Proposal for 1,000 bike parking spaces in Vancouver to go to city council

A proposal for 1,000 secure bike parking spaces is to go through Vancouver City Council next week.

Councillor George Affleck, who’s presenting the proposal, says the parking spaces would likely go in buildings owned by the city that have open spots and in traditional bike rack situations.

“The number is 1,000 and it’s based on growth that we’ve been seeing per year for daily commutes by bike and future potential growth,” he says.

The City of Vancouver currently has $50 million in the parking endowment fund, mostly from revenue through Easy Park, and Affleck would like to draw from those funds to build the spots.

They would largely be focused in the downtown core, although Affleck says there aren’t any specific areas chosen yet, and the secure mechanism will require consultation from city engineers.

“Bikes get stolen and disappear and hopefully this will be a way to provide security for those bikes.”

The Vancouver Police Department says around 2,000 bikes are stolen each year, and only a fraction of those are returned to their owners.

Affleck adds he’d like to see shower and change room facilities added in with the bike parking spots.