Advocacy & Safety - MICH TRI-COUNTY BUS & BIKE RIDERS

> SMART will be installing bike racks on all of
> our large linehaul (fixed-route) buses.
>
> We have scheduled the press conference as indicated below:
>
> Day: Thursday, May 27th
> Time: 1:00 p.m.
> Location: State Fair Grounds
>
> The event should last approximately one hour and we ask
> that participants arrive approximately 1/2 hour before (12:30)
> in order for us to conduct a quick rehearsal.
>
> We have received commitments to attend from:
>
> Nancy White
> Macomb Count Board of Commissioners Chair Person
>
> L. Brooks Patterson
> Oakland County Executive
>
> Robert Ficano
> Wayne County Executive
>
> To kick off the start of the press event, each county leader
> will ride a bicycle leading a large group of riders and a
> SMART bus.
>
> Please know that we hope to get upwards of 50 - 60 cyclists
> to attend and I sincerely appreciate your spreading the word
> about the event. Should you have any questions, please
> either e-mail me or call my direct line at (586) 791-6834.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Fred Barbret
> Macomb Community Ombudsperson
> FBarbret@smartbus.org
>
>
>
> ---------------------------------------------------
> MichBike@lmb.org - an internet mailing list to promote
> bicycling in Michigan. A friendly place for sharing
> information, ideas, or just to tell of a good (or bad)
> cycling experience. To unsubscribe, send e-mail to
> bill@lmb.org and ask to be taken off MichBike.

Whoa, Brooks Patterson is still the Oakland County Exec? He's been in that office ever since 8 Mile was paved, I think. I figured the fumes from his hairpiece adhesives woulda killed him by now!

We've had these racks here in Madison for about four years now. I first thought they were a joke (if you bike, why take the bus, and vice-versa?), but they've actually gotten a lot of use here. I could imagine in metro Detroit they'd be even more useful, in that there are more places off the bus lines where you could use your bike for your "last mile". My first "real job" required a 1.5 hr. ride on SEMTA (the old name for SMART) each way, and a mile walk at either end; doing those miles by bike woulda made life a lot easier. 'Course, that was twenty-[redacted] years ago.

Anyway, congrats to the old homies on two wheels in/around De-toilet. Who'da thunk we'd ever see bikes on buses in the Motor City?

They did a trial of bike racks on buses in Brisbane a little while back (which may be still going, I haven't heard anything lately). The really stupid thing was that they couldn't actually assign the buses with bike racks to any consistent routes -- meaning that if you used it one day on a commute, the bus on that route the next day might well be one without a rack.

Let's hope this situation is a bit better organised.

I live out in the burbs and am not on a bus line. A friend sent this to me and since there are a lot of cyclists from Michigan on BF, I thought some may be interested. When I see the buses, there is usually only 1-5 people on them. From my take of the metropolitan area, it appears that most people commute about 20-30 miles from their place of employment. Buses are only in the Detroit area with a few limited routes to some of the older suburbs around the inner ring. There is not any public transportation for the majority of working folk. We like our cars and expressways. My husband and I both work about 30 miles from home in opposite directions. He has to be at work at 6:30 am and I work the midnight shift and we both work weekends. Even if there was public transportation, they probably wouldn't run on midnights and weekends.

I would show up at this event if it were not on a Thursday at 1pm. Who's idea was that ?

I don't think that this will amount to much of a ride though. They will probably ride less than a mile. It is mainly a photo oportunity, I think.

As far as the racks go, I think it is a good thing, even though I wouldn't use it much. I do think that they will see enough use to justify the cost.

I would really like to see a bike rack on the Transit Windsor bus that goes through the tunnel. It seems this is the only route without a bike rack. It would be nice to toodle around downtown Windsor on bike or pedal out to Point Pelee for a weekend camping trip.

Dan

I would really like to see a bike rack on the Transit Windsor bus that goes through the tunnel. It seems this is the only route without a bike rack. It would be nice to toodle around downtown Windsor on bike or pedal out to Point Pelee for a weekend camping trip. You can still walk your bike over the Ambassador Bridge, can't you?

Every bus in San Diego County has a fold-down two-bike carrier on its front bumper. On some routes, these are extremely popular.

I live out in the burbs and am not on a bus line. A friend sent this to me and since there are a lot of cyclists from Michigan on BF, I thought some may be interested. When I see the buses, there is usually only 1-5 people on them. From my take of the metropolitan area, it appears that most people commute about 20-30 miles from their place of employment. Buses are only in the Detroit area with a few limited routes to some of the older suburbs around the inner ring. There is not any public transportation for the majority of working folk. We like our cars and expressways. My husband and I both work about 30 miles from home in opposite directions. He has to be at work at 6:30 am and I work the midnight shift and we both work weekends. Even if there was public transportation, they probably wouldn't run on midnights and weekends.

This is a very sad commentary. Within a six block radius of my home, I have access to- 7 bus lines and a lightrail. If I ride 3 miles into the next town, I'll have access to an additional 9 bus lines! I'm car free and total transportation cost per month is $65.00 dollars. I don't have to pay for any auto repairs, insurance, tolls, tickets and theft. The supermarket is across the street and the town square is just two blocks down where I can do all my shopping. The Lightrail takes me to huge shopping mall or I can take another subway into Manhattan. Is this something you might like?

This weekend, I'll be using the bus with my bicycle. The buses do not have bike racks but I don't need them since I'll be using a folding bicycle. This will be the first time I'll be doing this and I can't wait to post the experience. I'll probably use two buses and I'll have the bike in a bag. The folding bike has plenty of possibilities but very few people use them.

I'll report on any difficulities or troubles in bringing the folding bike aboard the bus. Again. None of the bus lines have bike racks, but I don't need one or want one. My two folding bikes are allowed inside the cabin of the bus. I HOPE!

How do they latch and unlatch exactly? I've never tried it because I didn't want to look like a fool fiddling on the front of the bus, and I know the driver is not allowed to get out. Here's the 411 from our bus company: http://www.cityofmadison.com/metro/2003/Rack%20Roll.html . Basically both wheels sit in a trough, and a swingarm comes up and holds the top of the front wheel, up by the headtube.

Your bus company should have a demo model for you to futz with at their garage and/or admin offices. If they don't, they're the fools; tell them to get one.

You can still walk your bike over the Ambassador Bridge, can't you?

You can't walk or bike across the bridge anymore. I think the only way to get across as a pedestrian or on a bike is to ride up to Algonac or Marine City and take a ferry.

This (http://www.lmb.org/internat.htm) page from the League of Michigan Bicyclists gives more detail.

Dan

DanFromDetroit, you were actually the person I posted this for. I tried to e-mail you a few months ago (about something else) and it was returned. I remembered that you commute and I think you like in RoyalOak, Hazel Park or somewhere that the bus line services. I think going to Point Pelee would be fun, used to go camping there a lot when I was a kid.

You can't walk or bike across the bridge anymore. I think the only way to get across as a pedestrian or on a bike is to ride up to Algonac or Marine City and take a ferry.

This (http://www.lmb.org/internat.htm) page from the League of Michigan Bicyclists gives more detail. I was all set to post a rant about this being another over-the-top post-9/11 crackdown. But I see the date on the page is March '96. Yoiks, looking back, I realize the last time I walked the Bridge was back in eighty-<redacted>.

We do have the problem that Chris mentioned - they are randomly assigned, so you could be waiting for the next bus if your bus doesn't have one.

OK, call me cynical on this, but just how much effort does it take for a council or a private bus company (whichever applies) to get something like this right? Granted, a bus might break down from time to time, but to change the routes everyday? I have to wonder about the desire of some important people for this sort of system to succeed at all.

I tried to e-mail you a few months ago (about something else) and it was returned. I remembered that you commute and I think you like in RoyalOak, Hazel Park or somewhere that the bus line services.


My e-mail address is now daniel.mccarthy@mail.com
I think my older addresses are defunct. I updated my profile.

I live in Hazel Park a short distance from the State Fairgrounds (about 8 1/2 and John R).

Thanks for posting the notice about the bike racks. I checked the SMART WWW site and they don't mention a word about it. I sometimes use the bus to commute to Auburn Hills. I don't think I would use the bike racks for that though; usually when I commute by bus, I run part of the way home. This keeps me out of the gym. I would use the bike racks for events downtown like the Motor City JazzFest or the concerts in Chene Park. I would probably bike downtown in the afternoon and take the bus back in the evening.

Dan