Comments on: Capital Metro to test bike lockers at Park and Ride http://austinontwowheels.org/2009/04/15/capital-metro-to-test-bike-lockers-at-park-and-ride/ The Online Magazine of Austin Cycling Culture Fri, 10 Feb 2012 05:04:53 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Tim Jones http://austinontwowheels.org/2009/04/15/capital-metro-to-test-bike-lockers-at-park-and-ride/comment-page-1/#comment-14739 Tim Jones Wed, 16 Nov 2011 00:00:25 +0000 http://austinontwowheels.org/?p=5407#comment-14739 It would be cool if I could buy one of these for my home if they're not too expensive. I currently keep my bike locked in side a YardStash. It would be cool if I could buy one of these for my home if they’re not too expensive. I currently keep my bike locked in side a YardStash.

]]> By: Werner http://austinontwowheels.org/2009/04/15/capital-metro-to-test-bike-lockers-at-park-and-ride/comment-page-1/#comment-2867 Werner Thu, 16 Apr 2009 17:48:34 +0000 http://austinontwowheels.org/?p=5407#comment-2867 I catch the 982/983 from the Pavilion P&R and the locker has been there for a few weeks now. It's a sturdy construction and certainly does hide the entire bike ,both from bad people and the elements, however it is bulky. I've never seen it actively used, although it was left open the other day, but I suspect that once people know how to use it (requires some training?) it makes sense for a whole-day lockup type situation like with a Cap Metro commuter. But these are ultimately not feasible in on-street situations where space is limited. I catch the 982/983 from the Pavilion P&R and the locker has been there for a few weeks now. It’s a sturdy construction and certainly does hide the entire bike ,both from bad people and the elements, however it is bulky.

I’ve never seen it actively used, although it was left open the other day, but I suspect that once people know how to use it (requires some training?) it makes sense for a whole-day lockup type situation like with a Cap Metro commuter. But these are ultimately not feasible in on-street situations where space is limited.

]]> By: Conrad http://austinontwowheels.org/2009/04/15/capital-metro-to-test-bike-lockers-at-park-and-ride/comment-page-1/#comment-2861 Conrad Wed, 15 Apr 2009 23:57:48 +0000 http://austinontwowheels.org/?p=5407#comment-2861 Hmm . . . according to the news story, they hope to get a couple of these at each park and ride location. Suppose you have a really expensive bike, there is no guarantee you would get an available pod. And if the pods tend to be used primarily by those with the most valuable bikes, wouldn't the pods be an attractive target for thieves? After all, they are still ultimately secured by something like a U-lock and therefore subject to the same theft risks as a u-lock (electric grinder, other attacks). In fact, it looks like the lock would now attach to the pod rather than the bike so if the thieve does some damage in the act, it would now damage the locker not the bike. On the other hand, if there were dozens of these everywhere we wanted to park our bikes, it would be more difficult for a thieve to determine which held a valuable bike and with many available, one could have greater confidence that a locker would be available to secure one's bike. But with only one bike ped pod, a couple dozen bikes would require a couple dozen pods and a lot more space than bikes densely packed into racks. It seems to me that it would be best to have a lot of these pods at any given location or else there might as well be none. Hmm . . . according to the news story, they hope to get a couple of these at each park and ride location. Suppose you have a really expensive bike, there is no guarantee you would get an available pod. And if the pods tend to be used primarily by those with the most valuable bikes, wouldn’t the pods be an attractive target for thieves? After all, they are still ultimately secured by something like a U-lock and therefore subject to the same theft risks as a u-lock (electric grinder, other attacks). In fact, it looks like the lock would now attach to the pod rather than the bike so if the thieve does some damage in the act, it would now damage the locker not the bike.

On the other hand, if there were dozens of these everywhere we wanted to park our bikes, it would be more difficult for a thieve to determine which held a valuable bike and with many available, one could have greater confidence that a locker would be available to secure one’s bike. But with only one bike ped pod, a couple dozen bikes would require a couple dozen pods and a lot more space than bikes densely packed into racks.

It seems to me that it would be best to have a lot of these pods at any given location or else there might as well be none.

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