Bicycle racks, squares, stations and shopping centers: hundreds of bicycles are left in Amstelveen every year. The municipality removes them to keep the public space cleared. But thanks to this special workshop, not every bike ends with the old iron. “I feel very happy when I repair a bike.”
At workshop lived! people with a mild intellectual disability or distance to the labor market can work. Under supervision, they tinker with bicycles every day that they pick up at the municipality’s depot, often hundreds at the same time. They get rid of bicycles that can be repaired and sell them.
One of those employees is Julian van Dijen. “I get very happy when I repair a bike,” he says. “It gives a good feeling to make something that really helps someone else.” Colleague Casper De Rooij nods in agreement, while he is busy tightening a bicycle chain.
At the workshop there is not only bicycles tinkering, so they also make wooden trays and cutting boards for restaurants, to mention just a few examples. All that work takes a lot of time, and according to Julian that is no different at the bikes. “It is difficult to count how many bicycles I repair per day.”
Casper adds: “Electric bicycles are difficult for me, but I can work well with normal bicycles. And I really enjoy doing that.”
Only clean streets and more work
The approach yields double results: and less rotten bicycles on the street and meaningful work for people who are looking for it that way. Moreover, it is good for the environment, because there are far fewer bicycles go to demolition.
Supervisor Oscar Vreman emphasizes how important the project is for employees and the environment. “Everyone has talents. With the right support, people with a disability can use. And that not only makes their life better, but also the city a bit nicer.”