At the Žitnjak Technology Park in Zagreb, the Croatian startup project bike2lock, led by Tomislav Vukovski, Natko Bošnjak, Antonio Filipović and Slaven Pokrivko, has designed a system of secure bicycle parking, reports Poslovni.hr on May 25, 2017.
An increase in bicycle theft is unfortunately evident in Croatia. According to data from the Interior Ministry, 1,375 bicycles were reported stolen in 2015, while in 2008 the number of stolen bicycles in Zagreb was only 360. Thieves sell bicycles in parts and whole in order to prevent the police from finding them, and the owners suffer permanent financial damage which for some bicycle models reaches up to 15,000 kuna.
Bike2lock is the only solution which allows bicycle parking and its protection against theft of all the vital parts of a bike (frame, wheels and seat) during parking in public areas.
The installation of the bike2lock system in the first phase of the project implementation is foreseen for those locations in the city of Zagreb that have a greater number of cycling visits daily and are known cycling locations, and are also close to official cycling paths. This primarily includes the area of the wider city centre, where the largest number of bicycles is parked during the day, as well as the area of the Jarun Lake, the Bundek Lake and the Maksimir Park.
In the forthcoming stages of the project development, the system will be expanded to locations in front of students dormitories, university buildings, and later to central locations of all of all neighbourhoods in Zagreb.
According to the official website, bike2lock is secured to the ground, either on the street or in the facility in which it is installed. It can be adjusted to all bikes no matter of their size, and it completely protects the bike from theft, vandalism or weather. It consist of a closed parking space, parking and security installations in which there is a software control system for users, the billing system, information screen and all other necessary equipment.
With electronic locking system and software solutions, bike2lock identifies the owner of the bike with an earlier obtained unique code and fully locks the bike. The product’s attractive design fits with city infrastructure, and it can be adjustable depending on each micro location. It is completely in compliance with EU regulations regarding parking spaces in bicycle infrastructure.
