Just a week ago I was lamenting the full rack of bikes on the front of a bus I recently attempted to board.
While I celebrate the usage of the rack I occasionally depend upon being able to board the bus. Well, seemingly right on cue bus bike rack usage statistics appeared in my Inbox this week.
The statistics say I'd better get used to it. This graph shows the four years Sioux Falls Transit has offered the ability to carry bikes from January thru May.
The raw data:
2006 - 1018 trips.
2007 - 1867 trips.
2008 - 1258 trips.
2009 - 2439 trips.
Could it be, perhaps it's true, the more bikeable the city becomes the more bikeable the city will be?
Hmmmm...
6 comments:
You're darn tootin'! It falls right into the "build it and they will come" tired cliche.
I haven't yet taken my bike on the bus but take it on the train quite a bit. Our train has bike hooks inside for four bikes in each car but there's nothing stopping someone from bringing more bikes on when the hooks are full. I have seen up to ten bikes on a single car and it brought a tear to my eye.
damn...now everyone will be cycling!
Do the drivers let you take your bike on the bus when the racks are full? We can do that at our discretion, and unless your ridership is way up, I'm guessing there's room on the bus? Maybe not???
I'm thinking there was likely room on the bus but a graceful negotiation was not possible in that situation.
The driver, even before I knew the situation was on the radio to Control. My suggestion that he let me board with the bike was drowned out by Control's direction that I'm screwed.
I'm not hopeless for the situation but to change it I'll be working against a culture where a common affront to personal space is if someone sits in a directly adjacent seat.
If you plan on needing bike racks on the bus...you need to get a folder. I spent a fair amount of time in the Charleston, SC area. They have bike racks mounted on ALL of their buses. And quite often then are full, if they are full you are SOL unless you have a folder.
I think it is great that buses and bike racks are being utilized, but they are going to have to up the ante somehow, different type of racks, or some type of on board storage? I do know that some areas have tried the triple racks in the front but have had major issues with them and gone back to the doubles.
Aaron
Post a Comment