London fits lamp-posts with space-saving bike lock hoops

The Cyclehoop, a winning design from the Reinventing the Bike Shed competition, which was launched by Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios and the Design Against Crime unit of the University of the Arts London as part of the 2006 London Architecture Biennale, is being installed this month by the London Boroughs of Southwark and Islington.

The design is a robust steel ring that clamps onto existing street signposts, instantly creating secure bicycle stands. The device is currently being trialed in 37 different locations, including Southwark Tube station, Borough Market, Union Street and Goswell Road, and will help to fulfill London’ urgent need for more bicycle parking. Cyclehoops are available in pink, orange, teal, blue and black.

Cyclehoop was designed by 27-year old designer Anthony Lau. His motivation for the design came from addressing two pre-existing features of the London street: inadequate bicycle parking and the abundance of street signposts. Advantages that Cyclehoop has over the ubiquitous U-shaped Sheffield stand is that it does not require concreting into the pavement and can be easily installed within minutes.

John Grimshaw, the former director of Sustrans, said of the Cyclehoop: “I like this – it’ making the most of what’ in the street already, because they would be everywhere and so where you need them, and because they would legitimise cycle parking where you might be uncertain, for example in Central London.”

Through retro-fitting, Cyclehoop creates a second function for signposts, reducing the need for installing a bicycle stand in the same location thus freeing up valuable pavement space.
Lau is working on versions of Cyclehoop that will fit other types of street furniture.