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.
I ride my bike to work everyday, and sometimes bring it on the train if i need to run errands during the day. I don’t like doing it, because a) it’s a hassle to hold the bike– i’d rather be sitting/reading and b) I feel bad because frankly it can be really rude when the trains are packed at rush hour.
Solutions:
1) Clearly label the *ground* as bike storage area, as well as outside of cars (similar to ADA)
2) Enforce ban on bicycles outside of the designated bike storage area
3) Add hooks so that bikes can be stored more efficiently
4) Fix/increase the freaking bike racks at stations so that there is sufficient parking at the stations, which will decrease (if only modestly) the number of bikes on the train.
Again, I’m a car-free dude who rides bike to work everyday– but even I can be honest about the fact that cramming bikes onto packed trains is bad manners.
DANDO
If Metro is going to lift the bike ban, then Metro needs to start communicating & enforcing the policy. Too many times have I seen bicyclists board the train and stand/sit with their bike anywhere except in the designated areas of the train; some don’t even bother to notice/read the signs pointing/directing to the area where bikes/strollers/suitcases are to be stowed. I have even seen some bicyclists ride their bikes on the station platforms. So please enforce the policy. Thank You!
I have similar concerns to Y Fukuzawa above. While I recognize that allowing bikes on trains dramatically increases multimodal commuting options, I have also observed that *most* bike riders don’t seem too concerned with knowing or following the rules of the road, the stations, or the trains.
I routinely see bikes on escalators, even though we’ve all grown up knowing that you don’t take strollers or wheelchairs on escalators (for the same reason… if you lose your grip, you can really, REALLY hurt people in a way that is much less likely on a stationary staircase). I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve seen bikes on the road signal for turns, and it *terrifies* me when they weave around cars and pedestrians at a stoplight to avoid having to actually stop as required by law.
I think that the growing use of bicycles as a transit alternative absolutely must be accompanied by some serious education, enforcement, and perhaps new regulation for how bicyclists work with cars, pedestrians, and transit riders. Current usage patterns are introducing many new risks to everyone, including (but not at all limited to) the cyclists themselves.
I think having bikes on trains during rush hour can be streamlined by having more side facing seats therefore giving more room inside the train, especially in the LRT trains which are a little narrower than the HRT trains. Also, with the exception of the blue line which already does this, there need to be three car trains on the other LRT lines to free up more space per car. Eventually the LRTs trains will need to all have three car trains because of growing ridership anyway.
completely agreed on education being needed! maybe even just some cool psa posters, honestly i love the other posters that are around the trains like the graffiti poster, no littering, stuff like that
i am perpetually blown away at the disregard i see displayed by some bicycle commuters on metro, totally blocking aisles and exits, taking up massive amounts of seating while the designated bicycle area is empty, i just don’t get it.
i will fully admit to viewing stop signs and traffic lights as mere suggestions though, if there is opposing traffic yes absolutely i will stop, the majority of the time this is not the case and yes i will run the stop sign and/or light. if one day i get a ticket for this, so be it, i am aware of the consequences and choose to take that risk, i cannot fathom stopping at every single light and stop sign when there is clearly no danger, that would probably double my commute time haha.
The only real solution is more open space by the doors and more trains. Everything else is a compromise because of budget concerns. Some bench seats adjacent to doors might help when there is overcrowding so that people can move around the bikes with greater ease. More trains and more open space would be great. I know that I have colleagues who talk to me about biking, but the inconvenience seems to postpone their abandonment of cars.
Some cities limit the bikers to one particular car, primarily, the front car of the train. If lifting the ban becomes an issue, I think limiting the bikers to one car of the train can be a great solution. It keeps like minded commuters together, as well.
I do not support lifting the ban on the smaller light rail trains. Trains are too crowded now and that will be the case in the future too. Safety of others is another concern.
That said, it is time to move on.
Bicyclists should be educated about proper decorum and expectations of them. Being silent about those will lead to problems.
If some very bright designer could come up with a concept for hanging bike racks on just one of the three cars, preferably the last one that allows easy access from the rear doors, a couple of rows of seats being removed to accommodate the rack might be feasible. If the design could include fold-away seating when the racks aren’t being used that would be innovative. I might take pictures and try to CG an idea I have for doing such and send it to MTA. LA is too cool to not do something like this. Drainage for rainy days would be a consideration in the design as well.
Living in Phoenix with a light rail system similar to the Gold Line.. I can tell you here, they have bike racks inside the train. The expectation is that bicyclists use the doors with the bicycle symbol.. They never do.. they always enter through the other door and go through the aisle to the center of the car where the racks are. The racks have you mount your bikes 90 degrees and it hangs off the wheel with a hook. Not everyone has the strength to lift their bikes or they have junk on their bikes.. so instead, they block the doorway.
If the racks are full, they still get on.
They ride their bikes on the platforms. Some are even daring and ride their bikes right into the train before dismounting.
I wish Phoenix had bike permits for rail riders, but since the governor has cut virtually all of the budget, there are less than a dozen officers who enforce laws (and check fares) throughout the city of Phoenix, which includes about 2/3rds of the rail line.
Bikes on trains, especially during rush hours, are trouble. Our transit system here is underutilized.. just imagine how it will be in a much more utilized system.