Just ask Franklin High School.
(Photo: J.Maus/BikePortland)
Good bike parking: it’s not that hard but it’s not that common, at least in North America. Except in Portland, where we really do know how it’s done.
The explanations don’t get any shorter and sweeter than this one from BikePortland reader Jessica Roberts, who shared it beneath our story Tuesday about the city enforcing its bike parking code on a North Portland Home Depot in response to a resident’s complaint. (As we wrote, anybody can report potentially out-of-compliance bike parking in Portland by calling (503) 823-CODE (2633) or using the BDS online form.)
Here’s Roberts’ simple definition, plus a couple examples of rack designs that don’t cut it:
A good bike rack provides two points of contact to hold up the bike, allows you to lock the frame and the wheel with a U-lock, works for all types of bikes, and organizes bicycles so they do not block the pedestrian space. Toast racks don’t allow for the frame to be locked, and don’t have 2 points of contact. Ribbon racks don’t have 2 points of contact and often end up blocking pedestrian space.
So clear. So true. So rare.
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Honorable mention here goes to reader JJJJ, who observed beneath the same post that Portland deserves credit for continuing to lead the nation in good bike parking. That’s totally true, and it’s something we can all be proud of.
Yes, we pay for good comments. We’ll be mailing a $5 bill to Jessica in thanks for this great one.