Bike advocates focus, with good reason, on bike lanes and safe routes. But secure bike parking and storage plays an essential role in encouraging more people to get on two wheels.
Pointing to Paris's recently announced plan to make the city '100 percent cyclable,' which includes a promise to install 30,000 bike parking stands in the city, plus 1,000 reserved for oversized cargo bikes, and 40,000 spaces at rail stations, Kea Wilson reminds American bicycling advocates to look beyond bike lanes and safe roads to address the similarly important challenge of bike parking and storage. Wilson writes,
The availability of cycle parking is sometimes, but not always, factored into the methodology that leading organizations use to rank the most bike-friendly communities in the country; cities themselves rarely track how many spots they have in any systematic way, much less assess those spots’ quality, convenience, accessibility to people with mobility challenges, or effectiveness at preventing common crimes like theft.
While most American cities still have minimum parking requirements, only some have started to require bike parking in new developments. Yet the lack of organized efforts to provide secure bike parking, Wilson argues, may discourage people from biking at all. A report from Transportation Alternatives earlier this year came to a similar conclusion.
Meanwhile, the rise in the popularity of electric bikes–boosted by the federal infrastructure bill–means cities will have to consider bike charging as an integral part of the sustainable, electrified city.
FULL STORY: It’s Time for America to Talk About Bike Parking
Depopulation Patterns Get Weird
A recent ranking of “declining” cities heavily features some of the most expensive cities in the country — including New York City and a half-dozen in the San Francisco Bay Area.
California Exodus: Population Drops Below 39 Million
Never mind the 40 million that demographers predicted the Golden State would reach by 2018. The state's population dipped below 39 million to 38.965 million last July, according to Census data released in March, the lowest since 2015.
Chicago to Turn High-Rise Offices into Housing
Four commercial buildings in the Chicago Loop have been approved for redevelopment into housing in a bid to revitalize the city’s downtown post-pandemic.
Google Maps Introduces New Transit, EV Features
It will now be easier to find electric car charging stations and transit options.
Ohio Lawmakers Propose Incentivizing Housing Production
A proposed bill would take a carrot approach to stimulating housing production through a grant program that would reward cities that implement pro-housing policies.
Chicago Awarded $2M Reconnecting Communities Grant
Community advocates say the city’s plan may not do enough to reverse the negative impacts of a major expressway.
City of Costa Mesa
Licking County
Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Universal City TX
ULI Northwest Arkansas
Town of Zionsville
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