How can cities create parking for both cars and bikes?

If you live in a big city, odds are you're intimately familiar with the daily struggle to find a parking spot. And if you prefer to travel on two wheels to dodge the traffic, then you know the struggle of finding a place to lock up your bike without it getting stolen. But what if we told you that there is a way to make parking more accommodating for both cars and bikes? Keep reading to find out how cities can create parking that works for everyone.

Street design

The first step is to rethink street design. Parking takes up a lot of space, so by making some adjustments to street design, we can look to create more space for parking without having to expand outward. One way to do this is by creating more clearly defined parking spaces, so that the cars are parked as efficiently as possible, especially in on-road parallel parking spots. This would allow us to fit more cars into less space, potentially freeing up room for bike racks alongside the car spaces. 

Alternatively, if there is an area with lots of car parking spaces that don’t get regularly utilised, councils could consider converting a few car spaces into secure bike storage. 

The role of technology

Another way to make parking better in busy areas is by making use of technology. Digital signs could be used to show where there are free parking spaces, to allow drivers and cyclists to get parked up more quickly. It could also help avoid road users making last-minute turns, which could put others in danger.

In addition, apps could be developed that would allow drivers and cyclists to pay for and reserve parking spots in advance. This would mean that they could be sure of a space, and it would provide helpful data about which areas of cities need the most parking.

Underground parking

Historic cities weren’t necessarily designed to accommodate the number of people they house today, or the number of cars and bikes. This results in buildings being notoriously crammed in – which, in turn, means there’s very little room for innovation and expansion, especially in city centres.

Underground expansion seems to be the answer, with many places already creating car parks underground. However, this can also work for bikes – for example, the city of Utrecht in the Netherlands has created the world’s largest underground bike park, with secure space for 12,500 bikes, stored on super-efficient two-tier racks. 

This has a twofold effect – not only does it mean that existing cyclists can park their bikes securely, out of the rain, but it suddenly makes cycling a whole lot more appealing to other commuters. The storage is located at the station, meaning that it allows you to get far closer to the train than parking would. If the number of cyclists increases, the number of cars on the road decreases, thus improving traffic and reducing carbon emissions.

A smoother future

There are several ways that we can make both bike and car parking easier and smoother in cities. By making bike parking easier in particular, commuters may be more inclined to ditch their car in favour of pedal power. Even those who commute from further afield could leave their cars in parking complexes outside of the city, such as those on the Park Active scheme, and finish their commute by bike, confident that they can leave their bike in a secure location.

This is a guest post by Leo Clarke, Content Producer and Researcher leoclarke.consulting@gmail.com