en.Wedoany.com Reported - Transportes Metropolitanos de Lisboa (TML) launched a public tender this Thursday, planning to build the Navegante Bicycle Parking Network (Rede de Bicicletários Navegante) at transport interchange hubs in the Lisbon metropolitan area, with a total of 57 bicycle parking lots and an investment of €1.36 million.
TML stated that the new network aims to address one of the main barriers to daily bicycle use: the lack of secure parking facilities at transport interchange hubs. The system will implement uniform usage rules across the entire metropolitan area, and passengers holding a valid Navegante monthly pass can use it for free.
In a statement, the company responsible for managing road public transport services in the Lisbon metropolitan area noted that the bicycle parking lots will feature modular structures with access control, allowing users to securely park their personal bicycles before transferring to public transport.
The public tender covers the supply, installation, parameter configuration, and maintenance of the bicycle parking lots, as well as the development of access control and network monitoring systems. TML revealed that the base price for this investment is €1.36 million, with funding to be jointly borne by TML, Portugal's Infrastructure Company (Infraestruturas de Portugal), and relevant municipal authorities. It also plans to apply for European financing through the "Portugal 2030" program.
The Navegante Bicycle Parking Network project is expected to install 57 secure bicycle parking lots at transport interchange hubs in the first phase. These lots will be distributed across 18 municipalities in the Lisbon metropolitan area, with each municipality having at least one.
TML stated that by building these infrastructures, it aims to encourage a travel chain combining bicycles with public transport, helping to reduce daily reliance on cars. In addition to enhancing intermodality, the project will significantly expand the catchment area of transport interchange hubs, as walking typically covers an average radius of about 1.5 kilometers, while bicycles can extend this range to 5 to 8 kilometers, thereby increasing the number of people who can conveniently use public transport.
Regarding the selection of parking lot locations, TML explained that it evaluated 263 interchange hubs identified in the Metropolitan Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan (Plano Metropolitano de Mobilidade Urbana Sustentável, PMMUS), considering criteria such as proximity to existing and planned bicycle lanes, demand at each hub, and public transport supply, but did not disclose specific locations.
TML noted that these bicycle parking lots will complement the existing public bicycle system in the region, which primarily targets users without personal bicycles. The new network will meet the needs of those who wish to use their own bicycles in their daily commutes combined with public transport.
The project is part of the Lisbon metropolitan area's Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan, aimed at strengthening the use of slow mobility and public transport. In 2021, TML installed a bicycle parking lot at the Setúbal transport interchange hub as a pilot project under the EU-funded European Smarthubs consortium, achieving significant success.
