Whether winter is in full force or not, bike commuters should know that the office buildings in which they work should have decent indoor or nearby bicycle parking
Thanks to New York City’s Department of Transportation, cyclists are now permitted to bring their bikes into many city office buildings. The Bicycle Access to Office Buildings Law, which took effect two years ago (December, 2009) was aimed at helping bicycle commuting by providing the chance to securely park bicycles in or close to workplaces.
Often, all it takes is rolling one’s bike into a building and locking it in a designated space. In numerous cases, however, building managers must be notified and a form submitted. The law only applies to buildings with at least one freight elevator. It does not apply to residential buildings.
Companies in office buildings can file requests for bicycle access with their building owners by filling out an online form. Once a building responds to a request for bicycle access by creating a Bicycle Access Plan, it must allow access, at a minimum, during the regular operating hours of the freight elevator.
An owner may request an exception to the law if a building has no freight elevator or if there is “sufficient, secure, alternate, no-cost, indoor or sufficient, secure, alternate, no-cost, covered off-street bicycle parking available either on the premises or within three blocks or 750 feet, whichever is less,” according to DOT.
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