At the Möhringen, Vaihingen, Bad Cannstatt and Feuerbach railway stations in Stuttgart, Germany, bicycle service stations will clean, repair and store your bicycle. Open from Monday to Friday 7 AM - 8 PM, the bicycle service stations also have bicycles available for hire. The hire machines have been donated by the public and refurbished by the scheme and cost between €3 -5 per day.
The operator of the bicycle service stations is a social enterprise that helps young unemployed people on their way to a job.
People using the DLR in London will love the way bicycles are carried on its similar light rail transit system as well.
But before we get too excited, it's only the Stuttgart to Degerloch Zahnradbahn where you can find these open bike-cars along a two kilometer line because this particular train climbs 200 meters from the station. It must make for a fun ride home.
Stuttgart is the capital of motoring with Daimler AG, Porsche and Bosch being headquartered there but has ambitious goals for cycling as cyclists make up 20 percent of the total traffic. Local government is working to expand the cycling network and provide other services that make cycling attractive:
- 160 km of cycle track is available - more than twice as much as 20 years ago.
- Route planning by an online bicycle route planner.
- A fleet of electric rental bikes has been offered since 2011 to also help flatten Stuttgart's many hills.
