Behold: RackSpotter – A crowdsourced bike parking tool!

[PotomacCyclist]

Now if someone could write up an automated script for my phone where I could press one button to take a photo/enter the rack type/enter the number of spaces and submit in a second…

[PotomacCyclist]

I think part of the appeal is the map itself. I was a history major and in history classes, you look at and analyze maps. Maps of battles, maps of economic development, maps of population changes and so on.

With bike planning, bikeshare and infrastructure, maps are also important. I’ve also taken a minor interest in local real estate development, just out of curiosity. Garmin and SportTracks map my run and bike workouts, so I can see exactly where I’ve run or biked. It’s all coming together in one great convergence. One day I might get warped into Google Maps and trapped for eternity. Or until someone restarts the browser.

[PotomacCyclist]

The first RackSpotter, another Northern Virginian

http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/gmdhtml/gwmaps.html

[ATTACH=CONFIG]8597[/ATTACH]

[PotomacCyclist]

Between the fake Columbia Island Marina pit stop and Rosslyn, I passed by the bike racks at the Roosevelt Island entrance. I wondered if anyone had added them to RackSpotter yet. I took a photo just in case.

Later, I found that those racks weren’t on the map. But now they are.

[Henry]

@PotomacCyclist 116021 wrote:

Between the fake Columbia Island Marina pit stop and Rosslyn, I passed by the bike racks at the Roosevelt Island entrance. I wondered if anyone had added them to RackSpotter yet. I took a photo just in case.

Later, I found that those racks weren’t on the map. But now they are.

Thank you for all your work on this.

[PotomacCyclist]

Several more new bike racks sprouted up last week, this time in Pentagon City, at the Acadia apartment development. While the racks are not yet accessible, they should be available in a week or two. Since they will be available in the near future, I decided to add them to the map now. I added photos for all of the new Acadia racks, but only half of the photos ended up on the map. Maybe I didn’t wait long enough for the preview page to load before pressing Submit.

As you can see, all of the new racks are still behind temporary fencing. The fencing should be gone very soon. Then the racks will be available, along with the brand new section of 12th Street S., between Fern and Eads. That section of the street will be one-way only, eastbound. The westbound lanes will be added with the PenPlace development on the north side of that street.

[vern]

Guess what? There are no bick racks at the Virginia DMV on Four Mile Run. So, I locked my bike up on the sign that said “this spot reserved for police”.

[PotomacCyclist]

First time I’ve seen a corkscrew bike rack. I might have passed by this before, but I didn’t really notice bike racks until RackSpotter started.

[This is in DC, not Arlington.]

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[Steve O]

@PotomacCyclist 116430 wrote:

First time I’ve seen a corkscrew bike rack.

The corkscrew totally compromises the functionality. Note the nearest bike parked sideways. I’m not sure how I’m supposed to park. I can’t put my wheel over the corkscrew, because then my crank will be resting on the rack. And it doesn’t appear to be deep enough to just push in and still get a u-lock on the frame and front wheel.
Most efforts to be fancy schmancy with bike rack design end up as fails. The classic fail being the “wave racks,” which are frickin’ everywhere.
[IMG]http://bikearlingtonforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=8678&stc=1[/IMG]
Just give me a simple inverted U. Simple, unambiguous. If you want to make it colorful or look like a paper clip or a tree, that’s fine. Just make sure there’s enough room in front, behind and on each side.
[IMG]http://bikearlingtonforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=8680&stc=1[/IMG][IMG]http://bikearlingtonforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=8679&stc=1[/IMG]

[PotomacCyclist]

There are some bikes parked “normally” at that corkscrew rack, but I agree that the design makes it a little more difficult to use.

https://goo.gl/maps/dTRXh

The same with the wave racks. I’ve seen many bikes parked in them as (I assume) there were intended to be used. I do think that some of the artistic bike racks need more thought about their function. Some of them are nearly unusable.

Placement and installation are important too. This bike rack at the airport is one of the worst installations I’ve seen. The wheelbender has been placed too close to the wall. Instead of 7-12 spaces, the rack can only hold 2 or 3 bikes.

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[cvcalhoun]

@PotomacCyclist 116489 wrote:

There are some bikes parked “normally” at that corkscrew rack, but I agree that the design makes it a little more difficult to use.

https://goo.gl/maps/dTRXh

The same with the wave racks. I’ve seen many bikes parked in them as (I assume) there were intended to be used. I do think that some of the artistic bike racks need more thought about their function. Some of them are nearly unusable.

Placement and installation are important too. This bike rack at the airport is one of the worst installations I’ve seen. The wheelbender has been placed too close to the wall. Instead of 7-12 spaces, the rack can only hold 2 or 3 bikes.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]8683[/ATTACH]

I don’t think there is a way to make a wheelbender work, regardless of placement. My local Y has one that is placed far from walls. But you still can’t push a bike far enough into it to lock the frame to the rack. People end up either locking their bikes to the ends of the rack or, if those are occupied, locking them to nearby signs.

[Emm]

@PotomacCyclist 116489 wrote:

There are some bikes parked “normally” at that corkscrew rack, but I agree that the design makes it a little more difficult to use.

https://goo.gl/maps/dTRXh

The same with the wave racks. I’ve seen many bikes parked in them as (I assume) there were intended to be used. I do think that some of the artistic bike racks need more thought about their function. Some of them are nearly unusable.

Placement and installation are important too. This bike rack at the airport is one of the worst installations I’ve seen. The wheelbender has been placed too close to the wall. Instead of 7-12 spaces, the rack can only hold 2 or 3 bikes.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]8683[/ATTACH]

The one in front of the target @ Potomac yards is installed the same way, except its one of the wave racks. Maybe 12 inches or so between rack and wall, which is not enough for a bike wheel. There’s also a ledge there which complicates things. I always feel like a jerk when I park my bike sideways on it, but they don’t give me much of a choice.

And don’t even get me started on these racks.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]8684[/ATTACH]

How do I get a ulock around my frame and the rack??? There is one by the CVS on Monroe in Del Ray and I spent 5 minutes trying to get a ulock around the rack, a wheel, and my frame and failed miserably for both the front and back of my bike. There’s maybe a way through the chain stays and back tire, but the rack at CVS is too close to the building for that to work.

I’ll try to start adding racks from Del Ray since I noticed the system will accept them. I just need to remember to stop and take photos of them.

[dasgeh]

@Steve O 116467 wrote:

Just give me a simple inverted U. Simple, unambiguous. If you want to make it colorful or look like a paper clip or a tree, that’s fine. Just make sure there’s enough room in front, behind and on each side.

You mean like not putting racks too close together? Or putting racks near paved paths so non gravel grinding bikes can use them? Or even better, putting enough even pavement under the racks for all types of bikes?

Because someone needs to give arlington county parks and rec the memo on how to install bike racks in parks. [ATTACH]8685[/ATTACH]

[PotomacCyclist]

@Emm 116493 wrote:

I’ll try to start adding racks from Del Ray since I noticed the system will accept them. I just need to remember to stop and take photos of them.

Note that I’ve experienced some issues with adding photos on the RackSpotter website, especially the mobile version. If I add the rack location, then select Add Photo and use the camera at that point, the final preview screen causes the browser to lock up. Then I have to exit the browser, restart RackSpotter and go through a lot of back and forth before I can login again.

Instead, I now take the photo first. Then I go back to the browser and add the bike rack. On the Add Photo screen, I select Documents. If I took the photo just before opening the RackSpotter website, that photo should appear at the top of the Documents list. Then I can select it. The photo preview screen loads after a slight delay (a couple seconds). Then I can add the location.

[cvcalhoun]

Should I assume that RackSpotter (like so much else bike-related) is still unavailable in Montgomery County? I just tried to add a rack in Bethesda, and it first couldn’t find my location and then wouldn’t give me a next button when I tried to place it manually.

[Author]

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