Getting around on your bike

Some people exercise with it while others use it for getting around. For most people, it probably serves both purposes but it also contributes to climate protection so let’s take a closer look at the bicycle because it also plays its very own role in the ZEISS mobility concept.

On the path to climate neutrality, the journey to work has to also become emission-free. Cyclists are already achieving this today because they do not consume any fossil fuels. Besides, they are doing something for their health. They don’t make any noise when they are traveling. And they take up less room. These are all good reasons for ZEISS to promote cycling.

The company has therefore installed covered bicycle parking at the Oberkochen site. If you cycle to work, you can get a locker in which you can store your cycling gear and a change of clothes. And there are showers so that you can freshen up after a strenuous journey. All of this is making an impact because more and more colleagues are cycling to ZEISS. This is not a situation that can be taken for granted because of Oberkochen’s rural location and the fact that these journeys tend to take longer and because cycling in the hilly Swabian Alb is inescapably challenging.

“Cycling helps to ease the overall traffic situation here in Oberkochen,” says Uli Schmidgall, Service Manager for Infrastructure Real Estate Management at the South Factory in Oberkochen. The number of people working at ZEISS in Oberkochen is greater than the number of people living there. The main road that runs through the town is very busy especially at peak times. Therefore, one car less is a benefit for the flow of traffic and it also helps to ease the parking situation.

ZEISS has also taken an unusual approach in achieving this because additional bus lines had not been considered feasible for a long time so ZEISS started six new lines on its own initiative. They were so well received and operated so successfully that they have now been taken over by the public transport companies.