BROOKLYN, NY — The borough's busiest transportation center became the first spot in New York City to get a new kind of public bike and scooter parking hub last week.
Elected officials unveiled the first permanent "Oonee Pod" at Atlantic Terminal on Friday, a new structure that offers secure parking and other services to cyclists and scooter riders. Oonee's first brought its prototype to the Brooklyn Navy Yard last year.
The company's Brooklyn-born founder Shabazz Stuart has said the new kind of bike storage, which he created after having his own bike stolen several times, will hopefully be the first of many for the city. Stuart told Streetsblog last year the goal is to have 20,000 Oonee pods in the city.
“By making the experience of cycling more convenient and reliable, we hope to encourage even more members of the community to use bicycles," Stuart said about the new Brooklyn hub. "As a lifelong Brooklynite, I am proud and blessed to stand with these community leaders as we deliver a much improved experience to area cyclists."
The Atlantic Terminal hub, which sits near the corner of Atlantic Avenue and Fort Greene Place, is a roughly 13-foot by 15-foot pod complete with e-bike charging stations, an air pump and cell phone chargers in addition to its storage room for a few dozen bikes, according to Oonee's website.
The hub also includes its own lighting, planters and an irrigated roof system that officials said will bring more public seating and better visibility to the street around it.
"New Yorkers should feel comfortable and confident getting around the city, and Oonee’s next level innovation has stepped outside the box creating parking access for cyclists," City Council Majority Leader Laurie Cumbo said. "...This is the innovation of the next decade, and I commend Oonee for working to keep New York on-the go."
The Oonee kiosk allows cyclists to park their bikes or scooters for free or for a low monthly rate.
The pod comes as the number of cyclists is growing city-wide, with nearly half found in Brooklyn.
A Department of Transportation report found that 20,771 of the city's 48,797 cyclists as of 2017 were found in Brooklyn. The same report found that between 2012 and 2017, the number of people cycling to work in New York City increased by 55 percent, according to the Brooklyn Borough President's Office. Overall, the report estimates, 793,000 adult New Yorkers regularly ride bicycles.