel by bike – arranging for safe and efficient parking solutions is one step towards that goal.’
The covered garage is fully designed for cyclists: instead of doors with handles, entrances will automatically slide open so cyclists can ride in directly from the adjacent bike path; locker rooms will provide riders with storage space and an area to change and shower; and a bicycle repair shop will be incorporated into the building.
‘A car park requires very large surfaces for access, and ramps only used by cars,’ said Rahel Belatchew Lerdell, CEO of Belatchew Architects, the firm designing the garage. ‘The flow of people is too small to generate any other activity except parking a car. With bicycles, on the other hand, we can create possibilities for activities like bike repair shops or smaller cafes, which in turn make a neighborhood livelier and safer.’
Original author: Alexia
Photo: Let Ideas Compete
