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Free bike racks and other bike, skateboard, and scooter parking solutions — plus fix-it stations

For the latest info on Transportation Agency for Monterey County’s “bicycle secure program,” providing free bike racks, bicycle maintenance stations, and more, go to https://www.tamcmonterey.org/bicycle-secure-program. Tell TAMC where these items are needed.
For example…

Do you ever bike to a physical therapy appointment, doctor’s appointment, or other health care office and find nowhere to lock up your bike? Let them know that having bicycle parking available is important for their patients, and employees, who want to use active transportation!

Below: A Torker bicycle locked to a bike rack at Montage Health’s Hartnell Professional Center in Monterey.  


People buying fish or seafood, or using the restrooms, at the end of City of Monterey’s Wharf II still find no bicycle parking rack to lock up, as of May 15, 2022. As the sign in window of Monterey Fish Company notes, taking their bicycle inside the store is not an option.

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Update: See pgs 14-15 of meeting packet: http://www.tamcmonterey.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/BPC_Agenda_PACKET_March_2019_Meeting-3.pdf

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Headsup, Monterey County private businesses, schools, nonprofit organizations, and public agencies—and people who bike to such locations! The Feb 7, 2019 deadline for property owners to apply for free items has been extended to February 28th. Check with Transportation Agency for Monterey County for any other 2019 updates:
Most of the information below remains relevant for 2019.
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Where few or no legit or convenient bicycle parking options exist, people sometimes resort to locking a bicycle inappropriately. That’s one of many reasons Bicycling Monterey’s advocacy includes advocating for bicycle parking solutions—among other infrastructure improvements, such as bike repair stations. You can help! Read on.

Scenes directly below were photographed in Carmel-by-the-Sea and downtown City of Monterey. Scroll down for scenes from North CountySouth County, Salinas, East Salinas/The Alisal, and Seaside.

Sadly, sometimes people resort to locking up to a tree. Please avoid locking your bike to a tree. If this happens on a regular basis, it can stunt a tree’s growth and even kill it. In many places, laws exist making it illegal to lock bikes to small trees.

Carmel-by-the-Sea (below) needs more bike parking racks.

One side of Alvarado Street (downtown Monterey’s “Main Street”) is quite lacking in bike racks. On that side of the street, someone locks a bicycle to a tree on a regular basis.

Bicycle parking racks are also needed along Webster Street in downtown Monterey.

Above and below: Webster Street, downtown Monterey.

Below: Tyler Street in downtown Monterey needs bike parking racks.
Calle Principal in downtown Monterey needs bike parking racks.
All over Monterey County, many locations—e.g., examples above and below—need more and convenient parking options for people whose transportation is a bicycle, skateboard, or scooter.
Transportation Agency for Monterey County (TAMC) is able to provide some free parking solutions for these active transportation users—

free bike racks and lockers, as well as skateboard/scooter racks.

In addition, TAMC can provided limited financial assistance for artistic bicycle parking rack designs.

People in many Monterey County communities—such as the North Monterey County community of Pajaro (pictured below) and South County / Salinas Valley communities such as Greenfield (also shown below) —have no bike repair shop or mobile bike repair service in their vicinity.
TAMC has a solution that can help meet that need too—

free bike repair/maintenance stations.

TAMC reports that seven bicycle repair stations have been provided in the first three years of this program. Where else are repair stations needed? Contact TAMC with suggested locations for this fourth year.

To apply,

ask questions, get details, and for any changes to this info,
contact the Transportation Agency
for Monterey County: http://www.tamcmonterey.org/contact/

http://www.tamcmonterey.org/programs/bike-pedestrian/bicycle-secure-program/

Who qualifies to receive these?

Read on.

Above and below, the North Monterey County community of Pajaro. There are no bike shops in North County. A bike repair/maintenance station would be helpful here.
 Below, bike parking rack needed in Pajaro.Below, bike parking racks needed in Greenfield.

Above and below, Greenfield.
Above and below, Greenfield.
Who qualifies to receive these? Private businesses, schools, nonprofit organizations, and public agencies

For example, do you know a HER Helmet Thursdays business or organization (i.e., any of the hundreds in 19 Monterey County communities—9th Anniversary Edition – HER Helmet Thursdays Guide – Participants as of 23 November 2018 or other place where bike parking or a repair/maintenance station is needed? Share with them a short link to this post (http://bit.ly/FREEBikeRacksAndMore).

TAMC is able to consider requests for the free items (as well as limited assistance for artistic designs), as part of its program dubbed the Bicycle Secure Program.
Note: Although February 1, 2018 was the deadline for 2018’s formal application period for http://www.tamcmonterey.org/programs/bike-pedestrian/bicycle-secure-program/, applications may also be submitted year-round.

Any potential reserve funding may be made available to purchase additional equipment on a case by case basis throughout the year (see page 12 of http://www.tamcmonterey.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/BPC_February_Agenda_2018_Meeting.pdf).

As of 12/2/17, the TAMC “Bicycle Secure Program” web page http://www.tamcmonterey.org/programs/bike-pedestrian/bicycle-secure-program/ hadn’t been updated, so here’s the scoop: “For the 2018 grant cycle, the proposed schedule calls for an initial application period from December 6, 2017 to February 1, 2018. Staff will review all application materials and submit a recommendation to the Bicycle and Pedestrian Facilities Advisory Committee at its March 7, 2018 [meeting], and then submit a recommendation to the Agency Board for approval at its meeting on March 28, 2018. Following Board approval, the equipment will be distributed and installed between April and June, 2018.” For application and other details, refer to pages 103-104 of  http://www.tamcmonterey.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Agenda_2017_12_6_Meeting67.pdf

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Where do you see a need for

bike parking or other available items?

Encourage the property owner to apply to TAMC!

For example, many people bike to HER Helmet Thursdays spots MYO Pure Frozen Yogurt in Monterey, Seaside, and Salinas. Although MYO’s location in Monterey has bike racks conveniently located out front (thanks, City of Monterey—scroll down to see), there are no such racks at MYO Pure Frozen Yogurt, Salinas or Seaside.

When a bike rack will be installed on city property (e.g., on a sufficiently-wide city sidewalk), the city can apply to TAMC for a free bike rack. If a bike rack will be installed on private property, that property owner can apply to TAMC for a free bike rack.

Regarding this Salinas location, I’ve asked the City of Salinas to address this bike parking need. City staffers are busy, sure, and often “it’s the squeaky wheel that gets the grease.” Now it’s your turn to “squeak up” about this bike rack need for patrons of the businesses near 1091 South Main Street: Send a tickler about this (or other city property where you know bike parking or repair stations are needed) to City of Salinas; contact info: http://www.cityofsalinas.org/our-city-services/public-works.
Contrast: Nice! In the City of Monterey, patrons of MYO Pure Frozen Yogurt and other nearby businesses have a conveniently located bike rack.MYO Monterey bike parking

In the City of Seaside, MYO Pure Frozen Yogurt could also use more convenient bike parking. IMG_5084

Shout-out of gratitude to City of Monterey: Bonifacio Plaza received a much needed bike rack in 2017.

Property owners, keep in mind…

Bicycle parking racks are best installed in an area where the parked bicycles can be seen by their owners—for example, visible from a large picture window (not a small, high window only, as in the photo below).
Also helpful for theft prevention is having the area well-lit at night.

The photo below shows a bike rack installed at a restaurant by City of Seaside. Unfortunately it was not installed in a spot optimal for bicycle security / theft-prevention. Adding an overhead light would be of some help.

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Note: In 2017, the grant application period closed Feb 2, 2017  with an approximately $10,000 reserve still available for such equipment—as advised on page 16 of the March 1, 2017 bike-ped committee meeting packet. That reserve allowed TAMC to consider additional 2017 requests for the free repair stations or parking options, which TAMC considered on a case by case basis.

If you miss TAMC’s 2018 application deadline, check with TAMC just in case there is a similar reserve situation in 2018.

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For more about bicycle parking

on the bikemonterey.org website, click here.

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This website focuses primarily on biking. Nonetheless, Bicycling Monterey also appreciates other active/healthy transportation users! That includes skateboarders and scooter users, who also benefit from  TAMC’s “Bicycle Secure Program,” which offers free skateboard and scooter racks too.

Skateboarding to pick up water for the family, in Seaside

Military students skateboarding for fun, in Monterey

Scooting for fun in East Salinas

We like scooting in East Salinas too!

This post was first published 1 March 2017 and was extensively revised and updated (e.g., new photos and more).

Short link to this post: http://bit.ly/FREEBikeRacksAndMore

This post was published on 8 January 2019. One or more changes last made to this post on 19 May 2023.

  1. Koshial Robinson says:

    Useful Information 🙂

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