As the grand opening of its new facility nears, Gainesville Regional Transit System is one step closer to incorporating new bicycle racks on each of its buses.
The RTS Bus Fleet Maintenance & Operations Facility will open Nov. 20 with more space and improved buses, which will be accompanied by bike racks that could fit three bikes at a time, said Chip Skinner, RTS spokesman.
“We’re not as large as a bigger city where the bus can swing into another lane and come around,” Skinner said. “We’ve always been limited to a two-bike rack system.”
But with the help of new vendor Byk-Rak, RTS buses will soon have more room for bicycles.
“They actually offset it so it’s more of a staggered bike system,” Skinner said.
Byk-Rak has been working with the Florida Department of Transportation for the past two years to approve the company’s racks, said Ron Coon, Byk-Rak marketing and sales vice president.
“The bike owner can have fenders on their bikes and use our racks,” Coon wrote in an email. “With our wheel-locking system, fenders have no interference to our tire-locking device.”
Some students are wary of the new bike rack system and how effective it may be.
UF art history sophomore Alejandra Carrillo rides her bike at least four times a week.
She said she likes the idea of more space for bikes but is worried about the logistics.
“I think it’s good because sometimes you get there and there’s two bikes already, so you have to wait again,” the 20-year-old said. “However, I struggle putting my bike on the rack when there’s one in front and I have to put it behind that one.”
[A version of this story ran on page 4 on 10/23/2014]
UPDATE: This story has been corrected to show that the racks will only fit three bikes at a time, not three to five. In addition, only new buses will be fitted with the three-bike rack, not any older buses.
