AgBoy

I started commuting the end of September and have been loving it every day - even when temperatures are in the teens and single digits. My problem is that I don't have a convenient place to keep my bike when I get to work. My employer won't allow me to bring the bicycle inside and they won't invest in a bicycle rack. I have to chain my bike to a tree which isn't a big problem, yet. Does anyone have ideas on how to convince an employer to support commuting?

Alfster 

How big is your company? When I asked our company to buy a new bike rack they said yes right away, however I made sure I had various options of racks / prices to present to them. Anything to make their life easier will go a long way in getting them to agree.

AgBoy

Good questions. There are approximately 100 employees and we have our own building and parking lot. Parking for cars is not an issue - they have more than enough. I gave them quotes for prices of a bicycle rack (approximately $500) and information on the commuter provision of the bailout bill. I'm about ready to give up, but thought I would ask others and see if there are any good ideas.

kaliayev

That is a good way to go about it Alfster. I too recently started to commute and I would like to see my company be more supportive, however, they don't seemed to interested at least at this time.

ken cummings

Just curious. What does a basic bike rack cost? Nothing more then a U-shaped piece of pipe. As well as cement, re-bar, and the labor to dig a hole for the base. If I knew I would be somewhere for a while I'd offer to put one in for them, for free.

Alfster 

Yes they're typically made out of tubing. The ironic thing is that our company makes components out of heavy wall tubing (of all sizes). Believe it or not, it was cheaper to go out and buy a pre-made one compared to using labour rates in our shop.

MNBikeguy

I wonder if it would help if you could find some like-minded employees to share in the request. They might be more willing to invest in bike accommodations if they knew more people would benefit.
Also, it's been well documented (google search) that healthier employees are more productive. Your HR people may appreciate a return on their investment.
Let us know how it goes.

mountbkr

I am really lucky then. I started working in what we called Tower back in January. I asked where I could park my bike . They gave several options I park it in my cubicle

buzzman

This site offers good info and strategies on how to promote cycling.

gerv 

I think they are pretty pricey. You can easily spend $1-2k on a 10 bike setup. Here's an example:

https://www.bikeracks.com/html/rail__9_.html

Santaria

Follow this for instant (in political terms) gratification from said employers:

1. Stop riding bike.
2. Buy Suburban (or bigger - the older the better).
3. Remove muffler.
4. Begin eating campaign.
5. Gain 200 lbs.


Now the company will definitely support your efforts to bike commute due to the cost of their health insurance premium for the company, and accommodating your new 'larger' size with special furniture to keep you from suffering any injury that could cost them more in workman's compensation insurance.

Oddly, I don't think this would work, you'd just become part of 'der norm.'

Doohickie

Sadly I think you're right, Santaria.

I'm really lucky in that one of the managers in my building is an avid cyclist. Unfortunately he doesn't commute too much but he keeps saying he wants to ride to work more but never quite does it. We've commuted a few times together but I actually prefer to run solo so I don't have to wait around when I'm ready to go. I work for a big company but the site I work in only has about 50 employees. Out of that 50, I commute most of the time, and at least three others have cycle commuted at least once, and another is interested in trying (I'll get her riding after the weather gets nicer).

As far as accommodations, I started out parking my bike in a vacant cube across from mine. I was told that's a no-go, but the alternative is perhaps better: there is an unused office at the other end of the building that's basically a storage room. I park my bike in there. There's a spot to stow some supplies (baby powder, towels, etc.) to freshen up when I arrive, and the door locks so I can change in there.

The corporation is pretty good about supporting alternative commuting... up to but not including participation in the bailout benefit. I'm working on that too, though.

To the OP: The best way to get support for cycling to work is to KEEP DOING IT. Eventually they'll buy in.

alpacalypse

I know it isn't as satisfying, but perhaps a folding bike would do the trick?

xenologer

Do you have your own desk or office or cubicle at work?
You could simply bring the bike there, and if the boss complains tell him you don't have a car and need to bike to work. Then tell him to weigh the benefit of having a bike in there versus losing one of his best employees... probably got a good chance of him backing down at that rate since its such a minor issue compared to your service record, right?

crhilton

Are you talking to HR or are you talking to your boss? If you've been pushing with HR you might try asking your boss. Explain to him that this aids you in your work and it'd be greatly appreciated if he could convince HR to allow you to park your bike safely in the building in some unused nook.

It's likely that what you're asking will have no cost to the company and will leave you feeling accommodated and comfortable (since you're getting around the way you wanted to).

If he's not willing to help, well, that just sucks.

dygituljunky

My university is gung-ho about biking and provides a free park-and-ride service because we are out of room for parking decks and we're limited in how high we can build any of our buildings.

My department within the university uses bicycles. They don't discourage biking but they have made a couple of biking accommodations a no-go. While they don't seem to care that I park my bike inside at the far end of the hallway, they nixed the extra locker that made my life so much easier. Now I have a suit-bag-pannier that I carry back and forth and hang on the back of the shower room inside the restroom and a large plastic tub that sits in the shared office space. I share the coat rack which the pannier hangs on with a motorcyclist who also changes at work. Overall, the department attitude seems to be mostly live and let live as long as my stuff doesn't get in the way.

I wish that I could help but the impetus to support biking university-wide is coming from much more powerful/influential people than me.

cyclezealot

Ultimately , our employers control our lives.. Mine supported our commuters, because they got credit with the state of California for reducing smog emissions. Guess, all you can do is be on time. Lock your bike to a tree or post. In bad weather, cover your bike with a fold able tarp.. and , keep your cool and argue reasonably.. Too bad those employers who do not support bike commuting, won't give us the bonus needed to buy a reliable car..

capejohn

I always cringe when I read things like this. When I started commuting, I just brought my bike into the building and stored it in the warehouse against a wall. Another bike commuter leaves his in the mail room. Neither of us ever asked where we could store our bikes. We just did it.

donheff

This is when it would be nice to have a good employment alternative. Let your feet do your talking and, maybe, the bosses would think twice next time.

The Human Car

A standard staple rack (for two bikes) is around $100. Typically they bolt to a cement foundation (but other options exist) I have not heard a cost estimate for the labor. I will also note that Baltimore city takes requests to install bike racks for free.

pathdoc

Design a bike rack that looks like a piece of art and get your company sold on building it themselves.
Ok, maybe a dumb idea. Maybe you could hang your bike in the warehouse?

cyclefreaksix

I never asked if I could bring my bike in either, I just did it. Of course, I arrive prior to any of the bigwigs and leave much later as well. Maybe the maintenance guy or cleaning crew can suggest an empty closet or corner that they wouldn't mind sharing. I'd hate to have to leave my bike outside.

The Human Car

I always thought that this was a cute design for an office building

https://www.dero.com/custom_racks.html

BassNotBass

I'm a consultant/contractor working with a locally owned company which is expanding pretty quickly. They just recently bought and remodeled a new building downtown and at the same time aquired a 6 level attached parking garage. Most of their employees working here in town park in this garage and paid $85/month until their employer bought the garage and promptly raised the rate to $95/month knowing full well that most of their own car commuting employees use this garage. Upon transferring to this new building I was informed by the garage attendants that I cannot enter the parking garage with my bike unless I paid the required fee like every other commuter, so I have no choice but to lock my bike against light posts or parking meters along the sidewalk outside the building. The funny thing is that this company has a reputation of being generous with their donations to hospitals, schools and many local community organizations. Just this past year they bought a country ham for $200,000 to benefit a local charity. But of course I question their sincerity and motivation because they apparently are only interested in showing generosity if it's a high profile PR opportunity that probably also has other benefits such as tax breaks and such... because this company is one of the worst I've seen in terms of treating their employees decently. If anyone were to request they install a bike rack for their cycle commuting employees, of which there are several, I'm sure they would be happy to oblige and charge only a fraction of the parking garage rate to use the bike rack.

mangosalsa

Ideas:
-Chain your bike to something that can be seen by everyone ... maybe even the flagpole.
-Ask fellow employees for support, 99 signatures shouldn't be that hard to get.
-Hold a bake sale.
-Find something that can be used as a bike rack, and install it yourself over the weekend.
(it's amazing what you can accomplish with a shovel and a bag of quik-crete)
-Start asking them to pay you for not using a parking space.