BART bicyclists should appreciate the efforts of EBBC’s representatives on the BART Bicycle Access Task Force who garnered approval of secure e-Locker bicycle parking by the BART Board on January 24. At the same time, our efforts held down a proposal to double the cost of renting existing keyed lockers. (See: BART Press Release below)
EBBC made three follow-up recommendations:
- Need for increased surveilance of all bike parking areas by BART Police to combat rampant bike theft.
- Need to update the Access Plan (2002) to allocate the mix of racks, keyed lockers, e-lockers, and bikestations. It would be a disservice to many BART bicyclists if the keyed lockers were eliminated as BART now proposes. A plan can evaluate bike facility needs and help the BART Board allocate funding for bike parking, stair channels, and access signs.
- Use the locker fee increase to provide a buy-out incentive ($20 BART ticket?) for bicyclists who rent keyed lockers to migrate to e-lockers. Over 400 bicyclists are on the locker waiting lists. Not all keyed locker users will need to monopolize one or more lockers once the e-lockers are available.
Press Release: BART TO INSTALL ELECTRONIC BIKE LOCKERS
New “E-Lockers” Designed to Increase Availability of Enclosed Bike Storage
BART riders will have the opportunity to store their bicycles in new electronic lockers for just three cents an hour thanks to a January 24th vote by the BART Board of Directors. The Board voted unanimously to set the fee for BART-owned “e-lockers”, which are coming to eight BART stations this year. Unlike old-fashioned key lockers which provide just one key for one renter, a single e-locker could be rented by many cyclists in one week by using smart card technology. The improved efficiency should mean greater availability.
“The new e-lockers should make it easier for people to bike to BART,” said BART Board President Gail Murray. “It’s another step BART is taking to encourage commuters to kick the ‘car habit.’”
How E-Lockers Work
Here’s how the e-lockers work: a cyclist purchases a smart card online for $20. The cyclist then uses the card to open an available locker at a BART station by sliding the card into a computerized reader. The cyclist is charged three cents an hour while their card is renting the locker. Once the cyclist returns to the locker and inserts the smart card, she can remove her bicycle and her rental fee is deducted from her card balance. Cards and instructions are available at www.bikelink.org.
The 1,006 key lockers now at BART stations will eventually be phased out. They are rented on a yearly or quarterly basis. The fee for renting a key locker is $40 per year at stations where e-lockers are also available and $30 a year at stations where key lockers are the only locker option.
Where the E-Lockers Are Going
[G2:1169 class=right]BART riders at four stations (19th Street, Pleasant Hill, El Cerrito Plaza and near Oakland City Center/12th Street) can already use city-owned e-lockers that are operated by outside entities. BART will install 198 of its own e-lockers at eight additional stations by July and 220 e-lockers at 12 additional stations in 2009 (see enclosed list for installation schedule). By 2012, BART hopes to have 895 e-lockers available.
Funding For the Installation
Money to pay for phase one of the installation is coming from several sources: the Alameda County Transportation Improvement Authority’s Measure B bicycle funds, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District’s Transportation Fund for Clean Air and the Metropolitan Transportation Commission’s Safe Routes to Transit Program. BART is contributing 20 percent of the cost by using money car drivers pay to park at BART stations.
Five Ways to Bike to BART
The new e-lockers and the old-style key lockers represent just two ways cyclists can bike to BART. BART also offers hundreds of bicycle racks where riders can lock their bikes for free. Three stations also offer free attended bike parking, where cyclists can leave their bicycles with an attendant. Hours for the bike facilities at Embarcadero, Fruitvale and Downtown Berkeley are posted on BART – Bikes, Overview.
Of course, cyclists can bring their bicycles on most BART trains. Folding bicycles are always allowed on trains while other bikes are permitted on most trains except those highlighted in the BART schedule. Generally, non-folding bikes are not permitted during rush hours in the commute direction. For a list of bike rules, see BART – Bike Rules.