MarkS

So I biked into the big city to visit a local deli. Outside the door were these parking meters with these little blue emblem thingies with a picture of a bike on them. I assume that they're supposed to be used somehow for bike parking, though they could be interpreted the other way ("No bike parking"). It was pretty ambiguous.

Can I use meters without the thingies? If I use the ones with the thingies, am I supposed to somehow clamp to the frail-seeming emblem? Are these used in other cities and I'm just out of it, as usual?

In the end, I just clamped the bike to the post. Other bikers came along for the bar next door -- and just left their bikes on the pavement unlocked to anything.

genec

Wow first one I have seen... In the La Jolla area I have noticed other types of racks though. Racks that are similar and are not "wheel benders." You just put your bike up next to them and lock right through the openings.

The thing on the meter in the pic sure doesn't look all that strong though. Must be the result of more cost cutting to fund that pension plan... sigh...

awunder

I've never seen one of those before, but it looks to me as if it's just designed to brace the bike against the meter, not provide any additional security. I would put the bike in front of it and put the lock around the meter through the hole in the middle. That way the bike doesn't flop around, and your frame isn't sitting against the hard metal of the meter-post.

Just a thought.

genec

I think you might have hit it on the head... the metal of that thing and the two bolts holding it to the post just did not strike me as being all that strong, so perhaps it is just a place to lean the bike and a sign to tell you it is OK.

CB HI

Too many people believe that looking to a meter is secure, even when the lock is done up without consideration of a thief being able to simply lift the lock over the top of the meter and carrying the bike away. My understanding is that the device is intended to prevent a thief simply lifting the lock off the meter. I do like the idea that it might also help with preventing scratches.

nova

I see 2 holes at the bottom that look like a location to run your cable type locks though. Its kind of a backer plate to held keep your bike from falling over etc as others have said. Also dont lock up to the street side of a pole its a realy bad idea. Puts your bike in the way of cars pulling up. Any driver who plasters your bike while its hooked there wont have to pay any thing.

Helmet Head

CB HI is correct.

slagjumper

Found this:
https://www.sdcbc.org/ChainGuard/June-July05.pdf

Relevent quote.

Parking Meter Bike Racks

Have you seen something blue
and bearing a bicycle logo
attached to a parking meter?
These new additions are Bicycle
Parking Rings for securing your
bike to a parking meter in areas
that do not have the sidewalk
width to accommodate ADA
and regular bike racks. They
make it harder for a thief to lift
the bike over the meter. City of
San Diego Bicycle Coordinator/
Traffic Engineer, Joel Rizzo, said
it took some convincing to get
Parking Enforcement staff to
agree to the installation, but
with the help of the Transportation
Department’s Cruz
Gonzales it worked. Several
hundred racks and rings will be
installed around the City. If you
want rings installed on meters
near you in the City of San
Diego, call Joel at (619) 533-
3110 or fax (619) 533-3131.

Another picture of a blue ring.

nova

Damn we could use those things here to realy. I wonder if the city of barberton here will be adding them along the downtown bike routes.

Blue Order

It's probably good preventative advice to lock your bike away from the streetside, but where do you get the notion that drivers aren't liable for their driving?

nova

How would they be responsable it they are pulling up to park or out of a spot and your bike slides down in to the street in front of them?

If they flaten it thats what they will claim. The court will most likly see it as the case unless theres a trafic cam that shows other wise. In other words. Driver hits it by not paying atention and lies and says he was and your bike slid down in to the street. My old raliegh gp has a big nasty scrap on the top tube from sliding down a pole once. So it can and does happen. So the chances of a driver being found liable for it are prety damn slim. And well loss of a bike is still a loss. Even if you adventualy manage to win your still out the bike while you wait. So best bet never do it even if you know thers no chance in hell of it falling and slidign down and you know you can prove it is entirely the fault of a driver who hits it.

Blue Order

Agreed-- it's not a sure thing that they would be held liable. Still, everything is fact dependent-- and evidence dependent. And sometimes there are witnesses.

I was thinking if, instead of a bike, it was a baby in a stroller. The driver can't just say "Hey, that stroller was left in my way, so it's not my fault." And whether it's a baby in a stroller, or your bike, they still have to be careful. So sometimes people lie, and sometimes we know they're lying and can't prove it. And sometimes bikes do slide down the pole.

That's why your advice not to park on the streetside makes a lot of sense.

MarkS

Actually, I was worrying more about putting the bike where it might block the sidewalk ... or drivers could use the bike as an excuse for not loading up the meter. Since I used a mini U-lock, there wasn't much danger of the bike sliding down nor of its being lifted over the top.

Thanks everyone for the feedback, information, and insight!

As You Like It

Nifty! I like that idea. I usually chain up to a light pole. Thief would need a scaffolding or a bucket truck to lift my bike up off of that. Or, indeed, a big pair of bolt cutters to get through the chain.

nova

Chain locks are not all that great. Ive had to break a few chains in my day to get them off used bikes ive bought at yardsales. 2 long heavy screw drivers one in one link one in the other. Then you just twit the 2 links till one breaks. Also make sure your cable type locks are good ones dont get cheap look alikes. Cables can be broken by twistign the cable backwards of its normal twist. If each wire is thing a pair of what most call dikes (diagnal cutters) can then be used to cut a wire ot 2 at a time. On cheap cable locks a pair of toe nail clippers will work to. If you realy want to be secure nothing beats a u lock and good cable. Use the cable to run through your rims and u lock to lock the frame to a pole.

Da Tinker

Cool idea for quick & cheap bike parking facilites.

But I would never lock up on the outside (curbside) of a meter. All too easy for a careless car to rub up against my baby.