Commuting - Facilities Manager - Requesting inputs for the best bike rack

I'm in the middle of a expansion at our manufacturing facility. We have showers available and the new employee entrance has a cement slab for parking bikes. Now I need to spec out the bike rack. I need parking for a max of 6 bikes.

Security really isn't an issue. We are is a small town in the center of Minnesota; I rarely lock my bike. I really only need something to designate where the bikes should be parked, and something to keep the opportunistic thief at bay.

If you were designing a building (and responsible for the budget) what style of bike rack would you spec out. Before I get a lot of comments on various enclosed structures... I'm lucky to be getting a place to park and a rack; there is no way in #e!! I'm going to get an enclosure.

A bike rack should be bolted to the ground or anchored in a way that it can't be cut or pried open. For what its worth, in my small town, no one bothers to lock up their bikes. There's no crime where I live.

simple upside down U shaped pipe about 36" high 40" long, maybe 1 3/4" diameter. Something to lean and lock a couple bikes against on either side. They're pretty common. Whatever kind you get DON"T get the kind for putting a single wheel into, they simply bend wheels when the bike falls over.

Here's (http://www.vtpi.org/tdm/tdm85.htm) a good page about bike parking. If you scroll to the bottom, there are links to manufacturers, as well as other references. In my opinion, there are three overarching guidelines:

(1) The rack should support the frame of the bike, not the wheel. It should be simple to pass a U-lock through the rack, the frame, and one wheel. There are plenty of designs out there that will accomplish this. Unfortunately, where I live the wheelbender is king (where racks exist at all).

(2) The rack should be securely mounted in the ground. Ideally, it should be embedded in concrete, but at a minimum it should be secured to concrete with tamper-proof fasteners.

(3) Simply providing a rack is not sufficient; consider siting and orientation. Bikes should not be crowded, and it should be easy to move the bike in and out of the rack, even when racks are full. If it's a rack like the Cora (http://www.cora.com/bikeparking.htm) that allows access from both sides, make sure it's accessible from both sides by placing it perpendicular to walls or other barriers.

Wrong:

http://www.vtpi.org/tdm/tdm85_02.jpg

Right:

http://www.bicycleparkingonline.org/sites/default/files/Coat-hanger.jpg

Interesting reading here (http://fortworthology.com/2010/09/13/draft-of-fort-worth-bike-parking-ordinance/) and here (http://fortworthology.com/2010/10/01/near-southside-bike-parking-plan-update-racks-are-in/).

http://fortworthology.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/citybikeracks-475x304.jpg

Yeah, the inverted U is the best IMHO. One can accommodate two bikes, one on each side and allows to run a cable/chain through both wheels and the frame easily and supports a bike in two places. So you'd need 3 (make that 4 to be future proof). The front-wheel-in racks indeed suck.

A,

The "wave" rack (lower left in Doohickie's post) isn't my favorite, but it's far, far superior to the other two in the "Not allowed" category. Maybe the top three should be called "Preferred", the wave and Cora could be in an "Acceptable" category, and the other two "Not allowed" should be relabeled "Melt down for scrap".

For a rack, I like the inverted "U" as well. I opted for bike lockers instead for the commuters at our downtown location. Commuter bikes tend to have a lot of easily-removed accessories (lights, bells/horns, pumps, packs, etc.) and having bike lockers allows them to leave all that stuff on their bikes without fear of it getting ripped off. Lockers are a much more expensive solution but, if you can fit them in the budget, they are a much more secure solution.

Why a maximum of 6? Those inverted Us are great as long as the bolts aren't exposed for anyone w/ a socket wrench to just take them out, but if you think you need 6, you should put in 8 or 10, and see if you can encourage more people

At work, we just got another 8 unit bike rack (we now have 4 bike racks). It's not bad. Bolted to the floor in a secure parking garage next to the entrance. The only problem is that the spaces are too close together. This is invariably an issue with people who ride flat bar bikes as commuters (i.e. most of our commuters). Flat bars are generally 58cm wide, versus 42cm for traditional drop bars. So when you get a bunch of flat bar bikes parked in the same rack, some spaces become unusable. Also the space for the wheels doesn't allow for tires wider than 2" which is a problem for some mountain bikes. It's also really hard to get to one's lock since the rack is bolted next to a wall. Because of this, I try to park as close to the end as possible. Fortunately, I'm often the first one in, so the rack is wide open when I arrive.

In my opinion, inverted U is the best and most simple option.

There have been lots of the wavy racks being installed around campus and the apartment complex here and I hate them.

Here is some advice (http://www.ctc.org.uk/resources/campaigns/cycleparkinfo.pdf) on the correct spacing of inverted U (or Sheffield) racks.
They are often placed too high or low, too close together, too close to a lamp-post or wall. You need sufficient room at each end for a large wheel to stick out. If the ground is not level, then they are best placed along the contours to prevent bikes rolling when locking up.

The location should avoid any natural pedestrian route, fire exit route etc.

The stainless steel ones are better than rough galvanized steel.
Fancy designs generally work less well.

We have bike racks in our building and they're the type where you just sort of slide the front of your tire between two vertical bars. I hate them, because they're just begging to have some tool trip over your bike and wreck your wheelset. I alwas lock up against the ends of the rack to avoid this.

this:

http://img291.imageshack.us/img291/5008/rackn.jpg

upside-down U with room on each side. can hold 4 bikes on each "U" if needed

The ones I hate (which seem to be popular with municipalities as they generate revenue albeit probably meager) are the ones with a little billboard for advertising on the top. It blocks you from getting your bike all the way in there and people usually just end up locking on the ends, leaving all the slots in the middle empty.

http://www.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=http://www.streetmedia.ca/images/bikerack_gray.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.streetmedia.ca/bike_racks.php&usg=__BsaKdGtMyFRbnl6Bd2UEtRoKcc8=&h=351&w=300&sz=19&hl=en&start=0&zoom=1&tbnid=QijjEzM3SXzacM:&tbnh=140&tbnw=103&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dbike%2Brack%2Bwith%2Badvertising%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Doff%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26sa%3DN%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26biw%3D1280%26bih%3D860%26tbs%3Disch:1&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=315&vpy=56&dur=2077&hovh=243&hovw=208&tx=103&ty=266&ei=zFOqTOCqNI36swPKttSkAw&oei=zFOqTOCqNI36swPKttSkAw&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=33&ved=1t:429,r:1,s:0

while the inverted U is popular, I've found This type (http://www.belson.com/sentry.htm)to be the best. It's much easier to lock to, and the design makes it very intuitive. The U can be misused in a number of ways, but the second you put your bike in to one of those, you know how to lock it safely and securely.

Staples rule, but a possibly-cheaper alternative is the coil-type rack, which I haven't seen mentioned so far. We have these at my work and they're serviceable. The main problem with the racks with a solid bar going along horizontally between bikes is they seem to assume no on uses drop bars. Real pain to deal with.

Consider a Saris Stadium Rack - suggest the 8 bike unit.
These racks are well built, long lasting and easy to use.
Also suggest you talk with whom ever does snow removal to make sure the rack is located in a spot that minimally interferes with snow plowing, blowing or shoveling.

If you end up looking for wall hanging storage, the bike rooms at my work have the Saris Locking Bike Trac, and they are quite nice.

I appreciate all of the replies. I'm also a fan of the inverted U (sheffield). I just know that I can sometimes be very opinionated and thought I should get more of a consensus on this. I ride a recumbent and most other racks don't work for a recumbent. I've been using the picnic table outside my office. That's not entirely true... I haven't been using anything because I haven't commuted in over 2 months! That's a whole other thread.

The other reason for putting this up for the forum to review is it gave me an excuse to surf the forum while at work!

the apt bldg i work at has some racks that are a tall tube with smaller steel loops that stick out on each side. I like it because the steel loop that sticks out fits right inbetween the front triangle on my bike. I use pinhead skewers so I have no need to run chain through both my wheels, I just lock my frame up.

the apt bldg i work at has some racks that are a tall tube with smaller steel loops that stick out on each side.
We have those all over our downtown. We had a lot of trouble getting people to realize they are bike racks. After months of seeing bikes chained to trees, sign posts and light posts right next to the racks, I ordered a bunch of bicycle stickers and stuck them on all the racks. It has helped but many people still chain to other stuff.

The other reason for putting this up for the forum to review is it gave me an excuse to surf the forum while at work!

Well played, sir. Now get back to work! :troll:

I'm OK with the left-most rack in Mr. Doohickie's NOT ALLOWED list. The "allowed" bunch are good to. Keep space for bikes to point from miltiple sides if at all possible.

I would consider these: http://www.saris.com/commercial-parking/commercial-racks.html?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage_images_commercialParking_norating.tpl&product_id=145&category_id=17 Square-wall tubing can't be cut with a pipe cutter, for one thing.

If you were designing a building (and responsible for the budget) what style of bike rack would you spec out. Before I get a lot of comments on various enclosed structures... I'm lucky to be getting a place to park and a rack; there is no way in #e!! I'm going to get an enclosure.

For bike racks in front of a retail establishment, my preference is the inverted U, for all the reasons that have been stated here, however for a place of employment, I would push for bike lockers - despite your assertion that you are lucky to get a place to park and a rack. My reasons:

1) The cost of bike lockers, per employee is still lower than the cost of a paved parking lot.

2) A bike which is regularly used for commuting is liable to have lots of things on it - lights, computer, etc. Even if theft is not an issue, I have had my lights messed with, probably by curious people. The fact that the bike is going to sit in that location every day, for 8+ hours a day makes the security a much bigger issue than the kind of bike rack that would be common for transient use.

3) You are in a part of the country that occasionally has weather (before I moved to CA, I dealt with weather). It is difficult to use a bike as year-round transportation if it must be stored in a place where it is exposed to the elements daily.

Ask for the bike lockers!

Well played, sir. Now get back to work! :troll:

I'm bummed! Had you posted your reply just minutes earlier I would have been able to send this reply while sitting in the staff meeting... Bummer, I had already logged off by the time you wrote this.

As for bike lockers, it might depend on locations but at my company at least there is a lot of process around the lockers, intended to keep them from being places where bombs could be located. (part of the post 9/11 security concerns is my understandding)

the basic restrictions are:

No overnight or long term storage, day use first come first serve only
everyone has to use work supplied locks that security has the master key for.

Security actively checks that the lockers are empty at night and cuts off non company supplied locks and removes contents on a regular basis.

and my company is not a super high security military supplied or anything like that..... just your basic PLD semi company.

As for bike lockers, it might depend on locations but at my company at least there is a lot of process around the lockers, intended to keep them from being places where bombs could be located. (part of the post 9/11 security concerns is my understandding)

the basic restrictions are:

No overnight or long term storage, day use first come first serve only
everyone has to use work supplied locks that security has the master key for.

Security actively checks that the lockers are empty at night and cuts off non company supplied locks and removes contents on a regular basis.

and my company is not a super high security military supplied or anything like that..... just your basic PLD semi company.

Squirtdad

I have heard this argument about lockers, and to be honest it puzzles me. One area where I heard the argument was at the airport - where I can easily park a van with no visability into what is inside a space far larger than a bike locker.

Also, there are plenty of lockers which have screen or mesh doors or sides so that you can easily see what is inside.

I would have no problem with having security actively checking lockers at night, as to removing contents, I assume that they would also tow cars left in the parking lot beyond normal work hours....