I have to go to benefit concert at CAPA this evening. Is there someplace near there where I can securely park a bike with a pannier on it?
I was hoping to put it in a parking garage, near the attendent. I'm willing to walk a few blocks.
operative word: securely
I've never had a problem with the Pgh Parking Auth garage at the end of 9th Street at Liberty. There are some racks off to the left side, and a couple more that are closer to the attendant, but neither set looks all that secure to me.
I recommend against the Mellon Sq Garage, but I've never had problems at the Forbes Garage. I also never had problems at the Smithfield/Liberty Garage but other people have.
Do NOT use the Mellon Garage. How late will you be there? I'd recommend the bike parking area at teh Ninth and Penn garage, which is visible from the street (strangely, in this case a deterrent). Entrance is on Penn just west of Ninth. Second choice would the the Ninth and Liberty garage, selecting a location either at the glass doors near the pay station. During the day the portico racks at the Smithfield entrance are safer, but I think at night you want to be inside, near the pay station.
Thanks guys!
where'd you park, mick?
um.....
I let my friend drive me, left my bike at work and rode a bus in this morning. There was some logistical stuff we needed to do.
The parking lot on 9th looked pretty good, though.
When clicking on this thread I expected to see that your bike was stolen.
@rsprake. I feared the same thing. Or that the panniers had been trashed/stolen/rummaged through.
I actually decided to park at the new parking by the century building.. looks like secure parking there in the shipping containers is 100/year, but even the free parking isnt bad. at least under a roof.
CAPA itself has not even a rack?
It's a school, right? How can this be?
edmonds59, you answer that question, and I bet you explain why 500 other places in the city don't as well.
Really, though, there isn't all that much sidewalk space along there. You can maybe put two or three Three Rivers racks along 9th, but (a) there's a lot of foot traffic, and (b) that's a pretty busy bus stop there, too. You just can't find space to tie up 20+ bikes along 9th by CAPA.
I have been told that the school district has a policy against biking to school. I have been unable to verify that.
Years ago I went to Mt Lebanon shccol. They had a strict policy against biking - to school, to churches that were near the school, and to the park next to the school (before school.) They felt the traffic from cars bringing kids to school was too dangerous.
They thought I was being sassy when I said the logical thing would be to ban the dangerous cars.
I guessing that from a school administrators point of view the combination of kids in cars, kids doing tricks on bikes, people stealing bikes, and kids vandalizing parked bikes would be disconcerting, at best.
Of course, from my point of view, it would be great if they ensured a safe bike route to aschools and provide safe bike parking spaces. They could do things to discourage unhealthy, polluting auto traffic to schools as well.
It strikes me as unlikely that there will be much movement in this direction, soon.
I suspect a lot of the suburban sentiment that gets expressed as "It's such a hassle to have to drive the kids everywhere." is really "Thank god, my kids can't go anywhere on their own and get into trouble."
Mick
I used to bike to school. All though middle school and into Highschool untill I became cool and got a Plymouth K-Car. All of our schools had bike racks and lots of kids biked. I fully intend on encouraging any future children I have to bike or walk to school if possible. One less car/bus and one more healthy child.
The general problem is:
a) the school gets hit with the liability of ensuring the safety of the children
b) the parents dont teach their children responsible cycling
But as with all rules, there are ways around them. If the kids cant bike to the school, libraries, or parks, etc then just find a place they can bike to that is nearby. Could probably find some local business owner that would allow a child to lock their bike up outside as long as they could wave liability of a theft or something. I also dont know how they could restrict your from biking to a church as those are private property.
to quote princess Leah, "The more you tighten your grip, Tarkin, the more star systems will slip through your fingers."
Back to the original topic... I find leaving panniers on your locked up bike akin to leaving your backpack on top of your car. Take them with you if you want to keep them.
