Brighton bike hangar damaged as council say it will be replaced 'soon'

The bike locker, one of many installed across the city, appeared to have been damaged with bikes still inside the storage space.

Brighton and Hove City Council now say that the locker in Norfolk Square has been removed and a replacement will be delivered “soon”.

Laura King, who has campaigned against the cycle hangars since they were introduced last year, said: “It looked as if a heavy weight had been dropped on the top, forcing the up and over lid to buckle and open at the bottom.

“It's good to see this hangar gone from Norfolk Square today and two stolen residential parking spaces back.”

After hearing about the damaged hangar, Ms King travelled to Norfolk Square and found that the hangar had been removed.

The hangar had previously been placed next to the square with some residents arguing that it took up two spaces for cars.

Cycle hangars were first introduced by the council in 2022 as a way of storing bicycles outside.

The secure hangars, which are around the length of a small car, can each hold up to six bikes and cost around £1 a week to use.

• READ MORE: NHS Crisis: Brighton protesters march from Royal Sussex to The Level

Those opposed to the storage solution have argued that the hangars take up residential parking spaces and are unsafe.

The space previously occupied by the bike hangar (Image: Laura King)

A spokesman for Brighton and Hove City Council said: “This is a very unfortunate incident. Our contractor has now taken the damaged hangar away today and they will be delivering a replacement soon.

“At this stage it’s unclear what caused the damage, but our contractor believes a large vehicle may have crashed into it.

“We’re checking whether there is any CCTV footage that could help pinpoint the cause.

“Before removing the hangar our contractor got in touch with the residents whose bikes were in there. Our understanding is that no bikes were stolen or damaged.”

The council previously committed to adding more hangars in the new year after current spaces were filled quickly. The new hangars would take the total number of storage places up to 900 bikes.