Advocacy & Safety - Buses with racks for bikes?

:eek:

ATLANTA FINALLY HAS BIKE RACKS ON BUSES!

:beer:

I guess I'm slow, but I didn't know it until this afternoon. I was riding home from work and stopped at the roadside under a shade tree to take a drink. Well, I was smack-dab across from a MARTA train station where I saw a bus enter, complete with...

A BIKE ON THE FRONT????

I watched carefully at every bus that went in/out of Kensington Station, and every one had a bike rack on the front.

(Should I try it?)

All our metro buses in Denver MA carry 2, and the busews in the mtns carry 4. Had them for several years now.

Give it a shot, man.

I haven't used the bus bike racks yet but I will when I head up to Alpharetta next weekend. Intown the bus does not go where I want to go or is just too slow.

In Ottawa, about 1 bus in 3 has a bike rack on the front. You never have to wait long for a bus with a bike rack going to the vague vicinity you want to go.

Now if montreal could do it....

Originally posted by urban_assault
Intown the bus does not go where I want to go or is just too slow.
I get to work faster on my bike than MARTA. From Stone Mountain, MARTA takes me an hour and 15 minutes. One hour on the bike.

I'm thinking if I want to have a "short riding day" inbetween all-out commutes, or something. Or if I want to ride to the bus stop.
Really changes the options.

Around here, every bus has a rack. Even some of the wheelchair vans do, too (????). Here's the bad side of them:

1) Some idiots automatically put there bike on the front position, leaving you to have to lift your bike over theirs.

2) Wiper arms of the bus bang up your handgrips

3) Other bike/bus users bang up your bike, too

4) A hard spiking of the brake in the middle of a corner can cause your bike to fall off the rack. I had a driver do this once. Deliberately.

5) If it's raining or wet, your bike gets really slopped.

Alex, good tips for a newbie like me.

Cincinnati has them also. I have been using them frequently for going to work. They work great.


Originally posted by D*Alex


1) Some idiots automatically put there bike on the front position, leaving you to have to lift your bike over theirs.


On our buses you are supposed to put your bike in the front spot if no other bike is on the bus. So thanks for calling me an idiot.

Pete you've gotta start riding with your eyes open. No kamikaze tactics allowed. :D


I noticed the bike racks several weeks ago. I have been thinking about including the bus in my commute and posted a thread in the commuting forum about wearing cycling shorts on the bus.
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?s=&threadid=12567

I rode the bus yesterday for the first time (from my house to downtown Tucker - 5 miles) just to try it out and rode the bike the rest of the way to Norcross. I'm thinking of incorporating the bus into my commute when the weather, darkness, etc. make the bus safer or warmer or drier. :)

The bike racks are easy to use. The step-by-step instructions are printed on the rack.

You can also go to the website of the manufacturer and read the instructions so you won't inconvenience the driver or passengers the first time you try it by asking the driver for a quick demo.
The website is
http://www.sportworks.com/sbhow.asp

Have fun. :beer:

Sorry, Ron--I answered your post in that thread, too! I guess my brain functions only partially from time to time...

Originally posted by ridealot

On our buses you are supposed to put your bike in the front spot if no other bike is on the bus. So thanks for calling me an idiot.

The same in Seattle; you are supposed to put the bike in the front position so the driver can easily see where his/her front end is. At least that's what I'm told.

The front-mounted bike racks on buses are great, and every bus in San Diego County now sports one. However, they suffer a bit from their own success and popularity, and very often carry two bikes.

Our outstanding Coast Express Rail ("COASTER") commuter rail line has very convenient bike racks on every coach, but again the demand often outstrips the supply.

In the Phoenix area I haven't had any trouble so far with filled racks on the buses. I have been the cause of some other riders being unable to put their bike on but the nicer drivers usually let them bring it on with them if the bus isn't crowded. Those bus racks are real lifesavers for me on the afternoon commute home during summer. 19 miles uphill in 110+ degree heat is just not fun in my book. The dawn hours of the morning on the other hand, are quite different. :)

In T.O. you can ride the bus or the subway only on certain Hours of the day Monday to Friday, from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 P.m. and then after 7:30 P.M.

Have to recall my report before of having no problems. I had to ride all the way home the other night because of a full rack and a snooty driver. Some drivers have let me take my bike on but they are kind of "Rebel" drivers because it is not supposed to be allowed. Anyway, the racks seem to be full on a much more regular basis. I guess if you are not getting on at an early stop you just have to gamble(which can be rather hard when the heat gets up above 110). I don't know where they would put more bikes though. They do carry the large wheelchairs though. I wondered recently if one of the wheelchair spaces wasn't being used if a bike could be secured in that spot (if the bus was low on riders of course), after all a Bicycle is a much less dangerous piece of Cargo than a 100+ pound electric wheelchair. Hmmm. Probably way to far-fetched to ever get to someone with enough say so to do anything about it I guess.

Wow! I see bikes on our bus-bike-racks, but only once in a while.

I'm looking forward to using them more in the future when afternoon smog is accumulating. (The afternoon heat is something to consider, too.)

Wow. Racks on busses. I'd be happy if I could find one in front of a store. Only the mall in this town has a rack, at it only for 5 bikes. Even the Big 5 Sporting Goods store took out their bike rack a couple weeks ago.

I've got over $1K invested in that machine and would love to use it for sort trips to stores, restaurants, etc. Nothing secure to lock it to though in most cases.

Originally posted by RonH
I rode the bus yesterday for the first time (from my house to downtown Tucker - 5 miles) just to try it out and rode the bike the rest of the way to Norcross. I'm thinking of incorporating the bus into my commute when the weather, darkness, etc. make the bus safer or warmer or drier. :)

The bike racks are easy to use. The step-by-step instructions are printed on the rack.

You can also go to the website of the manufacturer and read the instructions so you won't inconvenience the driver or passengers the first time you try it by asking the driver for a quick demo.
The website is
http://www.sportworks.com/sbhow.asp

Thanks a million for the instructional link, Ron! :D

Hello: Beware of the bike racks on buses. I recently bought my brother a beautiful brand new mountain bike. Using the bus when he can't ride his bike is his only means of transportation. The bike came off the rack. The bus ran over his brand new bike. THEY refused to reimburse him on another bike. Basically told him "Oh Well not our problem." Him as well as his bike were crushed!!!!! He knows how to attach a bike to a bike rack. He has been doing it for over 20 years! I believe the buses bike rack was broken. SO BEWARE CHECK THE RACKS FIRST BEFORE YOU PLACE YOUR BIKES ON THEM!! I still am in the process of fighting this with RIPTA. I paid almost $400.00 for the bike. This is not a lot of money to many of you, but to me it was worth one weeks salary.

If i really have to use a bus rack, I always bungee-cord the wheel that is not held by the arm to the rack itself. I've seen a driver intentionally try to knock a bike off the rack, and I'd bet that your case was one of driver maliciousness.

Susan, sorry to hear about that! I hope you get fully reimbursed. I have never used the bike racks, but they are available on all our public busses in Utah. I believe a school district around here is also installing them on school busses.

Here in the U.K. bus racks are very rare (like everything else for cyclists use).

But i am delighted to see that the local service bus ferrering tourists along the lenght of the Roman Wall (Wallsend to Bowness-on-Solway) has now installed racks to the rear of the bus/busses.

I have not, up till now noticed any bikes on them , but i shall use the service myself shortly, when i take a vacation coming up soon.

I think I will need to take a bungee cord to secure the bike as i have not seen any straps attached to the bars , unless the driver keeps them in the cab....... :confused:

In my town they have bike racks on SOME of the buses and the same bus might not be taking the same route every day. Great idea adding racks to the bus's but where I live you gotta wait thinking cmon lucky #7 gimme a rack

For those of you who have used bus bike racks, can these racks be used to secure a bike with fenders?

All our busses have racks, and often all are full, especially in the summer.

One other use for bike racks: If your bike breaks down while you're riding in the city, ride home on the bus. (If you're a weight weenie, $1 bus fare is a lot lighter than tube, pump and tools!)Also, use a bus to take a sick bike to the LBS.

In San Deigo, getting most places is faster on my bike then on the bus. Most suburban bus lines only run twice an hour, so if the bike rack is full, you have to wait a long time. In Sacramento, you can bring you bike on the bus if the rack is full and its the last bus of the day.

The only times I've used the rack is going to the doctors, and shopping once. The bus cuts out 2 huge hills, and then I ride the last flat 2.5miles myself. Pretty handy when you have severe bronchtis. the one time shopping I end buying more than I had orginaly planned, and it was getting cold and dark. Rode about halfway, and then hopped on a bus. I pulled off panniers and took the them on the bus with me, as the road bike doesn't seem to fit that tightly in the rack, and i was worried about it flopping over and bending the rims.

In response to the feneder question, I think it should be ok. The arm grabs the top of the front wheel, so as long as your fenders don't extend to far out, you should be fine.

Both Sac RT and SD MTS specificly say that they are not liable for any damage or theft to you bike, and also say not to lock you bike to the rack. If I had a nice bike, I'd put a lock throuhg the spokes, and put an extra bungie to the rack.
I always sit up front so I can watch my bike.

For those of you who have used bus bike racks, can these racks be used to secure a bike with fenders?

Yes, the ones on the MARTA (metro Atlanta) work fine on fendered bikes.

Pittsburgh has the "rack and roll" plan. I've never used it and I don’t see many bikes on the buses that are equipped with the racks. One of the only issues that I've found with the plan is that in a city of hills, they do not have the racks on buses that go to the "higher" parts of the city.

This would allow commuters to ride downhill to work, and get a ride uphill in the evening. The bus entity claims that they did a study of bike use and only put racks on the busses that go to the areas with the most bike use. So places like Squirrel Hill where excluded from the program. I suspect that the bus company did not want the program be too successful, because they could lose half their riders.

This PDFs have useful information for how to load your bikes and Pittsburgh related maps.
http://www.ridegold.com/pdf/RacknRoll.pdf

This one shows how you could use the buses to get to parks then ride.
http://www.ridegold.com/pdf/pnr.pdf

1) Some idiots automatically put there bike on the front position, leaving you to have to lift your bike over theirs.

4) A hard spiking of the brake in the middle of a corner can cause your bike to fall off the rack. I had a driver do this once. Deliberately.

5) If it's raining or wet, your bike gets really slopped.

1) You dont have to lift the bike over as you can load from the curb.

4) In Montreal years ago they had a few busses with racks on the front - these racks were like hooks projecting from the front of the bus and I can visualise bikes getting bounced off them. I dont think there would be much chance of it happening with the sportracks shown in the link.

5) Happens whether it is on the rack or if you are riding it along the street

to the delight of switch hitters everywhere!

In T.O. you can ride the bus or the subway only on certain Hours of the day Monday to Friday, from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 P.m. and then after 7:30 P.M.
You can take your bike in the subway if it's not rush hour. Some bus routes, like Bathurst, have bike racks. The wheels sit in a shallow frame, and an extendable hook on a spring goes over the wheel. Not sure how well it would work with fenders...maybe the hook would crush them.

For those of you who have used bus bike racks, can these racks be used to secure a bike with fenders?
Where I live, the racks can take bikes with fenders, provided that the front fender doesn't extend forward a ridiculous amount. The only drawback other than the "rack already full" scenario is that the racks here tend to bend the thinner, weaker wheels a bit. So if you have a top-notch racer or demand perfectly true wheels, you probably wouldn't want to use the racks. Otherwise, they're great.

All busses here in Albuquerque have bike racks on the front, and the new commuter trains will have racks inside them. Now if only there was decent bus route coverage in the north valley...

For those of you who have used bus bike racks, can these racks be used to secure a bike with fenders?

In Seattle Area - Maybe -

If bike has caliper breaks - just put holding arm over front brake.

If using cantilever breaks and plastic fenders - eventually the hold arm will crack/break the front fender.

Be sure to lift the bike straight up when removing vs pulling the bike toward you and stressing out the wheels (simple I know - but if in hurry it can happen.)

Good luck.

In my town they have bike racks on SOME of the buses and the same bus might not be taking the same route every day. Great idea adding racks to the bus's but where I live you gotta wait thinking cmon lucky #7 gimme a rackDude, you seriously need to quit bumping old-ass threads.

http://members.tripod.com/~Suspiria1/brains.jpg

We've got em here in Vancouver, and I've used them a few times with my BMX.

Only once I had a problem, the driver said "No kids bikes!!"

"But this bicycle has a 21" top tube. It's sized for an adult."

"TAKE IT OFF!"

"I assure you its quite secure."

..and with that he got out of the bus, ran around to the front, then struggled to pull the locking arm free from my tire (I told him it was secure), before finally throwing my bmx on the sidewalk.

I just waited another 15 minutes and caught the next bus.

Dude, you seriously need to quit bumping old-ass threads.
I just noticed this was a major bump. It was interesting to see how many people are still active here after almost four years.