Bicycle shed at Utrecht station closed due to construction cracks

The bicycle shed at the Jaarbeursplein near Utrecht Central Station will close on Friday evening because "cracks were found in the construction during an inspection", the municipality of Utrecht reports. Further research is needed to determine the cause. People can remove their bicycles from the shed until 10 p.m. on Friday. After that, owners will no longer be able to access their bicycles, and the bicycles will remain there "for the time being", according to a municipal spokesperson.

Owners must await notification from the municipality, the spokeswoman said. News about the parking facility will be shared on the municipality's website. "We understand that this is very annoying for people who use the bicycle shed, but this is necessary as a precaution (...) We hope for a quick solution," a municipal spokesperson told RTV Utrecht on Friday.

In the meantime, the municipality of Utrecht has a pop-up bicycle parking facility with a thousand spaces placed on the Jaarbeursplein. It will open on Monday.

Overall, it is not yet clear how long the parking facility will remain closed. The municipality has cordoned off part of the Stadsplateau above the space to relieve the roof of the bicycle parking. The parking lot offers space for 4,300 bicycles, according to the spokeswoman.

Some of the racks at Jaarbeursplein have been out of order for the past few months. There was a lot of flooding. The municipality refers cyclists to the Knoop parking facilities, on the west side of the Moreelsebrug, and to the large Stationsplein parking facility. The opening hours of the Knoop will be adjusted. Instead of the doors closing at midnight, the location will remain open day and night. NS is deploying people to direct travelers to the various parking facilities, the municipality announced.

Two years ago, cracks were discovered in the floor of the Stationsplein bicycle shed on the other side of Utrecht Central Station. The reason for this was the expansion joints in the concrete, according to NOS. These expand or contract depending on the temperature. If they expand too much, cracks appear in the floor.

In early October, two other, smaller bicycle sheds at the busy Utrecht Central Station were also closed for renovations. Nevertheless, the municipal spokesperson believes that there are "enough sheds where people can park their bikes."