This story seems to surface every six months or so. Read more at The Telegraph…

Berlin brothel offers ‘green discount’ to clients arriving by bike
By Audrey Kauffmann

“Everyone’s a winner,” explained Regina Götz, a former prostitute who runs the Maison d’Envie (House of Desire) brothel in Berlin’s Prenzlauer Berg, a district in the former East Berlin, which is a Green party stronghold.

“The environment is a topic on everyone’s lips and it’s pretty difficult to park around here. So we came up with the idea of an ‘eco discount’ of €5 (£4.60) to anyone who leaves the car at home,” Götz said.

“The crisis has slashed our turnover in half in the last year,” the 56 year-old revealed over coffee and cakes, flanked by scantily-clad prostitutes.

But the green discounts have proved a roaring success and got business back on track, she said.

Fifteen minutes in the brothel costs €25, rather than €30, for environmentally conscious punters, around 10 per cent of whom have taken up the offer.

To qualify for the discount, “clients who come by bike show their helmet or their padlock keys,” she said. “Others hand in their ticket or monthly pass if they have come on the bus.”

The brothel itself is a model of discretion – only a small brass plaque advertising “the little sexy address” betrays the true purpose of the building, housed in a block with a bike shop, a burger bar and a pub.

Yahoo News reports….

Berlin brothel offers discounts for cyclists

A Berlin brothel has come up with a novel way to negate the impact of the global economic crisis and target a new group of customers at the same time — offering a discount to patrons who arrive on bicycles.

“The recession has hit our industry hard,” said Thomas Goetz, owner of the “Maison d’envie” brothel.

“Obviously we hope that the discount will attract more people,” he added. “It’s good for business, it’s good for the environment — and it’s good for the girls.”

Customers who arrive on bicycle or who can prove they took public transportation get a 5-euro (4 pounds) discount from the usual 70-euro ($100) fee for 45 minute sessions, Goetz told Reuters. He said the environmentally friendly offer was working.

“We have around 3-5 new customers coming in daily to take advantage of the discount,” he said, adding the green rebate has helped alleviate traffic and parking congestion in the neighbourhood.

Germany is one of the few countries in the world where prostitution is legal. It has about 400,000 prostitutes who, since 2002, have been allowed to enter formal labour contracts.