I've recently been seeing bike racks on the fronts of many public buses (I know: "Where have you been"?). I think it's a good idea, but, honestly, the first I used one, I was apprehensive that, 1) my bicycle could be stolen at a stop, and, 2) whether the bike was adequately secured to the rack by the arm, and wouldn't go flying off, at some point.

Happily, everything turned out fine, but I wonder if anyone has had any bad experiences with these things, or has some advice on using them. I will say, I chose to secure my bike to the rack with a U-lock, though I didn't bother to think whether this could cause any problems (I still don't know if it could).

Thanks.