Ride A Freewheel

I have been paying close attention to bike racks at local shopping centers and I have to say I am disappointed. More and more people are cycling in the Northern Virginia/DC area and there should be ample parking for our “vehicles”. The truth to the story is there is hardly any at all. There are two things that I am seeing, so let me break it down.

First, there are places with no bike racks at all. There is a shopping center not to far from where I live and they have an enormous amount of people coming and going daily. However, one ride through the parking lot and you will see no bike racks on the sidewalks. There are only trees to lock your bike to and that is after trampling the flowers to get to the tree.

Now this shopping center would benefit greatly if they had “bike parking”. It is so congested with cars that you can barely get in or out of the parking lots at lunch or after work. Riding past the last few months I have seen many on bikes in the shopping center, however, I bet more people would patron by bike if they had racks or some sort of parking.

Here is the company website if you want to let them know they should be adding racks. Potomac Yard

Second, there are places with bike racks that are so artsy they can’t function as a good rack. I should take a picture to show you, however, I can’t seem to remember my camera anytime I ride. The “bike racks” in Old Town Alexandria are so two sided, but the top is a large flat round piece of iron with the cut out of a bicycle. Hard to explain I know. My point is there is no really good way to lock your bike to them. And if you do it better be your beater, because your paint will be chipped and ruin when you come back to it…..

I guess things are slowly changing considering more and more people are riding these days. As a community we need to stand up and ask for improvements. It might be that businesses and the city are not used to so many people cycling so they are not thinking in “bicycle” terms yet.