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Posted 3 years ago #
Sure, we all recognize the world-famous post and ring, but where else is there to park your bike in Toronto? Turns out, there are plenty of places...
See my latest blog post for where to park your bike in Toronto
Posted 3 years ago #
At Roger Geller's presentation there was a mention that Toronto will be getting a bike corral somewhere on Spadina (I didn't hear exactly where). I hope someday we'll see these in the Annex and on the Danforth. These are much more conducive to getting people out on your sidewalk patio (that now has more room because the post and rings are gone and is no longer blocked by that big truck that parked in front) Think of it logically also: Two parking spaces can store 2 cars, possibly with only one driver each, or up to 16 (and probably more) bike-riding customers.
(More on this bike corral at BikePortland.org)
Posted 3 years ago #
I don't like ring and posts. The height of the post available for me to attach my lock doesn't always line up well with my bike. I'm not sure what it is, but sometimes I have no problem lining things up and other times, not so much, so I can only assume that they aren't all the same height. It's also not always easy to get your lock in place when there's already a bike locked up to the R&P. Something simpler like the U shape of the bike corrals above looks like it would be much easier to use. Still, the R&P is nowhere nearly as bad as the classic bike rack where you roll your bike in place and, when the rack is jammed up against a wall, the only thing you can get close enough to lock to it is your wheel...
Posted 3 years ago #
I agree with you Annie... some ring and posts seem shorter than others.
There's one in particular I use a lot near Pape & Danforth, outside a friend's apartment, and it's too close to a concrete planter, so I have to move the bike back as far as I can to still lock it... and turn my handlebars so the front wheel will fit in the space between the post and the planter. :)
Posted 3 years ago #
I neglected to mention that some Torontonians park their bicycles in boxes:
Also, has anyone used these bright blue bike racks at City Hall?
Posted 3 years ago #
I haven't used them there but the highrise we moved out of had exactly those racks. They're OK but with one problem. They really stink when you have full fenders as it puts the entire weight on the last little bit of your fender. Every once in a while I had to bend the fender back as it was touching the back tire. Other than that they're pretty good and a nice use of space.
Posted 3 years ago #
I've never seen those blue ones... but maybe it's just the photo. They look like the could be a narrow vertical trough that your wheels go in to secure your bike vertically... if so, then our condo had ones like that for some bikes.
Posted 3 years ago #
How do they work? Is there a picture posted near those racks to explain how to use them? From the photo, I can't really tell how I would park my bike in one of those.
Posted 3 years ago #
I haven't seen them in person, but am assuming they are like these:
Posted 3 years ago #
Not quite - you don't have to lift the bike to get it on the wall (which is also part of the problem with the fenders). Once it's up, you ensure your wheels are in the trough and slide the blue handle (seen above the cyclist in the pic) over where it meets a stationary handle just like it. This slides a bar through each wheel to hold the bike in place. You can then lock the bike through the two handles, tire, and frame with a good chain lock or lock the two handles together with a U-lock.
Posted 3 years ago #
It is amazing they keep coming up with cool ideas to park a bike but if they would just pursue the thieves a little bit more.
Posted 3 years ago #
Speaking of parking, according to Yvonne Bambrick, executive director of the bike union, construction is happening again at Kensington and Augusta for the "Kensington Entryway Beautification Project". She says that when finished, it will have green space, seating, and a beautiful sculptural bike rack made by local Bike Rack Artist, Phil Sarazen. Bike parking will be for an additional 22 bikes which is good as on a weekend day it can be tough to find parking in the market.
Posted 3 years ago #
That's great, I hope they bring in a few garbage cans as well.
Those are my only complaints about Kensington Market.
Posted 3 years ago #
wow!
Torontonians really have a lot of bike parking!!!
I wish we had that kind of availability in Chicago.
Even the parking meters in the city are disappearing.
Instead the city has decided to put boxes where drivers can purchase a ticket for a certain amount of time to park on the street.
Posted 3 years ago #
Yeah, we have very few parking meters now (I actually only know of one) and have those boxes instead. Apparently Montreal has those and you can "feed the meter" from anywhere in the same neighbourhood. Apparently similar tech was used for Bixi bikesharing also.
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