[*BCM*] MassBike Victory: MBTA Buses to Get Bike Racks

[Dorie Clark]

Boston, MA: The Massachusetts Bicycle Coalition (MassBike), the statewide
advocacy group dedicated to making Massachusetts a better and safer place to
bicycle, today lauded the MBTA and its new General Manager, Daniel
Grabauskas, for its plan to put more than 250 new bike racks on buses.


“We are extremely pleased that General Manager Grabauskas and the MBTA have
taken this important step toward making transit accessible for all users,”
said MassBike Executive Director Dorie Clark. “Bicycle access on buses has
long been a priority for MassBike and the tens of thousands of bicyclists in
Greater Boston, and we look forward to working with the T to build on this
success.”



The rack-equipped buses, housed out of the MBTA’s Charlestown garage, will
be serving dozens of routes in Cambridge, Somerville, Chelsea, Everett,
Medford, Malden, Revere, Charlestown, Burlington, Lexington, Bedford,
Belmont, Arlington, Waltham, Watertown, Allston, Brighton, Woburn, and
Winchester.



“Welcome, bike owners, to the MBTA,” said Grabauskas.  “By giving people yet
another reason to choose public transportation, we continue our efforts to
attract more customers by making the system easier to use and a lot more
convenient.  This is what quality customer service is all about.”



In all, the MBTA plans to purchase close to 300 bike racks (some will be
kept as spares) at an estimated cost of $255,000.  Federal grant monies
distributed by the Boston MPO are funding the program.  Installation is
scheduled to begin in the spring of next year.  MBTA Bus Operations staff
will closely monitor the bike rack program, and then make recommendations on
whether to expand the program to other bus garages and routes.



MassBike has a history of working with the MBTA to improve conditions for
bicyclists. In 1985, MassBike won the right for cyclists to bring their
bikes on the T at certain times. In 2000, MassBike successfully encouraged
the T to eliminate the “special pass” requirement in order to carry one’s
bike on the subway, and in 2004, the MBTA worked with MassBike to
dramatically expand cyclists’ hours of access on the subway. MassBike has
more than 1600 dues-paying members across the Commonwealth, and represents
the 750,000 Bay State residents who bicycle regularly.



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Dorie Clark
Executive Director
MassBike
617-542-2453
bikexec at massbike.org
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