Design Responses > About Parking Facilities > Case Studies >
Transport Interchange
Ueno Naka Oka (Tokyo JP)

An underground bike parking facility serving Ueno rail station and transport interchange also providing a bike hire scheme for users. Parking is provided for up to 500 bicycle spaces and 20 bicycles for rent. The entrance to the facility is via wide staircase leading underground. There is a ramp to wheel the bike down and a motorised travelator to assist users leaving the facility with their bike. Parking furniture is 420 bicycle parking spaces of front wheel locking rack type and 80 spaces of tier rack type.

The facility is staffed and the guardians are responsible for charging fees and unlocking the bikes when the electronic systems fail. Users can park for 1 day ticket which entitles 24 hours of parking use. The facility is open 19 hours everyday, from 5:30am to 24:30. Fees for one day of parking is ¥100, and regular-use permits are ¥1500 for one month, ¥4000 for three months (for Taito residents). For non-Taito residents, fees are ¥2500 for one month or ¥6,000 for three months. The fees for renting a bicycle are from ¥200 for one day.

Provider
Taito city

Designer / Architect
Taito city planning office. Racks made by Cycle Techno Corporation

Cost of provision
Funded by Taito city administration, the cost of the provision is undisclosed

Strengths
• The front wheel lock racks are smaller and easier to maintain than the larger tier racks
• The space looks wider and neater with tier rather than two racks
• The vending machines are among the simplest to operate in Japan

Weaknesses
• The bicycles for rent are only 20 and according to the staff they run out of bicycles every day by 8:30 in the morning

Useful References
http://www.city.taito.tokyo.jp
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=42IkDGZDz6s
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=rw2IMZK3U0U