FAQs

Once we've installed the hangars, you can request a rental space with Hooplr by visiting their website. You can join a waiting list if the hangar is full. To request a space in a different street, email transport@sheffield.gov.uk

Hooplr charges £72 per year per cycle space. This covers the cost to manage and administer the rental scheme, and includes a maintenance check twice per year. 

We recognise that the cost of £72 per year per bike space may be expensive for some residents. Unfortunately, the price is set by the third-party provider. We do not have long-term, sustainable funding to subsidise spaces at this stage.

Some local authorities manage their own cycle hangar rental projects. With enough hangars in place, income from rental fees may cover project costs. These costs include staff, administration, websites and payment platforms. We may consider this approach if the project gets to this sort of scale in Sheffield. 

Hangars are designed for standard cycles and e-bikes. We will consider the needs of people who have limited mobility, but there are no proposals to provide spaces for adapted cycles such as cargo bikes. You must remove accessories like baskets, bags and child seats before you store your cycle as they can obstruct the hangar door mechanism and other cycle spaces.   

Hooplr hangars offer the highest ‘Sold Secure’ rating – ‘Pedal and Powered Cycle Diamond’. We recommend that you have your own cycle insurance and use two locks with an appropriate ‘Sold Secure’ rating. Your cycle is stored at your own risk. If your cycle is stolen, you should report it to South Yorkshire Police. Hooplr and Sheffield City Council cannot accept any responsibility for stolen or damaged cycles.

Users or other residents can report issues to Hooplr or contact Sheffield City Council directly. We will work with Hooplr to maintain hangars. We will respond to urgent issues as quickly as possible. 

Funding generated from the Clear Air Zone will help to cover the costs of repairing any damage. 

Most hangars will be placed on the road near homes. They work best where there are lots of requests for bike parking, especially on streets with high-density housing where people don’t have driveways or garages.

We will try to place hangars as close as possible to where they’re requested, but they must be located in safe areas and must not obstruct access for other road users. We’ll also consider how close they are to existing and planned cycle routes.

Once installed, we expect hangars to be in place for many years to come.

If a hangar remained unused for a significant amount of time, or other significant or unforeseen issues came up, we would look to move it. We may also need to temporarily move hangars for highway resurfacing or other works.

Many households today are fortunate enough to own two or more vehicles but many residential streets in Sheffield were built long before cars became affordable on an average income. Increasing car ownership and demand for parking puts pressure on space for parking. The impact of a single cycle hangar is virtually negligible. 

Each cycle hangar holds up to six bikes and takes up about half the space of a standard parking bay. Providing better cycle parking and making walking, wheeling and cycling easier helps to reduce traffic and congestion for people who need to drive. If a hangar enables even one household to own one less car, the space it takes is balanced by the reduced demand for parking.

Anyone registered as disabled with a blue badge permit can apply for an advisory disabled parking bay.

We aim to avoid locating hangars where there is a need for an advisory disabled parking bay. If you think you may be affected, please email us as soon as possible.

We normally put hangars on the road, but we may install on pavements where space is available. It is important to leave enough space for people using wheelchairs or parents with pushchairs, so we aim to keep at least 2 metres clear.

We avoid locating hangars anywhere that would cause access issues for other road users. This means keeping driveways and access points clear. If your access is affected in any way, please email us as soon as possible.

We avoid locating hangars on narrow roads where space might be an issue. It is vital that access is retained for all vehicles and for the emergency services. Hangars are just over 2 metres deep, which is slightly wider than the average car. The front feet of the hangar are secured to the pavement, so hangars sit flush with other vehicles parked at the roadside. If a hangar impacts access for any vehicle, please email us as soon as possible.

We avoid locating hangars anywhere that might cause a visibility issue for other road users. This includes near to junctions, pedestrian crossings, driveways or vehicle access points. If you are concerned that a hangar impacts visibility, please email us as soon as possible.

Hangars have enough space for six standard bikes. They are shorter than most cars and take up roughly half the space of a standard parking bay.  The dimensions of the Hooplr bike hangar are 2578mm wide, 1330mm high and 2030mm deep. The door raises to 2270mm high when open – roughly the height of a van.

Sizes for a closed hangar

Sizes for the width of a hangar

Sizes for an open hangar

 

 

 

We usually install hangars on tarmac, paving or other hard surfaces. This is to make them as secure as possible and to ensure they are usable.

We cannot put hangars on steep gradients. Flat, level ground is essential. Hills can cause bikes to lean to one side inside the hangar, which may interfere with the door mechanism. Steep gradients also make access and storage of bikes more difficult for users.

Car parks can often be secluded. They can have poor visibility and inconsistent traffic flow. On-street locations generally have people coming and going on a regular basis which means hangars are visible to more people. Locations with fewer people moving around could be more vulnerable to break-ins and vandalism.

Sheffield City Council has the authority and responsibility for how roads and streets are used. We have full control over where they are located, how they are installed and what happens to them once they are in use. Negotiating with landowners may be a complicated and costly process and could lead to issues in future.

We have not received any reports of antisocial behaviour linked to cycle hangars in Sheffield. Other projects in the UK report that no evidence that cycle hangars attract antisocial behaviour. Outside London, break-ins to cycle hangars are rare.

If a cycle hangar is damaged, please let Hooplr know. They will take any action that is needed. They will also respond to urgent issues as soon as possible.   

We all have different competing demands for space at home. People may find it difficult to move cycles out of sheds or cellars, particularly if they have mobility issues or are storing other things. We only locate hangars where we have had requests – and most of them come from inner city terraced streets where storage space is limited. Hangars can make cycling easier and more accessible for more people.

Active Travel England and the Department for Transport provide funding to help make walking, wheeling and cycling easier for more journeys. We have received a number of requests for secure cycle parking. Hangars make storing and accessing bikes quicker, easier and more convenient for people who travel regularly by bike and may not be able to store a bike at home.

Hundreds of people have requested cycle hangars across Sheffield and uptake of rental spaces has been good. Most spaces are booked quickly and waiting lists are forming at many locations. Furthermore, people are asking for reserve spaces in hangars that are yet to be installed.

It is important that we only locate hangars in places where they will be well used and review uptake of rental spaces regularly. If hangars are unused or rentals are low, we will look to relocate them to other streets.

Evidence shows that the number of journeys made by bike increases where there is investment in cycling infrastructure. We continue to invest in high-quality cycle routes in Sheffield, and we expect cycling levels to keep rising. This will lead to increased demand for secure cycle parking. You can find out more about our walking, wheeling and cycling projects online.

To be able to install the hangar, we will need to suspend parking for a period of time. We will put advance notices on street to let residents know when the suspension period will be.  We will also write to local residents at least seven days before we expect to install.

We aim to create enough space so that a large delivery vehicle can pull up to unload the hangar and install it. If we are unable to find the owner of a parked vehicle in the suspended area, we will tow or move the vehicle to prevent delays and ensure the hangar can be installed safely. We will issue a Penalty Charge Notice to any vehicle we need to move. You can find information about parking fines, vehicle removal charges, and storage fees on the Sheffield City Council website.

Arguably, hangars are no more of an eyesore than residential roads filled with cars and vans. Hangars are practical and compact, taking up less space in the street than most other vehicles. They keep bikes tidy and secure, meaning bikes aren’t left on pavements or chained to railings.

We aim to avoid locating hangars close to trees because branches may block the door and leaves may gather inside the hangar. If you think this may be an issue, please email us.

Parking restrictions are often in place to improve road safety or to ensure traffic flows freely. We need to consider the potential impact of locating hangars where these kinds of restrictions apply. Changing the legal Traffic Regulation Orders that underpin parking restrictions will also increase the cost and timescales for installing hangars.

We are supportive of people switching to electric vehicles and we are working to add more charging infrastructure across the city.

You can find out more on our website, and you can also tell us where you think a charge point should be located.

We discourage the use of EV charging cables trailing (or overhead) between a private property and a car parked on the public highway. This is considered a hazard and is not permitted even with the use of cable protectors or ramps. Further information is available on the Sheffield City Council website.

Before we go ahead with installation, it’s important that we hear your views. Officers and local ward councillors will consider all feedback before we make a final decision on whether to proceed with a proposed location. Where there is a case for relocation, we will examine alternative options. Please provide feedback in writing by emailing transport@sheffield.gov.uk

You can also contact your ward councillor with feedback. Find your councillor on the Sheffield City Council website. 

For more answers to frequently asked questions, visit the Hooplr website.

Our initial trial of cycle hangars was delivered in Crookes and Walkley. Falco will continue to manage these hangars on our behalf. To rent a space in one of these hangars, visit Falco's website.