You will probably have already heard of the huge cemeteries which host the remains of tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of bicycles. The uncontrolled boom of bike-sharing in China, driven by the competition between companies and the absence of regulation, led to one overproduction of bicycles, many of which have been abandoned everywhere, from cities to countryside. There Chinathis “Asian giant”, has accustomed us to size: from the vastness of its territory to the integration of the metropolis and from the disjointed population to the disproportionate dimensions of factories, markets, shopping centers, up to the extravagances … The land of the dragon almost no longer surprises us with its records, between excesses and excellence.
The boom of Chinese bike sharing
In the years before Covid, the People’s Republic of China has experienced a substantial boom in the Smart Mobility Sector with the massive diffusion of bike-sharing services. All to promote one circulation sustainable And practice In the city increasingly crowded and constantly tormented by the air pollution of millions of motorbike cars at the same time. For this, dozens of private companies literally made the war, without a correct regulatory infrastructure to guide, going to saturate a market that in a short time has filled with app, services And bikes studied ad hoc for this form of sustainable mobility.
The ruthless competition and uncontrolled production have thus entered the Chinese territory an almost incalculable number of bicycles, which, overcoming the actual demand with several sizes, remained unused and they were abandoned Everywhere, in large metropolises and not only: thousands of bikes have also been recovered in less urbanized areas, such as countryside and forests, and even repeated by the bed of the rivers. The accumulation of these in precise places has given birth to the so -called Bicycle cemeteriessome of which have reached truly remarkable dimensions, with numbers between 50 000 and 200 000 units.
An environmental and security problem
The open -air landfills They are never a good thing if without correct disposal and recycling systems and a bicycle landfill certainly does not represent an exception. To begin with, we are not talking about simple bicycles, but of Smart transport means and therefore equipped electric motors, rechargeable batteries, sensors, Satellite navigation systemsLED lights, integrated display and numerous other digital components for connectivity … In short, nothing that can be sustainable, if abandoned in any environment on the planet.
In addition to predictable pollution That the materials of these means of transport can release in water or soil, there is also the problem that their accumulation can create particularly dangerous areas for the safety of people, where they could, for example, develop fires with toxic fumes or other accidents. In addition, unexpected and disturbing inconvenience emerged, as in the case of overturned bicycles who, day and night, have issued acoustic signals To attract the attention of passers -by, in an attempt to be repositioned for a use that would never have happened.
Creative and sustainable solutions
In addition to having created a regulatory framework that is more attentive to the real needs of this market, the Chinese government and a controlled number of companies have faced the problem by resorting to activities of recycling And conversion. Bike still usable have been put back on sixth and sold to locations affected by extreme events and natural disasters or donated to neighboring countries, such as Myanmar, recently affected by a disastrous earthquake, to allow students to travel the long sections between their home and the school. Furthermore, the more traditional forms of recycling have been joined by the most creative ones, which have used materials and components of the bikes to create original pieces of design or for furniture.
