S-PARK

The S-PARK is a bike rack, reimagined. It redistributes the electricity produced by people on their bikes, to their neighborhood.

Long description

Amsterdam has some impressive ambitions when it comes to generating renewable energy – by 2025, the city has pledged that 1/4 of its electricity will be sustainably generated. But in the centre, packed with monuments and protected buildings, solar panels are not permitted. Other infrastructure necessary for the transition, like electricity substations and transformers, are way too big or just too ugly to fit. So, how can we transform a city that can’t be transformed?

Well, let’s not forget this is the City of Bikes we’re talking about. Every day, Amsterdammers cycle a total of 2 million kilometers. When people pedal to work, to the gym, or to the other side of the city, an average of 19.5 million watt-hours is generated. It’s a crazy amount of energy — enough to power thousands of households.

What if we could bring this energy back home?
This, is exactly the idea behind the S-PARK.

The S-PARK is a bike rack, reimagined. It turns the energy produced by people on their bikes, into electricity for their own neighbourhood.

How does it work? Simple. Every neighbour is given a special front wheel. Once installed, it stores the energy generated while cycling and braking in batteries. And at the end of the day, when everyone comes back home and parks their bike, the energy is then redistributed into the neighbourhood’s electrical grid, providing enough clean electricity to power all the surrounding streetlights, to play video games, or power a fridge for a full day.