As part of a city-wide pilot project, 20 of the so-called bike lockers (Radboxen) are being tested as a new bike parking concept at 12 locations in all in several residential neighbourhoods of Hamburg. This is a municipal pilot project implemented by P + R-Betriebsgesellschaft mbH (P + R). Since the bike lockers (Radboxen) are a new option, there will be a one-year test phase. The locations for the test phase have been chosen by the local district councils together with the police authorities.

A bike locker (Radboxen) is a so-called mini bike garage with capacity for five or six bikes to be parked securely and protected from bad weather. You can only access it with your personalized access card. With the bike lockers (Radboxen), residents will be getting a new secure and weatherproof parking option in addition to the classic cycle racks and the privately operated bike sheds in the public urban space.

In the pilot phase we are testing five different models. 

There are often very few options for residents of densely populated districts to park their bike – either in the building they live in or outside it. Bikes which have been attached, for want of a better alternative, to fences or traffic signs present a potential hazard to passing vehicles or pedestrians and can obstruct the pavements. New bike parking options are being planned to improve this situation in the future. The bike lockers (Radboxen) are a potential element in the City of Hamburg’s long-term strategy to expand bike parking options.

Since the bike lockers (Radboxen) are a new bike parking option in Hamburg, we want to try out the processes and use profiles together with test clients for one year. The locations for the test phase have been chosen by the local district councils together with the police authorities. The testing is particularly helpful in gaining experience and testing the various types of bicycle lockers, which were chosen in a public tender process, as regards their suitability for daily use for long-term operation. The processes and the experience of the test persons will be evaluated during the test year so that a well-informed decision can be made about what form the bicycle lockers will continue to be used in Hamburg looking ahead.

The bike lockers can be used by people who live or work in the immediate vicinity of one of the test locations and have been selected as test persons via the application process.

Some 200 residents at the chosen locations will be able to test the bike lockers (Radboxen) during the one-year test phase. One test interval her lasts six months, so that there are two consecutive test groups, each with about 100 residents. We are carrying out this changeover in order to gather as much experience as possible from different persons.   

P + R-Betriebsgesellschaft mbH (P + R) takes care of installing and operating the bike lockers (Radboxen). They are also responsible for allocating the places and for customer service as well as cleaning and maintenance of the bike lockers (Radboxen)..

It is possible to report the need for additional bike parking rails in your neighbourhood. On top of that, you can speak to your landlord about it. If there is room enough to place a mini bike parking garage on private property in front of or e.g. in the back yard of your house, you can apply for a subsidy of 40% for this. More Information at: https://www.ifbhh.de/foerderprogramm/fahrradabstellanlagen

In the course of the test year, the form in which the bike locker will remain in Hamburg will be assessed together with those involved from politics and administration on the basis of the evaluation. Therefore, there is currently no possibility to register for a long-term parking space in a bike locker for the time after the pilot project and there is no waiting list. Other locations and the rental and pricing model for the period after the pilot project are still open at the moment. However, you are welcome to send us your desired location by email with the following information:

• street, house number and zip code of the location request
• bike type (conventional bike, cargo bike, tricycle, etc.)
• your first name and last name and your email address

Note: We collect location requests in order to identify and document requirements, but do not examine any specific implementation at this stage.

The test locations were proposed by the Hamburg district authorities. The focus was on neighbourhoods where there is a high demand for new bicycle parking spaces. In the subsequent approval process, P + R worked with district representatives and the police to determine the exact locations.

Several car parks are being altered to make them suitable for bike parking. Analyses of the bike parking situation have shown that there are simply not enough bike parking spaces in densely populated districts. The bike lockers (Radboxen) will enable residents to find secured and weatherproof bike parking options in the public urban space in addition to the classic cycle rack in future.

We elicited certain basic requirements in the application questionnaire (e.g. whether your home is in the direct vicinity of the test location). If all the minimum requirements for an application were fulfilled and there were more eligible applications than places available, the persons were chosen by lot.

If you received a refusal letter, you will be informed if and when the option of a place becomes available on the reserve list.

There are two test intervals of six months each within the one-year test phase.

A rental fee of € 20 will be charged for the six-month period of use. The test users will additionally be expected to take part in survey polls and to give their feedback. The pricing model for the time after the test phase is currently still undecided.

No. As a test client you are allocated a specific numbered space in a particular bike locker (Radboxen) at your home location and will receive a corresponding access medium (a key or a user card) to get in.

Sorry, that is not possible.

There is currently no way to apply for a long-term parking space in a bike locker (Radboxen) for the time after the test phase.

You need a suitable access medium for the bike locker (Radboxen) - a key or a user card. This will be sent to you by P + R at the beginning of the rental period.

The bike lockers (Radboxen) are designed to take standard bikes which are max. 2.0 metres long and have a maximum of 2 tyres. You cannot park motorbikes, scooters and cargo bikes in a bike locker (Radboxen). Whether specialized bikes or bikes with mounted attachments (e.g. baskets) fit into the bike locker (Radboxen) is a matter to be tried out in the specific case. Bikes with a child’s seat fitted at the back should normally fit in. The focus of the pilot project is on standard bikes – but we bear in mind that further kinds of bikes may be relevant and will consider them as well during the further course of the project.

An e-bike can be parked in the bike locker (Radboxen) as long as it conforms to the dimensions of a standard bike. There is no charging point in the bike locker (Radboxen) and it is not permitted to keep e-bike batteries in it.

No, there are no surveillance cameras. Since the bike lockers stand in the public urban space, this is forbidden by data protection regulations.

No, bikes are not insured by P + R .

You should report the theft of your bike to the police. Please also contact our bike locker customer service so that our operations team can check your bike locker for possible damage.

Please contact our bike locker customer service so that our operations team can check your bike locker.

Please inform our bike locker customer service as soon as possible. A processing fee of € 15.00 will be charged for a lost key and the provision of a new key for the bike locker.

When the six-month period during which you may use the bike locker (Radboxen) expires, you must give the space back. If your access medium to the locker is a key, you need to send this back to P + R within one week without needing to be prompted to do so. User cards will be disabled; you do not need to send them back to P + R. P + R will take care of the final cleaning of the locker.

Since the bike lockers (Radboxen)are a new concept for bike parking in Hamburg, we want to try out the processes and user experience for one year together with the test persons. Testing in this way can be especially helpful to gain experience and choose the best type among the various bike lockers (Radboxen) with a view to introducing the bike locker (Radboxen) in the long term in Hamburg. So that we can factor in as much experience as possible, two feedback interviews will be held.

The answers of the test persons in the interviews will be used to evaluate the pilot project and the bike lockers (Radboxen). The data will be processed in anonymized form and will not be traceable back to any individual respondent.

No, only certain bike locker models can be operated with an app (DIWIO KEY app). Which access medium (key or app) applies to your bike locker is noted in your contract. The access medium is not customizable, as it depends on the bike locker model of the respective location.

If you use a bike locker that is operated with the DIWIO KEY app, we have sent you instructions with our welcome letter that explain how to operate your bike locker and how to set up the app: Shortly after receiving our welcome letter, you will receive an email from our partner Diwio, who provides the app. In the email, you will find instructions on how to download the app for free and the access data required to log in. If you have not received the email from Diwio (please also check your spam folder), please contact our bike locker customer service so that we can initiate the dispatch again.

The DIWIO KEY app can be set to different languages. By default, the app is set to English. You can switch to German in the app under the settings icon at the top right (select “Appearance” → “Language”).

The DIWIO KEY app can be used on a maximum of one end device (e.g. smartphone). It is not possible to log in again with the same access data on a second device.

If you want to use your access data on a new device, we have to activate it for the new device, as the access data cannot be used on several devices at the same time (you will then receive the error message “Phone not activated”). Please contact our bike locker customer service so that we can activate your access data for your new device. This can take up to 2 working days.

The lock on the bike box can only be opened with the app if you are in the immediate vicinity of the bike box. Firstly, please check whether the Bluetooth on your smartphone is switched on. If the lock is displayed but not activated despite clicking on it in the app (indicated by a beep and the lock flashing green), try again first. If it still does not work, please contact our bike box customer service.

It is not possible to change the access data (customization of user name and password).

As it is not possible to change your login details, please first check the email you received from our partner Diwio at the start of your rental (end of January). You will find your login details in this email. If you can no longer find the email or the access data does not work, please contact our bike locker customer service.