Tokyo’s Amazing Underground Bicycle Storage System

Hey there! Did you just pedal in from cyberspace? Probably not, eh. Nowhere to park out there anyway. Soon as you fill your mug and snag a virtual treat, I'll fill you in on how the Japanese are solving the bicycle parking problem in Tokyo - their largest city. As of April 1, 13.2 million people live there.  

Tokyo is such a crowded place that even finding a place to park your bicycle can be a daunting task. But leave it to the Japanese to find a genius solution to this growing space problem. The ECO-Cycle Park is an automated bicycle storage system buried 11 meters under the city streets that can hold up to 200 bikes.

Although Japan is one of the world’s leading car manufacturers and its public transportation system is probably the most advanced on the planet, the bicycle is still a very popular means of getting around in the busy traffic. Unfortunately parking spaces are at a premium, and owners are often forced to leave them on the sidewalk where they become obstacles for pedestrians. 

To solve this problem, Japanese company Giken Seisakusho, which specializes in tidal and flood protection systems, created ECO-Cycle, a series of five underground storage bicycle storage facilities where owners can safely “park” their bikes in just 8 seconds. The buried cylindrical structures are only seven meters wide, but deep enough to safely store up to 200 two-wheel vehicles each.

Quite the engineering feat, eh. Somebody told me once about a lady of the evening who bought a bicycle so she could pedal it all over town...whatever that means. Ah well...

See ya, eh!

Bob