The call for a guarded bicycle shed in Amstelland and Haarlemmermeer has never been so great. Dozens of bicycles, mainly electric, are stolen every week at the Stadshart in Amstelveen and the center of Hoofddorp. The police recently said they were unable to get a grip on the thieves, so a guarded parking facility is the solution according to many.
More and more stolen bicycles, but no guarded bicycle shed in Amstelland and Haarlemmermeer – NH Nieuws
“It is frustrating, because the citizen expects us as a police to do something about it,” says the Hoofddorp police officer Arjen Schut about the impotence of the police. Recently, fifteen electric bicycles were stolen in Hoofddorp in two weeks. At least eight bicycles were also stolen last week.
More and more bicycles stolen
In the Netherlands, about 735,000 bicycles were stolen in the past year. Stichting Aanpak Fiets- en E-biketheft (SAFE) previously expected around 550,000 thefts of bicycles in 2021.
Amstelveen Gonnie van Rietschoten is worried. She has a bicycle shop in town and says that more and more people who have bought a bicycle from her come back to report that it has been stolen.
The thieves are increasingly targeting electric bicycles and batteries, increasing the amount of damage. “People are also paying blue for locks and extra security,” says Gonnie.
Double or triple lock
In Hoofddorp, the concerns are mainly concentrated on the center. Shoppers are regularly confronted with the theft of electric bicycles. “That’s why I double-locked it,” says a man in front of the NH Nieuws camera. Another says that her bike is locked ‘three doubles’.
“Because the bicycles are quickly stolen outside, we put our bicycles in the narrow warehouse”
Entrepreneurs in Hoofddorp and Amstelveen are concerned. Lisa Snijders of Bookstore Stevens in Hoofddorp says that she and her employees no longer park their bicycles outside. “Because the bicycles are quickly stolen outside, we put our bicycles in the narrow warehouse.”
A guarded parking facility
In Hoofddorp and Amstelveen, a guarded bicycle shed is often mentioned as a solution. Center manager Sonja Olthuis says she has been arguing for years for the arrival of a guarded parking facility. “Unfortunately, the city council is not going through, there is a location, but they have to work on it.”
The municipality has doubts about such a parking facility. Last year, under the guise of a pilot, a location was created. People could park their two-wheeler there for two weeks, but according to the municipality there was ‘little enthusiasm’. The stable was two weeks closed down.
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No guarded parking to be found
The website SafeStables.nl offers an overview of all bicycle sheds and lockers in the Netherlands. Especially in Amsterdam, many guarded bicycle sheds can be found in our province. In Haarlemmermeer (Hoofddorp, Halfweg and Nieuw-Vennep), bicycle lockers and one automated parking facility (near Hoofddorp station) can be found especially around the stations. These are unmanned. In Amstelland (Amstelveen, Aalsmeer, Uithoorn and Ouderkerk aan de Amstel) there are not even bicycle lockers to be found. There is a logical explanation for this. The safes are usually managed by the NS and there is no train station in Amstelland.
For a guarded bicycle shed at the Stadshart in Amstelveen, voices have also been raised for years. At the beginning of this year, Amstelvener Hans Seijlhouwer suggested through the participation platform ‘Denk mee Amstelveen’ the idea of including a guarded bicycle shed in the renovation plans for the shopping centre. And he wasn’t alone.
“If I have understood correctly, my plan would have gone up one echelon in the official structure, but of course you quickly lose sight of that as a citizen,” says Hans. The municipality informs NH Nieuws that it is currently discussing the possibilities with the owners of the Stadshart. Hans takes it all with a grain of salt. “I think there’s a meeting at City Hall about something… every now and then,” he chuckles.