Five new bike garages encourage residents of apartment block buildings in Navapolotsk to choose cycling as a way to move around the town.

With COVID-19 us till on rise across the globe, many cities are doing first steps to ease lockdown measures and allow people to leave their houses and flats while observing physical distancing. Some cities, like Oakland, USA, plans to open 120 kilometers of streets only for cyclist and pedestrians.

COVID-19 crisis provides urban cycling with new opportunities and social value. Using bicycles for urban transportation helps people stay connected and mobile while keeping a safe distance from others. It also helps get some physical exercise and avoid using public transport.

In Belarus, the GEF-funded “Green Cities” project promotes cycling as an integral part of green urban mobility and invests in building of cycling infrastructure in the pilot small towns.

Based on a survey organised by the project in the town of Novopolatsk, the majority of residents expressed their concerns about limited opportunities for bike parking and storage. According to the survey, availability of accessible bike parking places will boost the popularity of cycling in the town.

The project responded with construction of five new bike garages, each of them can accommodate up to 20 bicycles. All new garages are thief-proof and protect bikes from weather conditions.

The garages are placed in densely populated blocks of  apartment buildings where the residents have little place for storing their bikes in the apartments.

“We consulted with housing steering committees and local residents who often use bicycles on where to place the garages, so they will be freely accessed”, - said Leonid Kulazhenko, Deputy Director for Human Relations and Ideological Work of the Novopolotsk Communal Service.

“My family is comfortable using bicycles now, we have three," said Konstantin Lomsha, the local resident. “Now there's no need to take bikes home. It’s perfect!”

After a short testing period this experience will be offered to other small towns across Belarus.