CalTrain Survey
 

I ran across this on Craigslist:

Reply to: sale-hw6dz-1101647779@craigslist.org
Date: 2009-03-31, 8:22PM PDT


Hello Bike Commuters and Supporters,

Can You Spare 2 Minutes per Day to Help?
As of March 2, Caltrain is striving to put two bike cars on specified
trains, but they have no funding to monitor effectiveness.

That’s where you come in. We are looking for people who ride the following trains,
which are supposed to have two bike cars every weekday:
Northbound: 103, 135, 151, 155, 189, 197, 207, 211, 217, 231, 241, 245,
261, 267, 275, 277, 287, 383
Southbound: 134, 142, 154, 158, 194, 196, 210, 216, 220, 228, 230, 252,
266, 312, 362, 372, 378, 386
Please respond if you’re able to spare two minutes per day
to tell us how many bike cars your train actually had, and we’ll provide
an easy web-based reporting method.

Summary of Caltrain Board Meeting Held March 5
Cyclists and non-cyclists alike made reasoned appeals for:
- two bike cars on every train
- priority boarding for cyclists at bike cars, and
- better collaboration with cyclists.
But Caltrain offered no immediate changes to its plan adopted at the
February Board meeting, to be implemented this spring as follows:
- Increase bike capacity from 16 to 24 bikes on Bombardier bike cars
- Increase bike capacity from 32 to 40 bikes on gallery bike cars
Unfortunately, bumping will still occur. We've still got a ways to go, but the
capacity increase is a positive first step.

Trial Shorty Racks
Caltrain installed trial shorty racks in one gallery bike car, but these
racks don’t work, because bikes lean too much into the aisle and can get
damaged. Caltrain said the shorty racks are to keep the emergency window
exits clear, so we contacted the Federal Railroad Administration to get
the low down on the regulations. We learned that only two emergency window
exits are required in each half of the main level.

Tag Your Bike with a Destination Tag
Caltrain has stopped making the yellow vinyl destination tags, but it is
very important to tag your bike with its destination, so other cyclists
traveling further don’t block your bike in. Grab a 'Take One' Card on the train, fold it in half, write the
destination station on the back, and hang it on the bike.

Have You Been Left Behind?
Make your bump count! Every time you’re bumped or see cyclists get
bumped, let the right folks know (that’s Caltrain and us). Your email
makes a difference, because Caltrain does not count bumped cyclists in its
passenger counts. Every email brings cyclists one step closer to more
bike capacity onboard Caltrain. Please see our web page for a handy email
link. sfbike.org/caltrain_bob

A giant THANK YOU for your help and support!

More bikes, no bumps,
sfbike.org/caltrain_bob

Please forward to other cyclists and anyone who cares about bicycle
commuting.