On-the-go bike maintenance in Munich

The City of Munich (Germany) is dedicated to improving cycling infrastructure for its residents. Yet in this Handshake “Cycling Capital”, this goes beyond bike lanes.

Many cyclists have found themselves in this situation: they have a lack of air in their tyres, they still have some way to get home, and they have no bike pump with them.

Whilst a car driver can look for the next petrol station when running low on fuel, what should a cyclist do if their bike needs maintenance when they are out and about?

To help cyclists in Munich facing this issue, the City has installed 10 public air pumps. These are equipped with a manometre to ensure that air pressure in the tyres is correct.

Two pumps also serve as miniature repair stations - a selection of tools such as screwdrivers and tyre irons enables cyclists to fix their bikes on the go.

Both the tools and pumps can be used at all times, with an external agency regularly maintaining them. The pumps’ locations were decided on using criteria agreed with

experts and local stakeholders: all are positioned close to public transport nodes and frequently used bike lanes in easily visible places.

Initial user feedback has been positive, with the amount of vandalism reported negligible. Before the service can be extended, however; more data is required in relation to frequency of use and user satisfaction.

A systematic evaluation is currently underway, with the aim to complete this by spring 2021. If as expected this evidences the need for the service, the plan is to create a network of up to 30 pumps across Munich.

This amount should ensure that most of the city’s population is no further than 2km from their nearest pump and that they can easily access the service.

See the full network map here.

Read more about Munich’s work in Handshake here.