Southwark top borough for bike hangars in South London

Southwark council has installed more bike ‘hangars’ than all but two other London boroughs, with 2,855 secure bike hangar spaces available to residents. 

Hundreds more bike storage hangars are being added to this number – there are already 474 up and running – and the council has recently approved £2.5million to fit 3,000 more bike hangar spaces. 

Only Hackney and Waltham Forest can boast of having more of the increasingly familiar domed lockups we see in so many of our streets now.

It costs £40 a month to leave a bike in one of the hangars, which has room for six. The council subsidises the rental.

The local authority has an open invitation to all residents to register their interest in a rental and to offer suggestions about where new hangars might be placed.  

On the welcome page, it says: “We know there is a massive demand for safe bike storage across Southwark. We have an ongoing programme to roll out new rentable bike hangars. 

“We want to know how many people are interested in having access to a bike hangar in their area, and what the most requested locations are.  

“All the information you provide here will help us prioritise locations for hangars we already have ready to go, as well as plan more locations for the future. 

“We have already added some locations on the map, where residents have previously made requests. If you support these locations, let us know by clicking on the pin and giving it a thumbs up. Or make your own suggestions for suitable locations.  

“We can put bike hangars directly on the road or in other suitable flat locations in public spaces and on estates and developments.” 

The council says it has heard from more than 2,500 people already and used their requests to decide where to put new bike hangars. 

Southwark council says it is committed to helping people to use clean travel and reduce toxic, polluting fumes. It is supporting people to walk, cycle or take public transport for short journeys, as this would help to improve physical and mental health for everyone in the borough. 

Southwark councillor Catherine Rose said: “We work with schools to encourage cycling (and walking) and have one of the largest bike storage provisions in London, and probably even nationally. 

“This means that more people who don’t have a garden to store their bicycle in, can now join the thousands of other people who ride bikes across Southwark, and get pedalling. 

“It is vital that we all do our best to try and reduce the toxic fumes that pollute our city, and cycling and walking for short journeys is one of the best ways that we can help.” 

To find out more or to suggest new hangar locations in Southwark, residents are invited to log on to: cyclehangarsinsouthwark.commonplace.is 

Pictured top: Bike hangar in Draco Street Picture: Southwark council