According to a monitoring carried out by ESOP Consulting l CORFAC International, 30 office buildings in Bucharest have or will have bicycle parking, most of which are of Class A.
"Many employees spend more than 70% of their working hours seating and any facility that encourages them to ride bicycles or exercise in fitness centers is highly appreciated by tenants. The owners of modern buildings take into account these requirements of the new HR programs on the physical and mental well-being of staff, thus joining the new wellness trend in the office", says Alexandru Petrescu, Managing Partner at ESOP Consulting l CORFAC International.
In 2018, according to ESOP estimates, up to 10% of existing office buildings have bicycle facilities. However, office buildings under construction to be delivered between 2018 and 2020 will have much more parking for bicycles, showers and locker rooms. The Campus 6 project in the Polytechnic District of Bucharest also has an I'Velo station.
At European Commission level this year, it was debated for the first time that the European directive on the energy performance of buildings would also include rules on bicycles parking and other non-polluting vechicles, along with facilities for electric cars.
Daily lost time due to traffic by a Bucharest car is 57 minutes higher than a typical road on the same route, according to Tom Tom Traffic Index, 7% higher than in the previous year. A solution is cycling, which reduces peak hours during work-related travel by between 30 and 50% and provides a physical exercise that improves your health.
In Bucharest, only 1% of the population uses the bicycle as a means of transport frequently, according to the statistics of The European Cyclists' Federation (ECF), while in Copenhagen, which ranks first in the top, the percentage of cyclists is 35% , and in Amsterdam is 32%. In Berlin, 13% of the population uses the bicycle frequently as a means of travel, in Vienna 6%, London 2%, Budapest 2% and Sofia 3%.
Half an hour of cycling has countless health benefits for office workers: it reduces stress, improves blood circulation, reduces the risk of diabetes by 40% and lead to weight loss of about five kg per year, according to medical studies.
For cyclists, one hour of cycling burns 300 calories, according to Finnish medical studies. (source: Esop Consulting)