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Bike corrals, they're happening

I am sure Erok is preparing a blog post this very second.


OTB is getting one.


Shadyside is getting one, or two.


Yay!


rsprake
2012-05-03 14:37:42

Holy crap is that awesome! Anyone up for a christening tonight?


salty
2012-05-03 15:29:25

It's seitan wing night and the South Shore Riverfront Park party is tonight as well, 6-8.


rsprake
2012-05-03 15:35:19

We're offering free bike valet at the SSRP opening


scott
2012-05-03 15:36:48

I always wondered why the parking garage at bellefonte didn't have any bike racks. Seemed odd to me.


benzo
2012-05-03 15:41:29

So we're hearing that the city may just be striping the corral in front of OTB today. The racks might not be going in for a couple of weeks.


scott
2012-05-03 16:17:21

Very cool news. I hope Tazza D'oro eventually gets one, too. The two bike racks in front of the shop are often full. Plus, I think that would help alleviate the congestion on the sidewalk before the Tuesday evening rides.


bhattenb
2012-05-03 17:27:11

I can't read. First saw "bike corals" and pictured serene underwater structures of brightly colored bicycles with fish swimming between spokes. Realized mistake and understood "bike corrals" but instead jumped to cowboys herding a gaggle of bikes into a corral, complete with bells and moos.


This is really cool. I'm starting to have more and more hope that I'll actually be here to see Pittsburgh become the kind of place I really do want to be, with proper infrastructure like this. Shadyside so desperately needs this!!


ejwme
2012-05-03 17:37:25

I really like the one pic that shows some flower planter boxes on the upstream edge of the corral, I hope we do this too - much nicer than just some bollards.


marko82
2012-05-03 18:32:05

Does the business owner pay for the installation, or does the city?


vannever
2012-05-03 18:39:04

Wait for the angry letters from people complaining about GIVING bicyclist spots away for free when the rates are increasing for drivers to park.


So if it cost $2 an hour to park a car, and you can fit 12 bikes in a spot – I’d let them round up to 20 cents for an hour. Now where’s that change jar.


marko82
2012-05-03 18:49:36

@ Vannevar- The city pays for the purchase and installation of the facility. The property owner is responsible for the maintenance.


stephen
2012-05-03 19:23:57

If you're a property owner of a business, or a business owner who can get the property owners consent AND you're interested in having a corral, call me @ 412-393-0150. warning- I'll ask you to canvas the street to get adjacent biz's consent.


If you're not a biz or property owner, please feel free to spread the word. The City has 3 more corrals that we'd like to install this summer.


stephen
2012-05-03 19:31:22

There's going to be a story in tomorrow's PG about this. Their angle seems to be "which corral is actually first?" I told them we don't think that's the real story, but...


scott
2012-05-03 20:51:59

well, I'd hoped to come to the park opening and then go see if the corral was or was not there, but I didn't make it - any news?


on a tangent, does the park being open mean the trail connection to the HMB is also open?


salty
2012-05-04 01:38:09

The connection was open last night. Just be careful of folks coming off the bridge, they wont be expecting cross traffic.


marko82
2012-05-04 01:52:39

When 2 pols are sniping about who got in the first bike corral, that's a good thing. Awesome.


edmonds59
2012-05-04 11:05:06

Parking garage: $10 Million. Bike corral: $3,000.


stuinmccandless
2012-05-04 13:04:29

I'm go out on a limb and say they're both firsts. Old Man Pedutes codified a method to *hopefully* make the process easy to get these installed as people may desire, and the Mayor/ administration assisted OTB in getting a corral on a state road in two existing metered parking spaces. Bawwws.


Devil in me wants this to be an election issue: Portlandia episode in real life.


sloaps
2012-05-04 13:16:29

well, there is some effort by the the bike/ped coordinator to codify it. peduto also complicated it by making his design have to go thru the art commission, instead of just being plain ol' parking.


erok
2012-05-04 13:29:53

with that said, i hope he succeeds


erok
2012-05-04 13:31:02

I think that can be a good thing, just wish they could review it a little faster. Article says it will be installed in August which is a long time from now. Why not install the parking now and beautify it later?


rsprake
2012-05-04 13:31:44

> Why not install the parking now and beautify it later?


+many.


It's useful to have city commissions meet publicly and with sufficient notice to be there--although given that they meet during workdays I don't know how useful it really is...--but one does start to wonder about footdragging and delaying tactics...


epanastrophe
2012-05-04 13:43:15

It does seem like an 80/20 thing, i.e., we could be 80% of the ideal with 20% of the work and have it tomorrow, like we did for Parking Day.


More like 95/5, really. We could have *something* in place in a couple *hours*, to use all summer.


Make it pretty later. Function before form.


stuinmccandless
2012-05-04 15:30:30

Is it sad that I am hoping for more comments on the article?


orionz06
2012-05-04 17:01:11

There, I commented.


rsprake
2012-05-04 17:08:09

Oooohhhh. Burn on Baltimore at the end.


stefb
2012-05-04 17:21:45

There, I commented, too.


stuinmccandless
2012-05-04 17:39:34

ok, maybe I'm dense, but what does bike parking have to do with art? How can bike parking be less beautiful than a parking meter?


How many parking meters and parking spots for cars went through the art commission?


ejwme
2012-05-04 19:12:39

@ejwme How can bike parking be less beautiful than a parking meter?



Now THAT spurred my imagination!


mick
2012-05-04 19:13:40

Bike Coral






kordite
2012-05-04 19:20:32

^ Bike Coral pics = cool. It looks like the same bike in 2 different, colorful locations.


teamdecafweekend
2012-05-04 20:36:13

How many parking meters and parking spots for cars went through the art commission?


and then she drops the mic. bam!


scott
2012-05-04 20:48:10

by the way Eleanor, you should post that comment in under the story on the PG site.


scott
2012-05-04 20:49:21

I don't FB, so I couldn't post. If someone wants to plagarize, I'm all for it.


It's fantastic that they're doing it, but the Art Commission thing just shows they still don't understand why they're doing it.


ejwme
2012-05-07 17:36:13

Hey, on a related note, I heard Whole Foods has a bike repair / tire inflation station. Anyone used it?


jonawebb
2012-05-07 18:00:40

I've used it. They've had it for about a year now. I've seen a number of other people use it as well.


scott
2012-05-07 18:01:51

@ Erok- actually, the first corral on a city street would have to go through the art commission, so Peduto's strategy is legit.


@ejwme- art commission is involved in any project that occurs in the city owned public right-of-way and differs from City standards. It's not so much a group that determines aesthetics (although to a point).


stephen
2012-05-07 22:58:21

Whole Foods would actually be a good candidate for putting bike corals in their own parking lot.


Right now they have two spaces taken up with the horribly low green ones. I still have no idea how bikes stand upright in those things


sgtjonson
2012-05-07 23:13:29

Stephen, so you're saying that all parking for motor vehicles on public property went through the Art Commission? If parking meters, lots, and garages all had to go through Art Commission, then fine. But I've never heard of a parking solution being tied up in the Art Commission review, maybe they just don't talk about it.


So not just Peduto's corral has to go through the Art Commission, but the mayor's one as well? Perhaps it's already been through the Art Commission?


I hate imprecise, incomplete journalism - entertainment is no way to spread information.


ejwme
2012-05-08 14:39:34

currently, there's no city, county, state, or federal standard for the planning, design, construction and maintenance of bike corrals within the public right-of-way. hence the handwringing by PennDOT for the OTB corral and the Art Commission bureaucracy for corrals on city-owned and maintained streets.


sloaps
2012-05-08 14:58:51

the one in the southside is on a penndot (state) owned road, so i'm guessing that's why it didn't have to go to the art commission.

The city did have to get a "highway occupancy permit" from penndot in order to install on e carson.


erok
2012-05-08 14:59:59

hunh. I've never actually found parking on E. Carson, but I'm betting you don't have to feed a highway occupancy permit to the meters. Maybe the city already did that for the parking meters, but in that case, why wouldn't the converted spot already have a permit to be occupied?


So the Art Commission is since there's no standard... Hopefully they'll be able to produce a standard, and all future bike corrals will be a snap to get in place, maybe that's what's projected to take so long? That actually makes sense.


ejwme
2012-05-08 18:44:29

@ejwme - installing a permanent, or attached item like a bike rack or corrall or whatever is a very different proposition than just parking a car. Parking meters are not in the street, wheras the corrals would be. I'm sure those are the two critical factors that make the difference.


atleastmykidsloveme
2012-05-08 19:23:58

It doesn't even need to be permanent. You would need a HOP if you wanted to park a dumpster there, traffic cones, whatever. Anything that is not a vehicle, in the vehicle zone.

I suppose technically chairs need a HOP.


edmonds59
2012-05-08 19:32:23

"That actually makes sense."


This is still the government we're talking about. If it makes sense to create a standard, then that is most certainly NOT what they are doing. It's probably just the usual bureaucratic rigmarole dragging things out needlessly.


2012-05-08 19:33:19

Process is a valuable curb. It is process that enables public input. It is process that shines light on proposed projects that run counter to the public good.


Put the shoe on the other foot. Don't let your frustration with the pace of the process blind you to the value of the process.


atleastmykidsloveme
2012-05-08 21:20:31

@rsprake - not sure what you are saying.


Is this some example of soem thing the art commicsion could do? Or has done?


mick
2012-05-08 23:38:11

well, the ones at otb are happening right now!


erok
2012-05-09 14:28:44

sneak peek:


erok
2012-05-09 15:03:06

Firsties: sauwsyde


sloaps
2012-05-09 15:09:32

Mick, I was just pointing out that they don't have to wait a month to meet to approve a design.


That's awesome Erok!


rsprake
2012-05-09 15:10:57

That's great. If there's anyplace that will show how heavily this thing will get used, and high visibility, this is it. Will they be usable by lunch?


edmonds59
2012-05-09 15:16:38

Can't wait to see them in person tonight!!!!!!!


stefb
2012-05-09 15:36:48

I just find it strange that the Parking Authority can collect revenue for people to leave their vehicles on the road (without art commission approval or a permit?) and yet the council/mayor needs art commission approval/permit to use the same space for bike parking. What if the Parking Authority wanted to charge for it, would it be easier?


I understand the corral is a permanent structure, and as such its installation affects road maintenance and repair differently than a car you can tow, but not too much differently. Just unbolt them and move them over, you don't need a tow truck, just a (specialized?) power tool. (Or am I misunderstanding how they are fixed to the street? The pics look like they're not at all, but they may not be done).


I'm not against A process, but the process and system I'm witnessing (from my limited vantage point) seems to be set up so that car parking is the easy default, and reasonable bike parking is such a monumental effort that if they're NOT putting an easier system in place, it's not likely to happen again.


A clear-cut, decently speedy process is overdue, which irks me. If 'they're' working on it, good for them.


Also, they could actually create bike parking affixed to the curb like parking meters, cantilevered over the street, which you could flip over (like those rods they can fold down for maintenance truck access but are usually locked upright). No permanent structure in the street. No permit, no committee inertia. Just bike parking. I can think of a few different ways to do it, even a couple that would default to a clear street ("no motor vehicle parking or stopping" should fix cars from abusing the space).


ejwme
2012-05-09 15:44:39

I just find it strange that the Parking Authority can collect revenue for people to leave their vehicles on the road (without art commission approval or a permit?) and yet the council/mayor needs art commission approval/permit to use the same space for bike parking


this is why:

















erok
2012-05-09 15:58:15

The art commission probably did have to sign off on how the parking meters and pay stations look. That's the equivalent of the racks themselves.


scott
2012-05-09 16:02:57

Scott, if that's the case, then my ire is completely misplaced, and I apologize for venting it.


I just can't stand it when people/institutions treat bicycle (or pedestrian) infrastructure as this special freakish beast unrelated to anything anybody has ever done, akin to alien spaceships landing in our midst.


It's necessary infrastructure for a vehicle. Nothing more, nothing less. That allowing for it isn't already de rigueur is a mistake they have the opportunity to correct, not compound. It just always feels like they're compounding it instead.


Don't get me wrong, I'm super happy these are going in, and it WILL mean I'll head those two places more often (by default, 'cause I would never drive there and lack of bike parking there was a deterrent). I apologize if that didn't come across. There were some words in the articles that triggered some irritation, not the corrals themselves.


ejwme
2012-05-09 16:14:16

That's cool. Just know that anything that goes into a city owned right of way, be it a street or sidewalk, needs to go through the art commission first.


scott
2012-05-09 16:54:05

parking chairs?


salty
2012-05-09 17:48:09

We should create some parking chair styled bike corrals. I would LOVE to lock my bike to a bolted down steel chair in the road.


willb
2012-05-09 18:14:18

parking chair bike rack


Something like this. You could park three bikes pretty easily - two on the sides and one through the back (hence the missing cross bar).


willb
2012-05-09 18:22:46

Love it. This needs to be done.


edmonds59
2012-05-09 19:06:31

Now that's art!


rsprake
2012-05-09 19:38:01

using the bike corral today was great. a fella' at the resturant next door ran outside and gleefully shouted 'you're the second person to park there!' and it felt good. hooray for something decent happening in southside!


parvipica
2012-05-10 00:48:02

> This needs to be done.


I think you mean "This needs done."


(+1)


epanastrophe
2012-05-10 13:36:22

Ha!!


edmonds59
2012-05-10 13:47:15

They should replace those pylons with steel ones sunk into a concrete base. Given what horrible parallel parking I've seen around here, I don't see the plastic ones lasting too long...


rice-rocket
2012-07-12 21:19:21

cool! looks like they could have fit 6 in there though - isn't that what OTB has?


salty
2012-07-12 22:35:26

whatever otb has, it's not enough.


epanastrophe
2012-07-12 22:50:33

I still want concrete flower boxes on each end, but I guess that's just ‘too artsy’ for the art commission. Sheesh…


marko82
2012-07-12 23:54:35

So where is the next corral going?


zjc2a
2012-07-13 01:52:18

I'm curious to know why the art commission is involved in the approval process? Were the corrals designed by an artist? Is arts funding going towards this? Nothing against the art commission here, it just doesn't make sense.


pseudacris
2012-07-13 02:03:10

Sounds like the Art Commission pretty much has to approve any new structure (or park, or bridge, etc.). I guess it makes sense that someone has to vote "this thing you are going to install in public view on city land will not make people's eyes bleed and embarrass the city forever" before they can install something totally new. From their website: The Art Commission is mandated to review the urban design and architectural and landscape features of structures which are erected on or above land owned by the City; which are within the public realm under its control, including parks and bridges; and in which City funds are invested.


I guess that's how you make sure you don't get trolled by an architect and end up with something like a giant rainbow penis defining your city's landscape


2012-07-13 03:26:15

exactly. it's not so much "art" per se. I think the commission has been around a long time and it's more of an aesthetic thing.


as for the flower box ones. they can still happen, but they too need to go thru the art commission. the bike/ped coordinator wanted to establish a standard, no frills one that can go in easy, without worrying about who's going to water and take care of the flowers, which is a wise decision.


erok
2012-07-13 03:45:43

hyla, if you look at their agenda, they also review gardens and playgrounds


erok
2012-07-13 03:48:15

It would be cool if every grocery store had a corral, but I suppose that would be more up to the property owners than the city, huh?


rubberfactory
2012-07-13 10:30:07

@erok - thanks for the info. makes some kind of sense.,


pseudacris
2012-07-13 11:46:28

yeah. property owners can do what they want on private property


erok
2012-07-13 12:22:25

When I lived in Seattle there was an amazing 1% for the arts program -- so mostly there was a lot of attention given to the massive amount of public art going in when the dotcom boom was strong and the airport & bus system were expanding. I wish we had a 1% program here, but maybe the history of the arts commission here is why we have such awesome bridge and park entrances.


Good luck with the review : looks like it is coming up very soon!

I am excited to see corrals starting to pop up!


[edit]: one of my favorite public arts projects in seattle is the Seattle George monument at the convention center by Buster Simpson.


He also designed this rather interesting bike parking station with a green roof with another artist, in Portland.


pseudacris
2012-07-13 12:35:22

Glad they approved a design, but am I wrong that it was something they could have approved in a day over email?


What's the next step for getting them installed? Can they be ready for the Shadyside arts festival?


rsprake
2012-07-13 14:04:25

The next step, I believe, is for Steve to create a work order for DPW to follow. Materials may need to be purchased as well. The actual parking space needs to be approved by the city as well.


scott
2012-07-13 14:35:44

yeah, things get slightly more complicated if it is a metered space as well


erok
2012-07-13 14:40:49

I think they planned to put the Shadyside corrals on street corners where no legal parking currently exists.


rsprake
2012-07-13 15:08:24

@pseudacris Cassette is an 11-25 so swapping it for an 11-28 is another possibility


I'm guessing that program rarely gets implemented in cities on the edge of bankrupcy.


The state legislators who voted to ensure that Pittsburgh couldn't raise parking rates without privatizing parking would be unlikely to respond well to that particular "one percent" (although they seem to do a lot of votes in favor of some other "one per cent.")


mick
2012-07-13 15:55:42

> When I lived in Seattle there was an amazing 1% for the arts program.... I wish we had a 1% program here.


I'm not familiar with the Seattle program, but isn't this basically what ARAD is for? We all pay an extra 1% sales tax to support arts & cultural institutions across the county...


epanastrophe
2012-07-15 21:27:48

A lot of good stuff happens through ARAD, but I think it is broader, and can fund things like elevators in museums. Seattle has/had a number of arts funds & King County probably had something akin to ARAD. However, the program I mentioned was really specific and caused there to be a lot of art in the city. Specifically 1% of any city or county construction/infrastructure project budget was for arts commissions. Sometimes the artist would be commissioned to work with architects and engineers on things like lighting and surface treatments or making utilities look more interesting, other times it would be some kind of designed object put outside. On occasion it would be a series of performances or temporary art.


Portland has a similar program - that's why a lot of art got installed when the light rail system went in there.


pseudacris
2012-07-15 22:30:19

Thanks for the link! Though, Donatelli and Baker seem to have moved on. I did find a link to the current City Arts commission . In the past I have been told that there was the ordinance on the books but not enforced--maybe due to lean times for the city. The 1% is linked to construction done by the city.


pseudacris
2012-07-16 14:06:40

portland has had a bill that says that 1% of state-funded transportation projects be used to build bicycle facilities since 1971. one of the biggest jumps to that town was that the city wasn't using the money, then advocates in the 90s sued and won, forcing them to actually use the money. that and a groundswell of grassroots support


erok
2012-07-16 14:25:39

Oh man. I have to read what I post while I can still edit it. Seems my copy-and-paste put in the wrong text. Should ahve read when the italici9zed part of Bufflo buffalo's post.


mick
2012-07-16 19:01:04

Erok- Thanks for getting the word out about the approved design. Just a few comments:

The art commission is basically a public space commission. Any project proposed for City land is vetted through the commission.


Proposed corrals are reviewed by the city's traffic engineer. Staff has not received any proposals located in Shadyside.


Finally, the City is reviewing proposals for 3 more corrals this year and budgeting for 3-5 next year. Stay tuned.


stephen
2012-07-17 16:55:06

nice!!


rubberfactory
2012-07-17 23:32:31

i can't wait for shadyside to get theirs. i wish they were putting one on copeland, though. every time i'm over there, all the parking meters are taken up by people going to yoga or starbucks. still, while i feel like they would be used, it seems wrong to request more corrals in shadyside, when two are already on their way.


hiddenvariable
2012-07-20 16:30:42

That's great! And a fix-it is on the way!!!


scott
2012-09-18 19:03:01

Nice. We could use a few dozen more around the city now tht 99% of the parking meters have been removed.


Where there used to be 10 places to lock up on a block, most of Oakland is down to 1 or 2.


2012-09-18 19:41:47

At least there are more signposts going up in place of some meters to designate the borders of the parking area. So I don't think the transition is as bad as it could be. I'd still like to see better curb painting around fire hydrants and corners to indicate where you shouldn't park.


benzo
2012-09-18 20:29:47

> The Co-op has also been working to get a bike corral installed for a long time in the parking lot between Meade and Penn Ave. It's getting bolted down today...


This reminds me... I've tried a couple times to make a formal suggestion that the Shur-save in Bloomfield get a rack or some kind of bike-locking solution other than the cart-retention rails near the entrance, and have gotten little more than brushed off. (In fact, one employee I was chatting with outside told me that "he" (I assume the store owner) "would never" spend money on something like that. A couple weeks later, the store has in fact removed the few rails that existed and put in straight vertical poles...)


Does anyone have any contact information for the store? It doesn't seem like they're connected to the wider Shur-Save chain--they aren't mentioned on its website--and they don't seem to have a website of their own...


epanastrophe
2012-09-18 20:57:29

Unfortunately a large number of franchised chains are indipendantly operated and the national corporate office doesnt care.


Sometimes a bad egg doens't have to fear for national brand reprisal.


2012-09-18 21:35:46

word is the shadyside mad mex corral went in today. don't have pics yet. if someone's out there and could post some pics that would be cool.


erok
2012-11-29 18:54:57

On highland avenue? I saw it painted and signed over the holiday. No candlesticks like in front of OTB, though.


sloaps
2012-11-29 20:15:54

yeah, the racks, and i'm guessing the candlesticks went in today. but i haven't seen it


erok
2012-11-29 20:57:58

yes!!!!!!!


cburch
2012-11-29 23:07:36

I should be heading by there in a couple hours, ill grab a pic to post if one us not yet posted by the time I get home.


2012-11-30 02:47:13

Hurrah!




ieverhart
2012-11-30 05:43:03

Nice... Those definitely were not there on Wed. night.


Not to be greedy, but it looks like they could fit more racks there?


salty
2012-11-30 05:45:26

It does look like at least one other quad-rack could be added there, but I didn't pay much attention to it. The one that's there now could have to be moved to the side a bit to fit both but that's obviously a possibility.


There was also a single inverted U rack about 50 feet to the right of the edge of the photo, on the sidewalk, which I initially locked up to, before seeing this earlier tonight.


ieverhart
2012-11-30 06:09:02

w00t, one of my favorite places just got moar favoriter! their draught prices can be a little pricey, but... baby steps


melange396
2012-11-30 06:18:00

a.) the oakland one is better.

b.) i woulda grabbed a pic, but took a different way home. :(


2012-11-30 06:30:12

Where is the one in Oakland?


marvelousm3
2012-11-30 11:42:15

Better if you like it super crowded and full of college kids. Meh.


Marv, it's on the corner of Attwood and Bates


cburch
2012-11-30 11:50:31

The one in Oakland does have the most disaffected wait-staff. Just seems more authentic.


edmonds59
2012-11-30 12:04:04

Oakland is definitely the real MM, the rest are imitations.


salty
2012-11-30 14:26:15

gotta say, since the shadyside one went in, i haven't been to the oakland one, except maybe once for half price food.


you can like, talk to the person you're with.


erok
2012-11-30 14:27:19

This is an excellent spot for a corral (also wish they would've put more racks in), but I'll be interested to see how the traffic is through here now on a fri/sat night. The car traffic here is always for shit, with SUVs stopping to drop off people at Casbah (which I also love) and isn't there still a valet drop off? Plus the road is crap so I always take the whole lane. Should be interesting.


sarapgh2
2012-11-30 14:45:24

yeah, the city didn't actually remove any parking for this one. the space was used also by people illegally parking near a fire hydrant.


erok
2012-11-30 14:48:14

That highland ave one feels like Fuel and Fuddle without the beer list.


sloaps
2012-11-30 14:51:51

FWIW, there's a Mad Mex on McKnight Road, too. No bike rack, of course (the last I checked). Who uses a bike in the North Hills?


stuinmccandless
2012-11-30 14:55:27

Wow, that bike corral is pretty awesome. We have arrived! I can't believe what is happening sometimes! Great!


2012-11-30 15:31:23

was highly entertained the last time i was out that way, when the signs had gone up but none of the actual bits, to see a full-size SUV parked in what was clearly marked as "Bike Parking"...


epanastrophe
2012-11-30 17:12:57

pbeaver a.) the oakland one is better.


I live near the Oakland Mad Mex. I really, REALLY wish it didn't suck.


Example: When they get even a little crowded, they put their music so it is both loud and muffled - makes it hard to talk, but if you try to listen to the music, you can't hear it well either. When I'm in a restaurant and it isn't closing time and they try to drive me out? They succeed.


They make money, sure. Lotta stupid and stylish folks in that neighborhood.


They still suck.


mick
2012-11-30 18:10:58

yup. even when i lived on dawson st, and my best friend lived in holmes place a block away AND my roommate was a cook at the oakland location, we still went to the mcknight rd one unless it was half-price time. that one is still my favorite. exactly the right size and ambience.


cburch
2012-11-30 19:32:12

Seems like a big space for only 4 'Staple' racks. I'd like to see 2 or 4 more 'Staple' racks installed. I'm Glad to see progress with corrals regardless.


benzo
2012-11-30 19:50:30

i think i agree with all the rest of you: the oakland location is great EXCEPT that its loud and crowded and dark and sometimes douchey. at least shadyside isnt so loud and crowded and dark...


melange396
2012-11-30 19:53:09

i guess im kinda partial to the place after going there for a decade.


2012-11-30 20:19:05

pffft, thats it!?!


melange396
2012-11-30 20:21:44



erok
2012-11-30 21:25:05

seriously? what took you so long to start going there?


cburch
2012-11-30 22:05:51

Scooter spots.


johnwheffner
2012-11-30 22:15:58

The "ambience" on mcknight is about the same as chuck e. cheese.


salty
2012-11-30 22:49:45

you sir are grouchy


cburch
2012-11-30 22:51:51

I hate the one in oakland because of how loud it is


stefb
2012-11-30 22:54:28

Was that installed correctly? OTB parking space is the same size but has two of those rack structures.


I concur with the McKnight road mad mex experience. It's the patronage and the space programming - like cracker barrel attempting to be "hip."


sloaps
2012-12-01 00:20:29

Yeah, I went past there this morning--I think they're short one rack.


Two things I don't love about the Shadyside Mad Mex:


1. Too many bro-dudes.


2. They still haven't figured out their take-out process. 45 minutes for chips and salsa? Come on!


2012-12-01 00:25:45

Haha I just googled bro-dudes.


marvelousm3
2012-12-01 00:37:52

Hee heeeeee..now just look around if you go to Mad Mex Shadyside... :)


(I still go there and eat of course!)


2012-12-01 00:49:10

Agree with McKnight road being the best; only one I can seem to recall being able to hear people in; Shadyside one is still pretty damn noisy/dark if I recall, but has the bonus of being able to look down on people


Also underwhelmed with the bike parking. It seems like four triangle racks right behind it could do the same thing. OTB got it right


sgtjonson
2012-12-01 02:58:51

I have a little concern over that bike corral. It looks so excessive with so little parking for bikes. I would like auto drivers to get it, but how will they get it if a cyclist doesn't? I am happy it is there, but wish it could handle more bikes or was a little smaller. What do you folks think?


2012-12-01 06:30:09

My chances of going to Mad Mex: near zero.

My chances of going to OhYeah!: near 100%.


I'm glad it went in, but yeah, it should be able to handle about 15 more bikes.


stuinmccandless
2012-12-01 12:03:27

ok, so this got a bit broiled up in Peduto's bike corral project (remember that?), so what's happening is that this is technically the temporary rack until Peduto is ready for the Shadyside specific corrals. they are currently being designed in some sort of competition, then they need to go to art commission, then fabricated, and installed. Since we've been working on this location since april, when Mad Mex removed their racks for sidewalk dining, all parties were desperate to get something in, but it was also identified as a location for the shadyside bike corral project. so here's hoping that the shadyside corral design holds more than 8 bikes.


erok
2012-12-03 14:46:29

Thanks. I love it when the clear light of informed knowledge breaks through here.


jonawebb
2012-12-03 14:49:02

erok, cool, thanks for that information.


2012-12-03 14:59:26

"So hot right now"



2012-12-03 14:59:52

@erok


Why do we even need fancy, custom made bike racks? There's no way that that can be more economical than just sticking in two of those four-unit U-shaped racks in there.


If we have to have a contest/bureaucracy every time somebody installs a bike corral, it seems like it will really muck up the process


I'd rather see a standardized design, like the OTB one, that interested parties can use, and then just worry about getting approval from whoever is in charge of turning car parking into bike parking


There's nothing I hate more than investment in poor infrastructure (see Trader Joes new rack, placement of 3r rack, Whole Foods green ankle rack, GE Market District orientation of 3r rack, etc)


sgtjonson
2012-12-03 15:21:22

hmm, actually i might have been going to MM-Oakland for closer to 17 years.

(took a while for them neurons to collide.)


2012-12-03 19:17:31

@pbeaver - that makes more sense. on multiple levels...


cburch
2012-12-03 19:31:48

Kind of an interesting teaser in a closing cliffhanger line at Brooklyn Spokes:


Congratulations to the advocates, DOT staffers, and, of course, the owners of Little Zelda for making this latest bike corral a reality. The next step? Bike corrals on residential streets.




vannever
2012-12-05 01:35:47

^Cool, but how are you suppose to lock up to that rack?


marko82
2012-12-05 01:48:14

it's such a safe neighborhood those racks are just there to hold up bikes that don't have kickstands!


imakwik1
2012-12-05 14:02:18

Not a lock in sight. Also notice the small child on a bicycle on the left of the picture. In mixed traffic.


Now y'see, in civilized countries, they can have nice things.


stuinmccandless
2012-12-05 14:13:50

Stu, +1 for noticing the "unremarkable kid on bike", sort of like the DogThatDidNotBark.


If you look at that nice cream-colored step-through in the photo, I think there's an integrated frame lock engaging the rear wheel, where Stateside bikes would have only the rear brake.


I think they lock their bikes, it's just that their market produces bikes that aren't awkward and inconvenient to lock. Whereas for us, a bike lock is an expensive third-party add-on, heavy, bulky, and a pain.


Hmmm. Wonder where more bikes get stolen - where security is subtly integrated and painless, or where security is awkward, expensive, ungainly, and counter-intuitive?


I didn't coin that phrase. AEUCI (awkward, expensive, ungainly, and counter-intuitive) is what my parents originally wanted to name me.


But seriously, if we have signs/ youtubes/ discussions about how to lock up your bike correctly, isn't that an indictment of the design? ie: it just works?


vannever
2012-12-05 14:20:57

Vannevar got it first.

It's called a "cafe lock". It's supposed to protect your bike during a brief stop while you have your coffee. I wouldn't trust them here, but some folks do have them.

Interesting fact -- the key can only be removed when the lock is closed. So when your bike is stolen the insurance company requires the key to be turned in, to prove you locked it.


jonawebb
2012-12-05 14:21:23

I know in much of Scandinavia the only lock you would have is something that goes through the back wheel, so no one can just ride off with your bike. To be honest, if you get out into the country or small towns in the US, you will see bikes laying around with no locks. Locks are just needed for cities most of the time.


2012-12-05 15:01:25

It (edit: that is, the 'cafe lock') looks rather like handcuffs...


A bike corral on my street would be awesome, especially if covered. No more hauling my bike up the narrow, awkward stairs to my apartment! I could have room for a second bike!


epanastrophe
2012-12-07 16:21:05