Bicycle tree

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A bicycle tree, also called a cycle tree or bike tree, is a bike parking system shaped like a tree. There are several types, from simple manual stands to mechanical and fully automated systems that use computers to move and store bikes. They can hold from about 5 to 20 bikes in smaller versions.

Different designs exist around the world. Some simple models are sold at hardware stores, such as Harbor Freight Tools, with hooks to hang about five bikes. A Swiss company, Bike Tree International, designed a system where a bike is hoisted into a tree-shaped device after lifting the front wheel and attaching the wheel to a rope hook; it can handle roughly 1–24 bikes and was planned for Geneva.

A larger, automated system was developed by JFE Engineering in Japan. The first version became public in 2006, storing about 1,476 bicycles with a tag system above ground in an office-like building. Mechanical versions later expanded capacity to around 6,480 bikes, with retrieval in about 23 seconds, in facilities such as a 15-meter-deep underground storage site. Municipalities in the Tokyo area use these systems or plan to install them, charging residents around 1,800 yen per month or a one-time fee of 100 yen.

As of February 2013, about 85 systems of this type were in use in Japan, able to store about 17,323 bicycles.