Jersey City asks residents to help redesign bike racks

By Terrence T. McDonald/The Jersey Journal
June 03, 2013 at 10:54 AM

Do you have a passion for design and cycling? Then Jersey City has a competition that?s right up your alley.

The city, Jersey City Art School and Bike JC are hosting a citywide design competition for new, creative bicycle racks.

The competition strives to promote cycling as a sustainable transportation option, and seeks unique designs that will add visual appeal and functionality, city officials said Friday.

The competition will feature two categories: racks for two bikes and racks for three or more. Designs "with the spirit and history of Jersey City considered" are preferable, officials said.

Design submissions will be accepted from July 29 through August 2. Submission forms can be found on the city?s website (pdf)

http://jerseycitynj.gov/uploadedFiles ... ompetition%20Complete.pdf

http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/20 ... ty_asks_residents_to.html

This is great, hopefully we'll see more rack installed in the coming months and the weather gets nicer.

As a side note, what ever happened to the bike lane initiative? I thought we were supposed to get something like 50 lanes throughout the city? That was a "Healy Effort" wasn't it?...

Finally a way to take the stress out of something that should not be stressful in the first place. It's a win-win for all. Good going Bike JC !

Two major new bike initiatives to enhance Jersey City's bike infrastructure

By Denise Copeland/Betty the Bike
The Jersey Journal
March 19, 2013 at 3:17 PM

Jersey City's own bicycling advocacy group, Bike JC, has put the 'spring' back into the local cycling infrastructure by initiating two new programs with the city and city council to provide more bike parking throughout Jersey City.

As the number of Jersey City bicyclists grows, commuter cyclists to the PATH and to businesses around the city have found spots to lock their bikes increasingly hot commodities.

The 'to businesses' is key here ? a cyclist who finds a convenient parking spot in front of a local business is much more likely to feel good about spending their money inside said business.

"It's often hard to find a secure place to lock my bike," says Lafayette resident Elizabeth Ward. "The addition of more safe and convenient bicycle racks around town will encourage me to stop, park my bike, and go into a store or restaurant."

The Jersey City Bike Rack Fund streamlines the process of putting a bike rack in front of your business. The fund allows a private individual or group interested in purchasing a bike rack for the public sidewalk in front of their property to make a donation to the Trust Fund and complete an application describing the location.

"The new program replaces an archaic and difficult to implement law and drops the price of the rack and its installation from thousands to just $250," says Bike JC president Christopher Englese.

"The program offers much-needed bike parking to diverse areas of the city and, equally important, allows businesses who want to support cycling to do so easily."

If the proposed location is found suitable by the municpal engineer, the moneies donated will be used to purchase and install the rack. If the site is not suitable, the donation will be returned. There are currently two options: $250 for a 2-bike rack and $350 for the larger wave-style rack.

The city received approval from the state treasurer to establish the fund, which was established this month. Download your application for the Bike Rack Fund here.

More bike parking is also coming to new buildings. This past January, the city council passed revised zoning requiring bicycle parking in any new construction project.

New residential buildings above five units must provide a half-space of indoor bike parking per unit, while new retail must provide a mix of indoor and outdoor parking, depending on the size of the building.

The new bike parking rules, with varying specifications, apply to schools, hospitals, parking garages, municipal buildings, as well as any expansion above ten percent of current gross floor area. They are available for viewing on library.municode.com.

Longtime Bike JC member Ronald Clemente adds, "Bicycle racks go hand in hand with bikes. Without them, we would not be able to complete errands to local businesses. The city has made great strides putting bike racks at major transportation centers, so it's great to be mindful of other areas, such as stores, places of worship, and entertainment venues."

http://blog.nj.com/nj_off-road_biking ... ructure.html#incart_river