Bikers will have the option of boarding their bikes onto city buses starting next spring when all Charlestown garage buses will be equipped with bike racks for passengers, the MBTA announced last Thursday.
“We’re always looking for ways to attract more riders, and installing bike racks on the buses gives us the opportunity to do that,” MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo said. “The racks are designed to make it easy for passengers to place their bikes on the buses.”
MassBike and Livable Streets Alliance, both advocates of expanding transportation options for city residents, support the MBTA’s bike rack installation plan.
“Installing bike racks on buses has been a major priority for several years,” said Dorie Clark, executive director of MassBike. “Based on [the experiences of] other cities in the country, we expect the racks to be popular.”
The bike rack installation this spring will mark the start of a pilot transportation program, which may expand to other city garages if it is a success, Clark added.
The Charlestown garage is the MBTA’s largest bus terminal, housing more then 250 buses, all of which will be equipped with racks to ensure that riders will have reliable, bike-accessible transportation, said Jeffrey Rosenblum, executive director of Livable Streets Alliance.
The bike racks will also provide a safety net for bikers if unexpected weather strikes in the midst of their commute or ride.
“If someone gets caught [biking] in a snowstorm on the way home from work, they will have the option of throwing their bike on a bus and getting a ride home after the racks are installed,” Rosenblum said.
According to Clark, the bike racks will encourage more commuters to bike to work.
“It may be less appealing for someone with a 20-mile commute to bike to work if they know they have to bike 20 miles back home, but people may be more willing to bike one way if they can take the bus back,” Clark said.
They will also help the environment, he added.
“A short four-mile bike ride keeps 15 pounds of pollution out of the atmosphere,” Clark said. “When buses are accessible for bikers, it dramatically expands the distance they are able to bike.”
The MBTA plans to purchase nearly 300 bike racks at an estimated cost of $255,000, according to a Sept. 22 press release. Federal grant money distributed by the Boston Metropolitan Planning Organization will fund the bike rack installation, according to the release.
Due to MBTA safety regulations, only folding bicycles were permitted prior to the bike rack additions. The racks can hold up to two bikes each and will be installed in the front of the buses.
The Charlestown bus garage services routes in Allston, Arlington, Bedford, Belmont, Brighton, Burlington, Cambridge, Chelsea, Charlestown, Everett, Lexington, Medford, Malden, Revere, Somerville, Waltham, Watertown, Winchester and Woburn.