Bicycle Depot Haaglanden

Fietsdepot Haaglanden

Published: 19 May 2011 Modified: 04 March 2013

'What happened to my bike? I parked it right here!' The Bicycle Depot centre serves as a central storage spot for wrongly or dangerously parked bicycles and abandoned bicycles left in pubic areas.

Bicycles are left behind too often at dangerous spots or not in bicycle racks. Bicycle wrecks are also often dumped on the street. This not only leads to dangerous situations and jam-packed bicycle lock-ups but is an eyesore as well.

The Bicycle Depot Haaglanden is removing these kinds of bikes from public areas in the participating municipalities (initially The Hague and Zoetermeer). In The Hague the focus is primarily on the areas around the Central and Hollands Spoor Station where abandoned bicycles present the greatest nuisance.

Claiming your bike

The depot is the central collection spot for all bicycles which have been removed or found. Bike owners can check a website to see whether their bicycle is in the depot.

They can claim their bicycle back by showing a valid ID, paying € 15 (with a PIN card) and proving that they’re the rightful owners (for example by producing the bike key).

The bicycles are kept in the depot for 13 weeks. After that they become municipal property and are sold or destroyed, depending on their condition.

Alert for stolen bikes

The police will actively work together with the depot to prevent bicycle theft. The police will check all the bicycles brought to the depot to see if have been registered as stolen. If the owner has filed a police report, the police will contact the rightful owner. The depot will also play a role in preventing bicycle theft, for example, by engraving a registration number in the frame free of charge.

The Bicycle Depot Haaglanden opened in April 2010. The depot is located in the Binckhorst district and is easily accessible by car and public transportation. The City Region of Haaglanden (Stadsgewest Haaglanden) provided a € 2 million subsidy towards the depot.