Your city buses with bike racks?

[shootingstar]

Do your local transit buses have bike racks? In Canada, it's pretty recent. Only in last few years Metro Vancouver had all of their buses outfitted with bike racks. To my understanding many British Columbian municipalities are getting bike racks on their local buses also.

Here's ours: (http://insidevancouver.ca/2010/08/12/go-multi-modal-%e2%80%93combine-cycling-with-other-transportation-options-part-i-within-metro-vancouver/)

Toronto is slowly getting their buses with bike racks. Think they started about 2 yrs. ago. or so.

I am aware that Seattle, Portland (?), etc. buses have them.

[Thorn]

Milwaukee County added racks a while back. It was quite the political mess.

Due to grant money, the county had to come up only 10% of the money to install the racks. 90% of the cost was "found money". For the $40K that the county needed to pay, the county supervisor vetoed the installation of the bike racks.

Needless to say the county board overruled the veto and now the buses have racks. And they're being used. Perhaps not as much as Mr Anti-Bike Supervisor would like, but they are used.

[Crankin]

They have them in Boston, too. I am not sure how many of the buses have them, but my son has used them quite a few times when it was raining hard or thundering and he didn't want to commute home from work.

[soprano]

We have them in Austin. All of the regular city buses take two bikes. They get used a lot; seeing a bus without a bike on the front is increasingly rare.

A few of the express commuter buses are the big coach/touring types and don't have racks, so the driver gets out and opens the cargo bay below and you stick your bike in there. It's OK if you're not too worried about wear and tear from the bike sliding around a bit.

We just got commuter train with bike hooks last March and I hear that they have lots of bicycle traffic from cyclists taking the train out to the suburbs for rides in the countryside. I'm on vacation next week and might have to do that myself!

[withm]

We have them in lower slower Sussex County. BUT we only have bus service from mid-May to mid-Sept. Fat lot of good that does.

[abejita]

Dallas has racks on some buses too...and I've even seen them being used!

[BikingNurse]

ours have racks for 2 bikes. They do get used, butI've never used them. (i was only on our buses twice in my life and it was on the same day.

[JennK13]

Here in the South Metro area of Denver, we have them. And you can take them on the light rail, too.

[Atlas]

A few of the lines and buses here in Ames have them, though I haven't used them. They do give me some peace of mind though, if I ever flatted on the way to work I could just get on the bus with my bike and fix it later.

[Owlie]

Cleveland's buses have racks for two bikes. You can also take them on the train during off-peak hours.

[badgercat]

There is a 2-bike rack on every city bus in Tucson, AZ, and I never count on being able to use one because they're so often full!

[Catrin]

Every bus in Indianapolis has two bike racks up front and they get used!

[shootingstar]

Good to know all this. Any more locations?
There is something that North America DOES do better in terms of cycling infrastructure: that's bike racks on local buses.

Seriously. We were in some cycling-intensive European cities and there were hardly any or none. But then some of the cities use streetcars more heavily than buses. Still buses are used in their areas out in the 'burbs for some cities.

[Leigh66]

Went to Durham, NC (little over an hour from where I live) to a ballgame the other day, and saw the first bus I've ever seen with a bike rack on the front! I live in a small town that doesn't have buses. LOL I thought it was pretty cool!

[jessmarimba]

Think Richmond, VA has some buses with bike racks.

[Grog]

Good to know all this. Any more locations?
There is something that North America DOES do better in terms of cycling infrastructure: that's bike racks on local buses.

Seriously. We were in some cycling-intensive European cities and there were hardly any or none. But then some of the cities use streetcars more heavily than buses. Still buses are used in their areas out in the 'burbs for some cities.

I do like the bike racks on buses quite a bit as a concept... but as another poster mentioned, I never expect that I will be able to put my bike on one of them.

Just a wild guess, but I'd say that the distances are usually shorter in Europe (because of increased density), thus bi-modal commuting is much less of a necessity or of a demand made by commuters. Also, in a lot of cities where lanes are extremely narrow, I think it would be quite a bit more challenging to drive buses with a rack on!

[Groundhog]

There is a 2-bike rack on every city bus in Tucson, AZ, and I never count on being able to use one because they're so often full!

Seattle and suburbs are like that...they're often full.

I use the bus for part of my commute. I ride to the express bus flyer stop, put the bike on the front and then ride the remaining few blocks to my office. On the way home I reverse, but get off earlier and ride a longer distance home. My commute is 17 miles in very heavy traffic. The trail goes part-way but I could never commute if I had to ride the whole way. The bus makes it do-able.

DH and I are talking about riding our bikes to the bus, getting on the bus and going downtown, then getting on a ferry and going on a vacation tour...all without using a car!

[crazycanuck]

I often wonder why Perth doesn't add racks to the buses & brought it up at a sust transport meeting I went to this week. The Minister for Planning, A greens member (pushing for light rail) and a few others were there & so I asked.

I don't get why it's so hard...

[laura*]

Santa Cruz county California has a triple rack on the front of every bus. They do get used heavily - certain routes at certain times of the day are often at capacity. They've had racks for a long time - perhaps 20 years ago they had a four position rack on the back of the buses used on a few routes.

Santa Clara county California has double racks on probably every bus. They get used sporadically - but many of the routes run quite frequently. The light rail and heavy rail also both allow bikes.

[7rider]

Metro-D.C. area buses also have bike racks on them.

[Eden]

Seattle started with 2 up racks and due to high demand switched to 3 up racks - there've been some technical snafus... the 3 racks aren't as sturdy and the first batch had to be totally replaced. The new ones seem to be a bit better, but they are getting stuck up or down fairly regularly (while down is better for us, the drivers can't see them when they are down with no bikes on.....). I had to wait for the next bus a few weeks ago (I had a sidewall blow out on my rear tire!) because the rack was stuck up. The driver offered to let me bring my bike on, but the next one was only 10 min away so I was nice too and declined.

We have bike hangers on our light rail - really they should have two hangers in each spot, there's enough space, but I've never seen them fill with bikes. Most of the time you just have to kick some tourist's baggage out....

[NbyNW]

11 lines in Edmonton have bus racks. Still a lot more to do!

[skhill]

I'm in Lexington, KY, and all our full-size buses have 2 up racks. On some routes, they see a lot of use, on others not so much. Using one made me realize just how heavy my bike is!

[Fredwina]

The Socal agencies I'm familiar with (LACMTA(Metro), Foothill, Omnitrans, and the EL Monte Trolley) all have them_)

[shootingstar]

I agree Grog, that some European cities have some very narrow streets.

In terms of the density...maybe as reason why there are less tendencies to have racks on local buses. There are some big cities that are sprawly with dreary suburbs, just not as widespread in geographic coverage compared to many North American cities, big and small.

North America is hugely sprawly which has made some urban planning designs not terribly efficient.

An article (http://insidevancouver.ca/2010/08/13/go-multi-modal-combine-cycling-with-other-transportation-options-part-ii-from-metro-vancouver-to-vancouver-island-gulf-islands-whistler-and-the-u-s/) that I just wrote today for our tourism board to promote how to use cycling in combination with ferry, bus, train, etc. for trips to islands, etc.

Yes, Groundhog it is possible to do it our region with bike, etc. and without a car. We do it most of the time. (Well, we don't have a car.) Maybe above link will give you ideas for trip planning. lst link in starting the topic thread was part I --about multi-modal travel within our city.

[shootingstar]

Crazycanuck, maybe this thread should inspire/give evidence what Perth is missing out and shouldn't resist. After all, one more transport mode would be good if it gets too hot at times where you are with bike.

This videoclip is from bus bike rack manufacturer. After bidding process, TransLink, our transit authority chose them for the 2 bike rack.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLNmXdzTQDI

Europeans may not know how advantageous it is to have bike racks on buses. Some will be coming to Vancouver in future. (More about that later.. :rolleyes:) I'm thinking of countries like Spain, Greece, etc. where it's hotter, terrain is hillier, just would put off alot of locals.

[colorisnt]

We had them in Bloomington, IN on the city buses and we have them on the Columbia, MO buses. But in B-Town, we didn't get any on the school buses.

[crazycanuck]

Ok, has anyone poked & prodded thier local/state infrastructure folks to implement the bike rack scheme? If you have the letter you used to introduce the idea, would you mind if i read it?

Do they allow them during peak times?
Is there a website stating how much they cost to implement??
Where can i find the best stats???

As far as i'm aware no bus routes in Australia have bike racks.

[shootingstar]

Ccanuck:

This database: http://tris.trb.org/ is a biggie in the transportation research world. Plug in search box: bike racks on buses You will get a wealth of case studies.

By the way, I just found out: Saskatoon, Saskatchewan has bike racks on their local buses. It's also a bike-friendly city, according to my partner who chats up with other cycling advocates. Amazing, eh? Yay!!

It's important to give several years for use to catch on. I was browsing in our transit authority's public database: looks like bike racks on buses discussion started as far back as 1999. Looks like installation started sometime in 2001 or abit later ...took awhile when old buses replaced with new. I am aware there was a big push to get our new buses into the fleet, in time for the Olympics. Hence with new bus, came a rack, etc. But one would have to contact TransLink.

Apparently we have approx. 1,000 buses in our fleet to serve Metro Vancouver. It would be reasonable as a conservative guess, at least 1 bike per day per bus, is carried...which would calculate to 1,000 bikes carried daily. (Some routes would be very heavy. Fully loaded every single bus on a particular route for at least 12 hrs. #602 bus goes a ferry terminal. Always loaded with bikes for every bus during summer. 2 buses runs every 30 min. one going north and other going south = 96 bikes carried by 1 bus over 12-hr. period. )

Vancouver is different than other parts of Canada, because we seldom get much snow so there are always some cyclists even in winter.

Contrast this to: http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/lifestyle/90875194.html Frankly, people need to see long-term development on this. Not expect instant adoption in lst year or so.

I guess the peak hr. restrictions that you are referring would be bringing bikes directly inside a train or inside a bus??

[NbyNW]

Seattle's system had peak hour restrictions for a while, I think it was something like no bike loading/unloading in a specific section of the downtown corridor. I always guessed that they didn't want to slow down boarding times, but I think it takes longer for people to board the bus during a busy period than to put a couple bikes on the rack. Could also have been that the buses only had so much space to stack at curbside stops.

I'm a bit fuzzy on the details since it didn't impact my commute (I never worked downtown), but I think after the bus tunnel re-opened (sometime in the last 2 years) they began to permit people to use the bike racks downtown at any time.

[Deborajen]

Wichita just got racks installed within the past year. Our mayor is making fitness and recreation a priority since we've been one of the top 25 fattest cities in the country several times. We've gotten the new bike racks, the city has updated some of its bicycling laws, and they've even resurfaced a really bad portion of the river path. We're going to have a bicycle-friendly city yet! (OK - One can hope!)

An interesting thing about the racks - I went to a public meeting prior to the bicycling laws update and the racks were mentioned. One of the council members at the meeting said that a lot of people are getting off of the bus and forgetting to get their bikes. I guess if you get on at the front and get off at the back, and the rack is on the front of the bus - it's easy to see it happening. That's got to be a helpless feeling, though - seeing the bus drive away and then remembering the bike -- :eek:

[Groundhog]

An interesting thing about the racks - I went to a public meeting prior to the bicycling laws update and the racks were mentioned. One of the council members at the meeting said that a lot of people are getting off of the bus and forgetting to get their bikes. I guess if you get on at the front and get off at the back, and the rack is on the front of the bus - it's easy to see it happening. That's got to be a helpless feeling, though - seeing the bus drive away and then remembering the bike -- :eek:

Yeah, I'm wondering when I'll forget and have that happen to me!

[Eden]

An interesting thing about the racks - I went to a public meeting prior to the bicycling laws update and the racks were mentioned. One of the council members at the meeting said that a lot of people are getting off of the bus and forgetting to get their bikes. I guess if you get on at the front and get off at the back, and the rack is on the front of the bus - it's easy to see it happening. That's got to be a helpless feeling, though - seeing the bus drive away and then remembering the bike -- :eek:

ummm sad fact is that there are some folks who steal bikes and then "dump" them by leaving them on city bus racks. Most people who are riding don't forget to get their bikes when they get off....

[crazycanuck]

Shootingstar, thanks the type of link i've been searching for.

I might suggest to http://www.patrec.org/ a possible study?

[Eden]

Seattle's system had peak hour restrictions for a while, I think it was something like no bike loading/unloading in a specific section of the downtown corridor. I always guessed that they didn't want to slow down boarding times, but I think it takes longer for people to board the bus during a busy period than to put a couple bikes on the rack. Could also have been that the buses only had so much space to stack at curbside stops.

I'm a bit fuzzy on the details since it didn't impact my commute (I never worked downtown), but I think after the bus tunnel re-opened (sometime in the last 2 years) they began to permit people to use the bike racks downtown at any time.

Indeed - I think there was some fear that there would be a slow down in boarding during peak hours downtown, but about a year or so ago they decided to pilot allowing cyclists to allow loading downtown and apparently it was not a problem at all as its still allowed and doing fine - really it doesn't take long at all to load a bike. If there are even a few people waiting to board you can load your bike up before they even all get on (well... as long as the rack doesn't jam...)

[shootingstar]

Not aware of any bike loading restrictions for bus bike racks, at any hr. any place in Metro Vancouver.

Think how dumb that type of policy would be: How about the frail elderly/disabled who are slow in boarding /disembarking a bus? Or a parent getting a child's stroller on board a bus (which is allowed on all our buses at any time if there is rm.). :)

I use bus bike racks about 2-4 times annually.
Hope I don't need it today. I plan to go cycling even with a pulled side hip muscle...it's abit painful just to sit and bend over abit..

[badgercat]

Since no one else has chimed in on these cities, I'll go ahead and add in the other places I've lived. :p

In Madison, WI: racks on every city bus (http://www.cityofmadison.com/metro/RackRoll/BikeRacks.htm)

In Chicago: The Chicago Transit Authority (http://www.transitchicago.com/riding_cta/bike_and_ride.aspx) has racks on buses, and also welcomes bicycles on the rapid transit train lines (except during weekday morning and evening rush periods). I believe the same thing goes for the regional trains (Metra) that go out to the suburbs--bikes are allowed on most trains except those during rush periods. There's a separate bus company (Pace) that covers the suburbs, and I don't recall if they had racks.

ETA: Suburban Chicago Pace Buses (http://www.pacebus.com/sub/vision2020/bicycle_racks.asp) have all had bicycle racks since 2002, apparently. :)

ETA2: Wow, I never even thought to mention the city I live in RIGHT NOW. Probably because it was short-term by design and I never really felt at "home" here. But Omaha, NE does have a rack on every city bus. (http://www.metroareatransit.com/html/BandR_3.html)

[sjane]

We have them in Green Bay. I'm pretty sure they're on every bus.

[shootingstar]

As for a forgotten bike on bus rack: indeed, I know someone who did forget his bike. He did report his bike to the transit authority lost and found. But it was never recovered.

Best to plant oneself inside near the front of the bus as a passenger.

[Melalvai]

Wichita just got racks installed within the past year. Our mayor is making fitness and recreation a priority since we've been one of the top 25 fattest cities in the country several times. We've gotten the new bike racks, the city has updated some of its bicycling laws, and they've even resurfaced a really bad portion of the river path. We're going to have a bicycle-friendly city yet! (OK - One can hope!)
Oh, I really hope so. Kansas needs so much in the way of bicycle-friendliness. It's a great state for biking but it's very uncoordinated about it. Lawrence is a bronze level BFC, and I think one of the KC burbs, Olathe or Overland Park maybe, might be too. I'd love to see Wichita the first silver or better BFC. I was surprised that Lawrence is bronze, because it doesn't have all that much. I guess they painted a couple bike lanes to get it.

Sorry, slight thread hijack there. Columbia, MO buses have bike racks. Kirksville, MO doesn't have buses. The public transit is a van.

[Tourbiker]

We have bike racks on the buses in Whistler (and Vancouver, as you all know by now).

Tip to cyclists in cities that are considering bike racks...
I've used the Vancouver ones occasionally, including when they originally installed as a trial. The bus drivers were initially against them - my friend is a transit supervisor and told me the attitude of the drivers who wanted the program to fail. The drivers were supposed to record in a log whenever a cyclist used the rack so most didn't. Therefore, I used the racks many times and made a note of whether or not the driver made a note in his log. I then submitted the list to BC Transit and Cycling BC, politely noting that I realize that many drivers want to sabatosh the program. Fortunately, for whatever reason, the bike racks were eventually added to all buses although it took many years. So, if your city is going through this process, let those responsible know that you appreciate their efforts and provide helpful feedback.

[shootingstar]

The bus drivers were initially against them - my friend is a transit supervisor and told me the attitude of the drivers who wanted the program to fail. The drivers were supposed to record in a log whenever a cyclist used the rack so most didn't. Therefore, I used the racks many times and made a note of whether or not the driver made a note in his log. I then submitted the list to BC Transit and Cycling BC, politely noting that I realize that many drivers want to sabatosh the program. Fortunately, for whatever reason, the bike racks were eventually added to all buses although it took many years. So, if your city is going through this process, let those responsible know that you appreciate their efforts and provide helpful feedback.

Whereas in Eugene, Oregon when we were vacationing there for a few days last year, bus drivers help cyclists put bike on bus rack --if necessary. Even explain certain things to newbies.

By the way, welcome to TE forums!

[Groundhog]

For my first time loading a bike on the Seattle-area Sound Transit bus, I was having a hard time and the nice (woman) driver came out to help me. I felt pretty stupid but she said that all the racks are different and some are really hard to use and that I shouldn't feel bad. I haven't had any trouble after the last time. Good thing because not all drivers are nice.

[badgercat]

Interesting to hear about drivers getting out to help--in my cities, I've always heard/seen (from the transit company website, etc, not from a huffy bus driver) that drivers are not allowed to exit the bus to help. A couple times, I've seen drivers try to shout instructions through the windshield, which wasn't terribly effective. :o

[northstar]

Jumping in-

We have them in Minneapolis. The drivers help load them for you.

Not to digress, but I know there is also a voucher program available - so if you bike to work and get rained out, you can hop on a bus with your bike, free of charge. I'm not sure how it works as I commute a different direction than downtown, where it would be convenient to use, but it sounds pretty darn cool.

[uk elephant]

European experience --- a few buses here in Aberystwyth, tiny town on the edge of Wales, have bike racks. But I have not yet worked out which ones. It seems random, but could be particular routes I suppose. I've never seen them on the buses that go out to the village where I live so I haven't been able to take advantage of it. I'd love a bike friendly bus service for those days when it's nice to cycle in the morning, but then torrential rain when heading home after work.

Also didn't see bike racks on any of the buses around Essex (north of London) when I lived over there. Bikes were allowed on trains (though no racks to put them in) but restricted to folding bikes only within the main commuter belt for London during peak times.

[korora]

Apparently it's illegal under New Zealand law for buses to have bike racks. I believe cycling advocates have prompted a reconsideration of the law, but nothing has actually happened yet. And bus companies in our town are private (with public subsidy), so presumably they won't install bike racks unless they want to or local ordinances require them to.

In short, I'm not holding my breath. But it certainly would be nice to skip the headwind on the 10-mile ride into town once in a while!

[uk elephant]

Mentioned this discussion to another friend here in Wales. Apparently the long distance buses did have bike racks, but drivers were not allowed to instruct or help in their use and passengers were only allowed to use them at end-point stops (meaning you can get on the bus here in Aberystwyth, but you won't be able to take the bike off again until you get to Bangor and then only if you know how to use the racks without the help of the driver). Needless to say the bike racks were never used and have now been mostly removed from the buses.

[MillieNZ]

The bus in Honolulu have racks on, about half of the fleet have space for two, most of the new buses have racks for 3, a lot of the time all of the spaces are taken which is great :)

[shootingstar]

Probably any jurisdiction that doesn't have bike racks on buses, means it would have been illegal...though I am uncertain if our motor vehicle legislation defines what type of apparatus would be attached to a vehicle/bus..

If Honolulu has racks on bikes, this should give even more incentive for something similar in Australia.

[kcmpls]

Northstar, I've never had a Minneapolis bus driver help me load my bike on a rack.

But, we have two racks on every bus and VERY often they are full. Especially on the buses that run between Minneapolis and St. Paul. Sometimes, if there is room, the driver will let you bring the bike on the bus, but it is rare when there is room.

I've seen people wait for two or three buses come by before there is room for a bike on a rack during rush hour.

[redrhodie]

RIPTA buses have 2 bike racks on them, which I've only used a couple of times. The first time, the bus driver mentioned the new racks are much better than the old racks, and hardly any bikes fall off anymore :eek:. He happened to say this while we were going over the bridge, which is really bumpy because of the expansion joints. I suspect he didn't like having the racks there. I have to say, the bumpiness made me very nervous for my bike, and I spent the ride worrying I had not secured it properly (since the driver didn't help), and that I left my saddle bag open (which I didn't, but wouldn't be unlike me :o).

The other thing is that they get used a lot, so there's a chance I could not get a space, which would leave me waiting for more than an hour for the next bus, with no alternative since the bridge is non cycling. I decided it wasn't worth the wear and tear on my bike, the stress of imagining it falling off, or the chance of not getting home for hours, to take the bus on a regular basis. The bus is also more expensive than driving, even with the bridge toll. I drive to the park and ride instead.

It is good to have the option for when my car is in the shop, though.

[shootingstar]

So crazycanuck, any movement on bus bike racks?

Any more municipalities not yet names in this list of local buses with bike racks?

[kimikaw]

Milwaukee County added racks a while back. It was quite the political mess.

Due to grant money, the county had to come up only 10% of the money to install the racks. 90% of the cost was "found money". For the $40K that the county needed to pay, the county supervisor vetoed the installation of the bike racks.

Needless to say the county board overruled the veto and now the buses have racks. And they're being used. Perhaps not as much as Mr Anti-Bike Supervisor would like, but they are used.

And what could that former county executive be up to these days? Oh yeah, that's right he's the governor who just cut all bike funding in the state, moved transit money into the general fund( which some think will cause that to disappear). And then there's that teacher thing. So sad in a state with a great start on a biking infrastructure.

Sorry to rant/ hijack...but was reading the old messages to make sue MKE was listed as having bike racks. And saw this story (which I didn't know)

[korora]

Our bus services are provided by private companies under contract to the regional council. This year, for the first time, they're making bike racks on the buses a condition of the contracts (a handful of routes come up for contract renewal each year).

I'm part of the local bike-advocacy group that has been lobbying for this change, and I'm one of the people who'll be trying to work with the regional council (where they seem to have only vague notions of why anybody would want to ride either a bike or a bus) and the bus companies on the implementation of the plan.

Negotiating this kind of bureaucracy on the one hand makes me want to claw my eyes out with a blunt pencil, but on the other hand it's a potentially very positive step because the hills in this town deter a lot of potential bike commuters. Wish me luck--and if you have advice or experiences to share, I'd like to hear them.

[Geonz]

Our bus services are provided by private companies under contract to the regional council. This year, for the first time, they're making bike racks on the buses a condition of the contracts (a handful of routes come up for contract renewal each year).

I'm part of the local bike-advocacy group that has been lobbying for this change, and I'm one of the people who'll be trying to work with the regional council (where they seem to have only vague notions of why anybody would want to ride either a bike or a bus) and the bus companies on the implementation of the plan.

Negotiating this kind of bureaucracy on the one hand makes me want to claw my eyes out with a blunt pencil, but on the other hand it's a potentially very positive step because the hills in this town deter a lot of potential bike commuters. Wish me luck--and if you have advice or experiences to share, I'd like to hear them.

The main thing I've found about the whole advocacy things is to keep doing it and keep trying to increase your fold... and to remember that most of the Bike Muggles out there really don't understand, and accept and work with that.

[VeganBikeChick]

Yes, Seattle's buses have them but don't expect the drivers to help you out if you've never used one. I tried to put my road bike on one last week, not having used one before and was really struggling. It took me a good 2 minutes of trying without success, and the driver finally honked at me and yelled that she had to go, which left me with very nasty thoughts in my head and no bike on the bus.

Fortunately, the metro website has a video showing how to load your bike onto the rack, and I watched it while waiting for another bus to show up, having success the second time.

[redrhodie]

Yes, Seattle's buses have them but don't expect the drivers to help you out if you've never used one. I tried to put my road bike on one last week, not having used one before and was really struggling. It took me a good 2 minutes of trying without success, and the driver finally honked at me and yelled that she had to go, which left me with very nasty thoughts in my head and no bike on the bus.

Fortunately, the metro website has a video showing how to load your bike onto the rack, and I watched it while waiting for another bus to show up, having success the second time.

Same here! I was lucky that another bus commuter was willing to show me how to do it, but the bus driver was not helpful. It is easy once you know how, but the first time, egads, stressful.

[Biciclista]

Yes, Seattle's buses have them but don't expect the drivers to help you out if you've never used one. I tried to put my road bike on one last week, not having used one before and was really struggling. It took me a good 2 minutes of trying without success, and the driver finally honked at me and yelled that she had to go, which left me with very nasty thoughts in my head and no bike on the bus.

Fortunately, the metro website has a video showing how to load your bike onto the rack, and I watched it while waiting for another bus to show up, having success the second time.

I guess I was luckier than you. The first time I tried to load a bike I couldn't do it. I was practically in tears with frustration. A young college student (Female) appeared and showed me how to do it, lucky for me a LOT of people were boarding the bus so i didn't hold anyone up.

[commuterJNE]

I live in Long Beach, CA, where buses have racks for THREE bikes on the front, and we have a strong & growing cycling community, so sometimes those racks are full, especially on the less bike-friendly streets.

I too had to learn how to use them on my own. I believe bus drivers are not allowed to PHYSICALLY help you due to workers' compensation rules in case they hurt their back or something; however, I see no reason why they can't give you verbal directions.

Anyhow, now that I'm riding with an aluminum frame instead of a steel one, getting my bike on and off the bus is a breeze.

[kcmpls]

We have a very active bus company here in Minneapolis, so they bring the bike racks to events all the time, along with a bike, so people can try them out and have help. They are always at the State Fair, the Green Expo, the Bike Expo, all kinds of place. And, they even will bring it to your workplace to have set up for people to try for one day. It is pretty sweet.

[alice]

I've used bike racks on busses all up and down the west coast (U.S.). The very first time I struggled with it; even though the rules clearly say that the driver is not allowed to help you, he got fed up, got out of the bus, and showed me how.

I took a friend on the bus recently; I carried my folding bike onboard, but she was struggling with the rack. The driver was trying to give her verbal directions, but she couldn't hear him. Finally someone waiting at the same stop for the another bus got up and helped her.

I think it's always a little hard the first time, no matter how many times you've watched the video or looked at the diagram; it's just a little different in person.

[VeganBikeChick]

My thought was along the same line as yours; but why couldn't she have at least directed me what to do? All the same, at least I was able to figure it out on my own...

[shootingstar]

Well, guess what a Canadian Arctic city provides buses with bike racks also! : Whitehorse, Yukon.

http://www.city.whitehorse.yk.ca/index.asp?Type=B_BASIC&SEC=%7B1764157F-DDB5-49ED-9C56-697D5EE177BA%7D Most definitely North American cycling infrastructure CAN be different from some European cities...because we must adapt to extreme weather conditions.

[MomOnBike]

My city has recently added bike racks to buses. I haven't had the opportunity to try them yet, as my recumbent would have no hope of fitting. Some time I'll get the Raleigh out and give it a go, just because.