REPORT highlights serious lack of parking provision for motorbikes

• Less than 1% of the United Kingdom’s licensed motorbikes are being granted a designated space in council car parks
• Only 4,241 of the UK’s 1,046,437 total parking spaces* in council car parks are dedicated to motorcycles – a paltry 0.41%. Those motorcycle-specific spaces** may have enough room to fit approximately*** 11,058 bikes in them but it still leaves a huge shortfall when compared against the number of riders in the UK
• There are around 1.4 million registered motorcycles across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland but the lack of provision means just 0.76% of them are able to park in bays that are allocated exclusively to them in authorities’ off-street parking facilities
• The damning under-representation looks even worse when you consider there are roughly 34 million registered cars in the four countries. Every 30 in 1,000 cars are being catered for by councils, but only seven in 1,000 motorcycles – over four times less
• The in-depth report produced by Bikesure, the UK’s largest motorcycle insurance broker, contains a plethora of visual stats with a national, regional and local focus and highlights the chaos that also reigns around motorcycle parking
• “The numbers just don’t add up, and bikers deserve better,” said Rob Balls, the company’s general manager who is urging authorities to “start addressing the imbalance”

Eye-opening stats show ‘bikers deserve better’ as ONLY 0.76% of motorbikes granted a designated space across ALL UK council car parks

Less than 1% of the United Kingdom’s licensed motorbikes are being granted a designated space in council car parks.

Only 4,241 of the UK’s 1,046,437 total parking spaces* in council car parks are dedicated to motorcycles – a paltry 0.41%. Those motorcycle-specific spaces** may have enough room to fit approximately*** 11,058 bikes in them but it still leaves a huge shortfall when compared against the number of riders in the UK. There are around 1.4 million registered motorcycles across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland but the lack of provision means just 0.76% are able to park in bays that are allocated exclusively to them in authorities’ off-street parking facilities.

The damning under-representation looks even worse when you consider there are roughly 34 million registered cars in the four countries. Every 30 in 1,000 cars are being catered for by councils, but only seven in 1,000 motorcycles – over four times less.

The eye-opening statistics were unearthed by Bikesure, the UK’s largest motorcycle insurance broker, which has produced one of the most in-depth reports ever seen on the issue.

Its detailed analysis found that councils in England are collectively providing the best offering when it comes to this form of motorcycle parking. Calculations were based on the following:

• Most cars can take advantage of a one-bay-per-vehicle offering but the majority of allocated motorbike parking comes in a shared form by way of larger bays or areas that have the room to fit multiple machines
  
  
• Therefore, to provide the most accurate picture of demand versus capacity, the number of registered bikes in an area was divided by the approximate number of motorbikes that can fit in its designated motorcycle parking spaces
  
  
• This gave a comparison-based percentage to draw the best conclusions on how councils, counties, regions and countries are serving two-wheel motorists

England (0.82%) claims the dubious bragging rights of topping the UK statistics by way of having room to park around 10,250 of its 1.25 million registered motorcycles in areas reserved for bikes. Using the same formula leaves Wales (0.49%), Scotland (0.47%) and Northern Ireland (0.05%) faring even worse. The latter provides a tiny 13 bays in total.

Rob Balls, Bikesure general manager, said: “Our findings lay bare the reality that UK motorcyclists are being undoubtedly overlooked when it comes to the safe and secure parking of their machines.

“It’s concerning to us that, despite there being over 1.4 million licensed bikes on our roads, our councils have made provisions for fewer than 12,000 of them. This just doesn’t feel good enough. It’s time for all local authorities to recognise the scale of the problem and start addressing the imbalance. The numbers just don’t add up, and bikers deserve better.”

Other key takeaways gained from collecting data from 362 authorities include:

• Stratford-on-Avon District Council provides the most assigned motorcycle parking spaces (159) in the UK. It has a purpose built 150-space facility designated specifically – and only – for motorbikes.
  
  
• The City of London’s remarkably friendly approach to two-wheels means a huge 6.72% of its total allocated parking spots in car parks are dedicated to bikes, the best return in the UK – and they’re all free!
  
  
• The same council’s designated motorcycle parking slots accommodates the largest approximate total number of bikes (419) in the UK
  
  
• The South West (1.29%) is the best region in England when it comes to the percentage of licenced bikes that can be parked in a motorcycle specific space. Yorkshire and The Humber (0.30%) sits bottom of the list
  
  
• Six of the 22 councils in Wales do not offer any form of bike-specific parking in their car parks and 47% of councils have pay and display parking – the second highest in the UK behind Northern Ireland
  
  
• Seven councils in Scotland failed to provide data on the matter; three because they either have no car parks or their parking is managed by another authority
  
  
• Eight districts in Northern Ireland have zero spaces dedicated to bikes. Half of the regions in the country have pay and display offerings – the highest percentage in the study

The stats do not take into account spaces, bays or areas that allow both bikes and cars to use them. This is because with almost 40 million drivers on the road compared to 3.6 million bikers, it’s likely that a majority of those will already be filled long before a motorbike tries to park up.

The misery continues for bikers even if there are any dedicated motorbike spaces available in the first place with confusion reigning when it comes to rules around parking in off-street car parks. This includes no uniformity in the size of dedicated bays, the ability to use them being contingent on how others have parked and confusing parking communications that remain open to misinterpretation. Some bikers are even prohibited from leaving their machine in certain car parks, while others are instructed to park in a “sensible area” – but not in bays.

Mr Balls added: “Of course, we can appreciate that space and resources are limited and not every council can follow Stratford-on-Avon’s lead. Nonetheless, we believe that riders deserve the same consideration and consistency as is given to car drivers. Clearer rules, fairer charges, and safer, designated areas would go a long way in helping bikers feel recognised and respected on the road.”

Visit the Bikesure Website to read the in-depth report in full and dig into a plethora of visual stats with a national, regional and local focus.