Benefits of bike parking
I’m working on my master’s project about bike parking distribution and equity in Chicago and while working on a section in the paper, I decided to get some help from readers. Many transportation projects are measured on predicted changes like trip travel time savings or trip cost savings (I give two examples below the photo).
My question is this: What are a bike parking installation’s measurable benefits to a traveler or a community?
![Array](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2380/2247301061_23c57fdef2_m.jpg "Portland has begun to implement in-street bicycle parking throughout the city. For every car parking space removed, there are at least eight spaces created for bicycles. By placing bike parking in the street, the sidewalk is kept clear for pedestrians. In Portland, business owners are increasingly requesting that the city install in-street bicycle parking in front of their stores.
One potential flaw in the Portland model is that it is difficult to keep the in-street "corral" clean because street-sweeping vehicles are unable to reach the curb. In New York City, one "in-street" bicycle parking facility was constructed by raising the bike parking space to the level of the sidewalk so that street-sweepers could reach the curb - which is now on the outside of the corral.")
Photo: Portland has installed 40 on-street bike parking “corrals” since 2004. What does a traveler or community gain from this bike rack installation? Photo by Kyle Gradinger.
To figure equity (fairness) for these project types, you measure these impacts for different groups (often high, medium, and low income), either in the alternatives analysis, or project selection phases. So, converting a lane on a highway to charge tolls for the lane’s users will have a certain benefit for many trips: a lower trip time. A new bus route may be convenient enough for some travelers to switch from driving to taking the bus, possibly reducing their trip cost.
Tags: Accessibility, benefits, bike parking, bike rack, CMAQ, equity, impacts, master's project, mobility, on-street bike parking, Portland, projects, question, Transportation
-Steven Vance
