Just landed at a new job and want to bike to work. There are several free racks on the wall, but they all have u locks. Can I park and lock my bike here? Are these reserved? There’s only one or two unlocked free racks.
by camp_jacking_roy
Just landed at a new job and want to bike to work. There are several free racks on the wall, but they all have u locks. Can I park and lock my bike here? Are these reserved? There’s only one or two unlocked free racks.
by camp_jacking_roy
25 Comments
The people that work in your building will know better.
Just use the rack you want. Fuck those lazy entitled people, lol.
Take an unlocked rack.
If there are no unlocked racks, take an empty rack, even if it has a lock on it.
If they’re the only open ones I’d say go for it. They can move their lock if they get there and need to lock their bike.
Folks do it so that they can leave the lock at work and not have to carry it with them to and from work.
Most offices have policies where they remove these locks. You can always complain and get them cut off if it gets bad.
Pick the dustiest one. At lunch go look which ones get used.
park where you want. they dont have dips. I used to work in a building full of left u-locks. and that was the general rule.
We do this at my office too, because it’s a handy place to store your lock that gets used everyday. Locks are easy to remove and use somewhere else if the owner comes back and sees your bike on the rack.
But (underlined), your office culture is going to be your best guide here. It would be too easy for a petty coworker to use their lock on your bike if they think you’ve taken “their” spot. Talk to other bike commuters to get the vibe.
The German towel trick: bike edition
Use what you want. Fudge the ass hats leaving it there
My job’s bike cage has a sign stating that it is a shared cafe and locks can’t reserve a spot. See if there’s any signage or inquire about the policy.
If I left my lock and came to find someone else parked there, I would simply unlock it and find an available spot without any resentment
People are probably leaving them so they don’t have to lug them around more than trying to claim a spot
I used to leave my lock on the rack. If someone took that spot I’d just move my lock, I didn’t care.
I’m of the opinion the “fuck them” opinion. The only way to call dibs is to lock a bike to it.
I suppose it varies by region but where I’m at people are pretty inconsistent when they ride in so I lock up wherever is free. It’s not difficult for someone to move their lock to a different rack.
I have never paid any heed to these and just lock up wherever. In my experience the left locks are less frequent bike commuters; the daily folks have their lock with them anyways
Leaving the lock there isn’t calling dibs. It’s just leaving a lock there. These comments need to calm it down. Those riders are doing something that makes sense and harms no one.
The angel on one shoulder is telling me to say that you should first try to use a rack that doesn’t have a lock on it. And if none are free, then use a rack that does have a lock on it, but try and be respectful of other peoples property and don;t do anything that may cause it to be inconvenient for the other lock’s owner to retrieve/move their lock.
The devil on my other shoulder is telling me that if I was on that situation, I would just use any rack that was free at the time. And that it also looks like these racks are bolted to the wall with just a few [Hex Washer Head Slot Drive bolts](https://www.amazon.com/Hillman-Group-41040-Slotted-14-Inch/dp/B000H6KEAI), meaning they can be removed with either just a flat head screw driver or a hex driver of the correct size (looks to be about a 10mm). S I would also bring a ratchet and correctly sized hex bit to work. and it anyone does something because I “parked in their spot” like using their lock on my bike just to be a huge jerk, then I would use the ratchet to remove the entire rack from the wall which frees up the large shackle the U-Locks go on, then take my bike (long with there lock) home, put the rack back on the wall. once home I would pick the lock or cut their lock off my bike, then the next day I would make sure to get in early, hang my bike on the same spot and leave only half of there lock (either cut in half or if I can pick it, either just the lock or just the shackle) sitting on the ground under it.
This can happens when only a few people commute regularily by bike. Use an unused one and leave your lock there too. If someone locks their bike to the one you’re using, just unlock your own lock and park somewhere else. No point in worrying so much about that. People often have 2 sets of locks. One for home/weekend/errands and one for work.
I left them alone, but there were plenty of “unclaimed” spots at my old bike room.
They mean NOTHING!
No really. I don’t think they are trying to reserve the spot. It’s just the most convenient place to keep them.
they can’t reserve the racks like that.
Ideally a place for lock storage should be provided.
Don’t expect your lock to reserve a space but try to use other spaces first.
There are locks in my bike room that literally haven’t moved in over a year. I am starting to wonder if the owners even work here still. I just use whatever spot I want, the herd sorts itself out.
Just curious – How does those racks work? Do you lift your bike up and hook a wheel?