April 17, 2023 - In late January, Amsterdam opened the world’s first bicycle garage underwater, located under the city’s Central Station canal, with space for 7,000 bikes.

The bicycle garage is connected underground with the metro and the Central Station hall to help integrate cycling with the railway network it took four years to build at a cost of around €60 million. Open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, parking is free for the first 24 hours.

Cycling is by far the top form of transport in Amsterdam, and the Central Station is one of the busiest places in the city. According to the capital’s most recent figures, 835,000 Amsterdam residents make on average 665,000 bike trips a day, and 36% of journeys are made by bicycle (compared with 24% by car), reports The Guardian.

The project is about making commuting easier and more attractive, as the underground parking facility also clears up the messy surface-level bike parking. “It helps return the public space to pedestrians, tourists and people with disabilities,” said Pieter Visser, Amsterdam municipality’s bike project manager. Another new, €25m parking facility for 4,000 more bikes is nearby.