In 2016, Cyclepods took on our biggest project to date. We designed and built 8 new Cycle Hubs across the South West Trains Networks as part of their Cycle-Rail Integration project, in partnership with the Department for Transport, local authorities and the Rail Delivery Group. Project budget GDP 1.2 Million GDP

All eight of the Southwest Trains Cycle Hubs have been built with a galvanised and powder coated steel structure with different combinations of glass, Kalzip and wooden cladding. The steel used is manufactured within the European Union to EU standards and the structure consists of 80 x 80mm box section columns with 100 x 100mm roof beams. It was specifically designed to allow for different claddings and sizes. The hubs are modular and can easily be added to in the future if so required.

The first of the cladding options was Kalzip. Kalzip is an aluminium cladding system, also manufactured in the EU, and designed to be hard wearing in all climates and environments. The nature of the cladding is both functional and allows for passive surveillance due to the perforated design of the material. The second cladding option was glass, which was used alongside wooden or Kalzip cladding for aesthetic purposes as well as providing a better lit environment to the inside of the hub. The glass used was 12mm thick, thermally toughened and laminated to give a higher resistance to crash penetration and splintering. The final cladding option was wood. The wood used was western red cedar which is a widely used architectural cladding due to its longevity and durability. The cedar itself is managed sustainably in Canada where for every 1 tree felled, another 3 are planted. At Ewell West, the addition of a green roof was also implemented for aesthetic as well as conservation reasons to help it blend in with the local environment.

The outside of each hub has clear signing to indicate their intended use, as well as advertising some of the facilities such as CCTV presence, 24-hour usage and maintenance tools. The storage provided inside the hubs was a two-tier system, CapaCITY. The CapaCITY is a Dutch rack and the design is optimised for ease of use and bike protection, as well as providing a space saving solution to bike storage. A total of 1,162 bike storage spaces have been provided for across the 8 hubs.

The hubs were also equipped with bike pumps and repair stands, providing a facility for cyclists to carry out minor repairs and maintenance, and customer information screens which display real-time weather information and train timetabling. Each hub was also fitted with lighting and CCTV to ensure they are well lit, secure and inviting facilities. As well as the hubs themselves, extensive groundworks were carried out in and around the area to create better forecourts, ramps and access routes.

Woking Station already had an existing 250 space Cycle Hub, so an extension was designed for this which would double the amount of bike spaces and retain exactly the same style as the original hub. The new section was built on steel stilts to raise it off the ground, in order to keep from losing the 10 car parking spaces underneath the new section. The two sections are linked with a small flight of stairs equipped with runners for users to easily wheel their bikes up and down. Access is also available to the new section via the street.

The Easylift Premium and CapaCity are highly convenient two tier bike rack parking systems. The lifting system on both systems ensures that a bicycle can be parked on the top level effortlessly. The end of the light-weight aluminium upper track (Easylift only) rests on the ground so that the bicycle can simply be wheeled onto it and hardly has to be lifted at all. The two levels mean that the parking capacity is doubled!

Cyclepods have recently completed a project with train operating company, London Midland. This involved the provision of 470 new cycle parking spaces at 6 stations in a limited timescale. These stations were; Watford Junction, Northampton, Bletchley, Walsall and Alvechurch.

London Midland opted for the CapaCITY two-tier system, due in part to the space efficient design. Northampton and Bletchley both had limited space. Cycle parking increased from 58 to 96 at Bletchley and almost doubled at Northampton, from 85 to 160.

There were derelict or redundant areas at three stations, Watford Junction, Walsall and Alvechurch. By clearing these areas and prepping with extensive groundworks, fresh spaces were created for the new cycle storage.

At each of these locations, Cyclepods worked with London Midland to ensure there was space for future growth. Considered planning meant future extensions are possible without relocating the racks and shelters.

As well as cycle storage, there was a need for public cycle pumps and repair stands. These tools allow cyclists to make minor repairs or carry out basic maintenance.

BIKE DETECTION

Bike Detection is an optical sensor or pressure sensor driven system to determine occupied or vacant cycle parking space.

London Midland chose optical sensors for their racks. These consist of two cameras that “see” in 3D, each monitoring a section of the racks (around 5-25 spaces). The cameras can then determine occupied vs. free spaces in the racks and feeds this back to a local facility server.

This means real-time information on occupancy is available. This data will show trends in occupancy related to time of day, day of week etc., as well as a potential growth in cycle-rail journeys.

Understanding facility usage is vital in justifying investment in the facilities. This data helps to learn if facilities are in the right place and which racks are more popular than others. It also provides evidence on usage when considering future investment in facilities, particularly useful when negotiating for funding for expanding existing or new facilities.

Abandoned bikes is becoming more common. These are bikes left in racks, taking up valuable spaces from other users. In most cases, a bike is considered abandoned if left for more than two weeks. The optical sensors log where spaces are not vacated in a certain period and notify the system operative to remove abandoned bikes.

A stipulation of this project was delivery of everything within 6 to 8 weeks of the contract signing.

This was an ambitious timescale dictated by London Midland’s franchise end on December 10th 2017. Cyclepods delivered all products within the contracted timescale.

Guests at the Beusink Recreatie holiday farm and group accommodation in Lievelde can now play sports to their heart’s content in the largest Omnistadium in Europe. You can play a game of football, basketball, hockey, korfball or handball in the newly constructed sports cage. The main reason for purchasing this multifunctional sports cage was to attract more tourists to the beautiful Achterhoek region of the Netherlands. Guests of the Beusink family feel like they are in an actual stadium right there in Lievelde.

Jeroen Beusink discovered the VelopA products back in 2008, but work on the sports and play facilities didn’t start until this year. “VelopA may not be the cheapest, but they definitely have amazing products. We decided on VelopA because the construction of their products is way ahead of the competition. We now possess the largest sports cage ever constructed by VelopA. I hope this allows us to draw even more tourists to the Achterhoek region.”

Multipurpose and maintenance-free sports cage

In the new Omnistadium, guests at Beusink Recreatie can play different sports in one area, such as football, basketball, korfball, hockey and handball. Thanks to its size (35x25m), the Omnistadium allows large groups of friends, families or business associates to come together and play sports in the same area.

Beusink did not need a building permit to construct this multipurpose and maintenance-free sports cage. The cooperation with VelopA went exceptionally well and guests have all responded very positively so far.

The Leyton Super Hub was built as part of the Mini-Holland project under the London Borough of Waltham Forest Council. Waltham Forest were given £27million of funding by Transport for London to invest in making their streets more accessible and safe for all users. The funding was used to create designated spaces for cycling, including cycle routes, segregated cycle paths and cycle hubs for secure storage across the borough, redesigned public areas and pedestrianised high streets, and removing unnecessary motor traffic on residential streets

“We want to make cycling an enjoyable, safe and easy way of getting around, not just for people who already cycle but for people who might be thinking about cycling but have reservations. We want to use the scheme to increase cycling among residents. Getting more residents to jump on a bike will improve health and fitness levels, and reduce vehicle emissions to create a more pleasant environment for everyone. We recognise that people need to feel confident whilst cycling so in addition to making routes safer, we offer a range of activities to encourage people to jump on a bike and feel more confident about cycling.” – LB of Waltham Forest, Mini-Holland Scheme

Several Cycle Hubs were planned across the Borough, with the Cycle Hub at Leyton earmarked from the start of the project as being the flagship Hub. Situated in one of the busiest commuting areas and central to Leyton town, the Hub needed to be a beacon of the Mini-Holland project, encapsulating the passion and commitment of Waltham Forest towards cycling. Cyclepods submitted our two-storey design to Waltham Forest Council, ours was the only double level design and it opened the eyes of the Project Managers to the possibilities that could be achieved. Waltham Forest then decided that they would go bigger and better with the Leyton Hub, and decided to make it a project in it’s own right so it would make a bigger impact. Our proposed solution that provided more cycle parking spaces and maximised the use of the limited available space in an innovative and striking design.

The first part of the Stationsplein Bicycle Parking in Utrecht is open. The parking currently has a capacity of 6,000 bicycles, which makes it the largest in the Netherlands. Another 1,500 bicycle parking places will be added in the next few months. By late 2018, when the bicycle parking will have its full capacity of 12,500 parking places, it will be the world’s largest. Proudly supplied and installed by VelopA!

The new Oldenfelde underground station not only improves the transport links between this district and downtown Hamburg, but commuters from the area can now also cycle to the underground and benefit from a generously dimensioned Bike + Ride station. Together with project partner mmcité +, E. ZIEGLER Metallverarbeitung GmbH implemented its first platform roof in Germany there and also supplied the appropriate bicycle parking infrastructure.

In December 2019, the new underground station in north-east Hamburg between the districts of Farmsen-Berne and Rahlstedt was officially opened. The above-ground stop on the U1 was subsequently added to the existing Hamburg subway network and was put into operation on time after only 22 months of construction. The Hamburger Hochbahn AG project, valued at around 20 million euros, was financed by the City of Hamburg and is a real novelty due to the active participation of the public. Unlike previous subway expansion projects, the future passengers were in the planning right from the start integrated, which explains the consistently positive response and high acceptance of the Hamburg-Oldenfelde stop. 4,500 residents can walk to the subway, however, the traffic planners expect 5,000 passengers a day in the future. Thanks to the new underground station, travel time to downtown Hamburg has been reduced to 22 minutes, which is almost half.

The specialty and greatest challenge of this complex overall project: All work on the new construction site had to be carried out between two existing stops and while the train was in operation, which involved considerable planning and coordination efforts. In addition, unexpectedly high groundwater levels impaired civil engineering and required structural adjustments.

The Citybox from IJslander is a transparent sports cage made of tubes with special sound-absorbing cables and fits into any environment. The Citybox not only offers children and youngsters a place to play football or basketball, but it is also a gathering place in the neighbourhood. The Citybox is completely customisable and can be equipped with (combi) goals, a roof net, multiple entrances and various surfaces. Citybox is also available in any standard RAL colour.

In order to encourage young people in the neighbourhood to play sports together, the Citybox can also be equipped with an Urban Sports Battle sign with a QR code to a dedicated website. Footballing youngsters can then upload their football tricks or view the football tricks of others. Explore the various versions of the standard models on this website.

Towards the end of 2017 VelopA succeeded in winning the tender to supply Amsterdam its new bin! A delivery schedule of 140 bins per week will be delivered over a period of 12 months! Sourced locally with Revicon Barosta, another Tikehau Capital company.

In 2014 IJslander realizes three play areas with removable play equipment in the municipality of Zoetermeer in the Netherlands. A pilot to test and investigate the use and interchangeability of mono play equipment. The concept stores in such a way, that IJslander is asked to further develop the concept. With the municipality of Rotterdam playing an important role.

Choose, click, ready!

The city of Rotterdam finds the concept so interesting, that they commit themselves to three play areas in Rotterdam. This pushes the concept development of the removable playground equipment fast forward and end of 2016 IJslander introduces Click & Play in the Netherlands: an advanced click system combined with building blocks (fixed pattern with ground pots on which the play equipment can be clicked) and ground pots. Major advantage of Click & Play: this flexible solution to design and set up outdoor areas changes a playground for the little ones very ease into a play or sports area for older children. In January 2017 the first children’s play area with Click & Play Spriet play equipment (the first series of playground equipment made specifically for Click & Play) has been delivered to the City of Rotterdam.