Underground bike storage systems, like those seen in Japan, are amazing. But they obviously require a massive amount of excavation and construction.
A Swiss company called V-Locker has designed an easier-to-implement solution. The company has developed tower modules containing bike lockers that travel upwards in a paternoster-like arrangement.
Depending on the size of the tower, these can hold 6, 8, 12 or 20 bikes per unit, within a minimal footprint; 4.5 square meters, or 48 square feet, is all that’s required.
A single door at the bottom is where riders can access the lockers (via app, of course). As a bonus, riders can also store their backpacks and helmets in the lockers, which are of course weatherproof.
The towers themselves are modular, making installation straightforward. The pieces are trucked to the site and stacked with a crane.
The exterior designs are customizable, in order to comply with any given municipality’s visual regulations or tastes.
This is no mere concept, by the way; there are currently six of these located through Switzerland and seven in Germany, with more to come.
The design and engineering for these was done by consultancy Meyer-Hayoz.
