As we posted yesterday, the Metro Board of Directors officially lifted — effective immediately — the peak hour prohibition against bringing bikes on Metro Rail. The Board had previously asked for more information about crowds on trains before some seats are removed to accommodate more bikes — and Metro CEO Art Leahy said trains could grow longer and run more frequently as seats are taken out.
The idea is to help the increasing number of cyclists in L.A. County use their bikes to commute. What do you think? Can Metro Rail trains handle more bikes at rush hour? Will this help encourage more people to bike? Will it be a major turn off to non-cycling rail passengers?
Please vote and feel free to leave a short comment here with your views.
Ban or no ban, some trains simply don’t have enough room during rush hour. Additional cars or more efficient spaces for bikes would help encourage multi-modal travel and help reduce crowding (and among passengers).
Add bike hooks to the train ceiling to more efficiently store bikes vertically and keep them out of the way of people.
I agree with Enci. If they want to ban bikes they might as well ban wheelchairs, strollers, luggage, homeless with their garbage bags etc. Discrimination of cyclists has gone on far too long.
@Suggestion
Bike hooks may be a better solution, like in Portland, but in practice they are not that great. What the red line did by removing a section of seats is the best solution. Now just apply that to the light rail.
Why don’t you just add a car for bikes only. How hard could it be. Put it on the tail end of the train and your problem is solved. You won’t mix bikers with non bikers who might not like the idea then everyone will be happy.
I use the blue line with bike. It is a tough ride if I go on the train at peak rush headed out of LA. There needs to be policy in place that is enforcable via cams and security officers. What often happens is a bike is placed handle bar side down in everyone’s way and the arrogant owner is too cool to move it or stand with it so it is not in everyone’s way. As other bikes try to get on, this same owner will threaten or glare to not touch his precious ride while commuters try to get around it or this inconsiderate person’s bike takes up room for 3 bikes or 6 passengers. The bike idea will never take hold because the bad apples will discourage the culture change.
The restrictions were rarely followed before. I take the Red Line and at 5pm it is packed. People with bikes would still force their way onto the packed train and sometimes it got ugly. Although Metro already removed some seats near the doors, METRO NEEDS TO REMOVE EVEN MORE SEATS NEAR THE DOORS.
Better yet, replace the current seat configuration with bench seats along each wall like they have in New York and Tokyo.
Now that I knw I can bring my bike on the red line during peak hours, I am more inclind to bring my bike downtown on the train and ride my bike home from work.
I am completely in favor of lifting the ban – which was really a thoughtless idea. I am also in favor of ticketing people who block the doors with bikes.
One missing factor in this equation of letting bikes into rail is what’s going to happen when they start locking the turnstiles/fare gates? It’d just be a pain in the rear-end to shoulder the bike above the gate, carry the bikes through stairways and escalators, using up space in the elevators otherwise for the disabled and the elderly, annoying more people as you begin to have wheels and the chassis jutted into other transit riders’ faces.
Not to stereotype cyclists in general, but I’ve seen a lot of bad apples from cyclists in the trains as it stands now, and I’d rather not see more of them coming in acting all arrogant, not even saying “I’m sorry” or “excuse me” as they shove their bikes over my foot or ripping part of my over wear when it gets caught on the handlebars. It’s too risky and IMO, it’s a big safety hazard for other transit riders.
Unlike the open road, trains have very limited space, and every space should be used to maximize revenue. Bikes don’t add to more riders and revenue; the space that’s taken up by bikes could otherwise be used to add two, three more standing passengers.
IMO, this is going to cause more problems in the long term than it seems to be a great idea in the short term. In the end, LA’s goal is to become a transit oriented city like London and Tokyo. But imagine what those cities would be like if they start letting bicycles on board in those metropolises! Total nightmare!
I say scrap this plan before all hell breaks loose. Install bike lockers, buy two bikes (it costs what, less than $80 at Target?) pay a cheap monthly storage fee and store at each of the location. This is much more polite than creating a chaos bound to happen, and it also give Metro additional revenue earning opportunity by collecting monthly fees for bike lockers.
@Velma
Because it costs money and bikes don’t add to any additional revenue. Only people (transit riders) do. However, if Metro decides to charge $1 more for every bike that gets on board then that would be fair.
Unless its real passengers involved, it doesn’t make sense to add an additional set of rail cars. For example, women only rail car sets so that we can feel at ease from perverts are cost effective because women are passengers too. But bikes are just inanimate objects that uses up passenger space which don’t bring in extra money.
@Tornadoes28
That obviously makes sense so as to increase aisle space. Better yet, make it like the Yamanote Line where those seats are foldable so that during busy rush hours it can fold up for extra standing room, and fold down during other non-rush hour periods.