Bicycle parking is an important consideration for the cyclability of a locality. Secure bicycle parking is a factor that influences people's decision to cycle. Bicycle parking at mass transit stations facilitates mixed-mode commuting. The role of bicycle parking in urban planning is studied through the discipline of bicycle transportation planning and engineering. Provisions for bicycle parking may be included in municipal policies and regulations.
Overview
Without organized parking facilities, bike parking can easily become a problem in densely populated areas.The space needed to park a single automobile can accommodate nearly a dozen bicycles.
Bicycle parking is an important part of a municipality's cycling infrastructure and as such is studied in the discipline of bicycle transportation engineering. When bicycle parking facilities are scarce or inadequate, nearby trees or parking meters are often used instead.
Sections of existing car parks can often be retrofitted as cycle parking, offering advantages of location, cover, security, and parking for more people.
Secure bicycle parking is arguably a key factor that influences the decision to cycle. To be considered secure, parking facilities must be of a suitable design; allowing the bicycle to be locked via the frame (see bicycle parking rack). A readily observable location can also permit so-called passive security from passers-by. Weather protection is also desirable. As a rule, where cycling is encouraged as an alternative to motoring, efforts should be made to make bicycle parking more convenient and attractive to use than nearby car parking arrangements. This usually means providing a wide distribution of visible, clearly designated parking spots, close to the entrances of destinations being served.
Storage rooms or bicycle lockers may also be provided. In some cases, large concentrations of bike parking may be more appropriate, sometimes being supervised and sometimes fee-based. Examples include bicycle parking stations at public transport interchanges such as railway, subway, tram, bus stations or ferry ports where they may be useful in mixed-mode commuting.
Conversely, where cycling is seen as an unwelcome or inappropriate activity, or there is a lack of knowledge about best practices, bicycle parking may simply not be provided or else placed at awkward, distant, and out-of-sight locations. Cyclists may be expressly forbidden from parking their bicycles at the most convenient locations. In April 2007, the authorities at the University of California's Santa Barbara campus started confiscating bicycles parked at other than official bike racks. Some property owners or municipal authorities display signage on fencing to discourage bicyclists from locking their bicycles.
Bicycle parking in transport interchanges
According to a study by Dutch transport planner, Karel Martens, increased bicycle parking facilities in bus stops, stations and transport hubs increases the accessibility of such transportation solutions to cyclists as well as easing the last / first mile problem encountered by those who wish to access public transportation but encounter difficulties in their journeys from their point of origin to public transport or from their transportation to their destination. The availability of bicycle parking at public-transport stops varies by country and mode. In the Netherlands, guarded parking was traditionally provided at railway stations, although underinvestment created problems of capacity, quality and accessibility before an upgrading programme began in the early 1990s. Dutch station-planning guidance administered a mixture of secured and unsecured parking, visible placement of ordinary parking, and sufficient spare capacity to accommodate peak demand. The appropriate type of parking can vary between user groups according to Martens. In several Dutch bus-stop trials, bicycle lockers attracted little use where their price was high relative to the value of passengers’ bicycles or where passengers thought there was low risk of theft.
↑Michael Baltes (2005), Integration of bicycles and transit, National Research Council (U.S.). Transportation Research Board, p.39, The first staffed bicycle parking facility in the United States was opened in Long Beach, California.
↑Success is on the cards, London Cyclist, June–July 2009, p.6
↑Marya Morris (1996), Creating transit-supportive land-use regulations: a compendium of codes, Municipal Research and Services Center of Washington, p.25
↑Bicycle Access to Public Transportation: Learning from Abroad by Michael Replogle, Journal of the Institute for Transportation Engineers, December 1992
↑To Proceed With Impoundment of Bikes, by Benjamin Gottlieb Daily Nexus, University of California - Santa Barbara News, 20 April 2007 (Accessed 28 October 2007)
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