Everywhere I went today, the bike racks were full to overflowing!
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| Note Paper Bike at the right. I swear I'm not stalking it |
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| This rack is OK, but is about 6" too close to the wall for easy locking of front wheel and frame. |
However there are a couple of places that really need to improve their bike parking. When places like Trader Joe's and Whole Foods have absolutely full parking at night in January, you know that when the weather gets good they're going to need more parking. I've asked and asked at the customer service at Trader Joe's and finally wrote the main contact email for the whole company in hopes that they'll do something. It doesn't help that a lot of bike racks, even here where people should know better are "wheelbenders" which are virtually unusable for anyone with a front basket or fenders.
One of the "overflow bikes" (locked to a pole next to the full rack) had a very heavy duty front fork/ handlebar mounted rack, paired with an unusual "basket" It's odd, because that style rack isn't very available here, and most people who search one out would probably look a little further than a milk-crate for their front carrying needs.
We hardly have any racks around town. It's a challenge finding a place to park my bike
ReplyDeleteMost racks aren't crowded, although I see a lot of bike commuters.
The 2 small racks at the local Farmer's Market can get crowded. It's really hard to convince store owners to get racks here... even where I work, the small one that they do have is not bolted down! (I keep my bike inside)
When bike racks are overflowing, I just resort to locking up to a nearby post. When I have a bike with a large front rack, or my tandem, I don't even bother trying to sidle up to a rack; it's not worth the effort to shoehorn the bike in place. I just choose a convenient alternative, as long as it's not obstructive to pedestrians or traffic. If I have my tandem at TJ's, I lock it to the nearby cart rack in the parking lot.
ReplyDeleteThose Basil front carrier racks, ubiquitous in parts of Europe, are actually very inexpensive. They're not nearly as strong as the up market front porteur racks typically available in the US, but they only cost about $45 and you can get them through Amazon. A milk crate is perfect for them, and I commend the owner for his or her practicality and lack vanity. I wish American bike shops kept these in stock.
ReplyDeleteWhenever I struggle with the wheel-bender racks at my local supermarket, I will be thinking about the Antwerp Bicycle Parking at Central Station video I saw on Copenhagenize. What bike parking could be.
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty well convinced that bike racks, are, for the most part, designed by people who have never actually seen a bicycle. If they don't actually hate cyclists and want you to have to damage your bike to use the rack.
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