bike parking Archives

Help Shape Proposed Bicycle Parking Amendments in Building Code

June 11, 2024/by Jared Sanchez

The Building Standards Commission is updating the California Building Standards Code sections governing bicycle parking, pursuant to a 2022 law CalBike helped pass. That law requires bicycle parking standards to be added to the code during its next update.

The commission seeks public comment by July 1, 2024. You can view the proposed rules online and see CalBike’s comment letter below for more information. Send comments to cbsc@dgs.ca.gov.

Why bicycle parking matters

A safe place to store a bike is essential if people are going to adopt the bicycle for everyday transportation. Bicycle theft is widespread, and leaving a bike out in the elements can increase wear and cause it to require more frequent maintenance. With the popularity of e-bikes, theft is an even bigger consideration. So the availability of secure bike parking in residential buildings is existential for bike riders.

Car parking adds to the expense of building, reduces the space available for housing humans, and encourages more driving. Bicycle parking is much more space efficient. Ample, secure bike parking in a residential building or at a business incentivizes and normalizes active transportation.

Bike parking is a nerdy and arcane topic. But, like many such topics, it has a crucial role to play in our move toward more climate-friendly transportation.

CalBike recommendations: space for cargo bikes, e-bike charging, and short-term bike parking

The Building Standards Code will set minimum requirements for bicycle parking in new and remodeled residential and commercial buildings. Cities can have stronger requirements but must at least adhere to these minimums.

The proposed change to the code would require 0.5 long-term bike parking spots per unit in residential buildings. We think that’s not enough and recommend doubling that to one spot per unit. These spots must include some that can accommodate longer or wider bikes such as cargo bikes and adaptive bicycles. In addition, the parking area needs outlets for e-bike charging.

For commercial spaces, the standard for requiring additional bike parking when remodeling is vague and will be difficult, if not impossible, to enforce. Rather than relying on a hard-to-measure standard of increased foot traffic, we believe the code should require businesses that don’t meet current standards to upgrade bicycle parking when they remodel or make improvements.

See our letter below for more detailed and specific recommendations.

Bike Parking Letter June 2024 Download

CalBike Insider: California Poised to Mandate Secure Bicycle Parking

April 27, 2022/by Kevin Claxton

Last week, Assemblymember Kevin McCarty introduced a bill to require secure bicycle parking in all new residential buildings, and CalBike was there to testify in support.

AB 2863, the Bike Parking Bill, will require the Department of Housing and Community Development to create standards for bicycle parking in new residential buildings in the next regular update of their standards. It also requires the California Building Standards Commission to update its standards for parking in commercial buildings and specifies that the requirements must be independent of the number of vehicle parking spaces. That’s an essential consideration as more and more buildings are being built with few parking spaces or none at all, so local regulations that require bike parking in proportion to car parking are becoming unworkable. And as more Californians turn to the bicycle for healthy, low-cost, green transportation, the need for safe bike storage is critical.

While the Bike Parking Bill does not immediately impose a mandatory standard, it is the best bill about bike parking that the legislature has considered to date. Previous bike parking bills didn’t pass, in part, because they imposed a strict requirement for the number of parking spaces. The Bike Parking Bill adopts a better approach: By giving the appropriate government agency the responsibility to develop standards, it allows the agency to adopt flexible regulations that meet the needs of different kinds of housing. Also, agencies can adjust regulations in the future, as situations dictate, without an act of the legislature.

McCarty has handed the Bike Parking Bill to Assemblymember Lori Wilson, who will introduce it as it moves through the legislature. CalBike will continue to advocate for this essential measure.

Measures like this demonstrate why your support for CalBike is crucial. While it’s appropriate that the agency develop the standards, it’s vital for a stakeholder organization like the California Bicycle Coalition to stay involved. You can be sure that other stakeholders, who are more interested in reducing their costs than meeting residents’ needs for sustainable transportation, will be at the table. CalBike is the voice in Sacramento for Californians who care about biking. Once this bill passes, we will be there to make sure that housing developers don’t water down this essential regulation and that future construction in California provides bike parking that accommodates all types of bikes.

Bike Parking Bill Passes the Assembly

June 10, 2020/by Kevin Claxton

The Bike Parking Bill (AB 3153-Rivas) passed the California State Assembly on June 8, 2020 with an overwhelming vote of 52-11. The bill, sponsored by CalBike, creates a statewide incentive for developers to build more bike parking and carshare spaces, in exchange for reduced car parking minimums.

We put out a call Monday morning to call your assembly member and ask them to vote yes on AB 3153. Thank you to the many of your who made that call. Your voices made a difference.

Many municipalities require new buildings to include a minimum number of car parking spaces. These mandates make new residential buildings more expensive to build. In effect, every unit of human housing has to also include vehicle storage, whether or not the future occupants will own a car.

CalBike’s bill allows developers to reduce the number of parking spaces by up to 30% and replace them with bike parking spots or carshare parking spaces. The amount of the reduction depends on whether the building qualifies for a density bonus and whether it’s located within half a mile of a “major transit stop.”

Secure bike parking is essential if we want people to be able to ride their bikes for everyday transportation. AB 3153 will give more Californians that option. See the Streetsblog article for more on the Monday’s vote.

The next step for the Bike Parking Bill is the Senate. We will need your help again to pass it in the Senate and get Governor Newsom to sign it. Stay tuned for the next opportunity to advocate for more bike parking in new California buildings.

Bike Parking Bill Moves Forward in Sacramento

May 14, 2020/by Kevin Claxton

For bicycles to be truly useful as everyday transportation, people need secure places to park them. CalBike is sponsoring the Bike Parking Bill (AB 3153–Rivas) to encourage housing developers to provide secure bike parking in new housing developments. At the same time, AB 3153 will increase housing affordability and reduce car dependence by allowing developers to build fewer car parking spots.

The Bike Parking Bill is one of the few pieces of legislation not directly related to COVID-19 that is still on track for consideration this year. On May 12, it had a hearing in the Local Government Committee, which is now meeting by remote video conference. The Committee made some smart amendments and passed AB 3153 out of committee.

AB 3153 will not affect every development, but it will have a profound impact on the developments it does impact, if it passes and is approved by the Governor. It will represent a strong statement by the state that preserving every locally required car parking space is not more important than bike parking or affordable housing. CalBike is working with stakeholders to continue to improve this bill as it moves forward. We’ll keep you posted on its progress.

AB 3153 Will Create More Bike Parking and More Affordable Housing

April 22, 2020/by Kevin Claxton

One of the bills CalBike is sponsoring, AB 3153 (Rivas), seeks to alleviate two problems: housing affordability and last mile transportation. The bill allows developers to build fewer car parking spots than the minimum required by local planning regulations if they replace the car parking spaces with bike parking spots. The bill also allows developers to replace required car parking spaces with car sharing spaces. It is written to ensure that stronger local bike parking requirements will still apply.

This bill is an important step forward. It’s one of many we need to develop the housing stock we need with the urban density to make car-free transportation a viable option.

Parking minimums and affordability

In the discussion of solutions to California’s housing crisis, the role of car parking gets too little attention. Many cities have minimum parking requirements for new buildings. Each unit of housing must also include a unit of car storage. This adds to the expense of the project and drives up the cost of housing. When units are sold or rented with parking, residents who don’t own cars are forced to pay for extra space they don’t need. Parking construction and especially parking minimums are another more way we embed car culture into our built environment.

AB 3153 makes it easier to get around by bike

AB 3153 will increase the amount of secure bike parking available in new buildings. It’s especially important where cities have no minimum bike parking requirements. If you don’t have a safe space to store a bike, a bike is a risky investment. If your only secure choice is to carry your bike up stairs into your apartment, you may have to forego the option of using a bike for transportation in your community. Since bicycle parking spots are much cheaper to build than car parking spots, AB 3153 will reduce building costs while supporting green transportation. It’s a win for affordable housing and a win for affordable transportation.

California can’t wait till the pandemic passes to deal with its housing shortage. That’s why the bill’s author chose to keep this bill alive despite the pressure to reduce the number of bills moving forward.

While many of the bills that were introduced in this session have been tabled because of the need to focus on solutions to the coronavirus crisis, AB 3153 will have its first hearing soon. CalBike will follow it every step of the way and advocate to keep it strong. The AB 3153 fact sheet has more information.

Tag Archive for: bike parking

Help Shape Proposed Bicycle Parking Amendments in Building Code

Why bicycle parking matters

CalBike recommendations: space for cargo bikes, e-bike charging, and short-term bike parking

CalBike Insider: California Poised to Mandate Secure Bicycle Parking

Bike Parking Bill Passes the Assembly

Bike Parking Bill Moves Forward in Sacramento

AB 3153 Will Create More Bike Parking and More Affordable Housing

Parking minimums and affordability

AB 3153 makes it easier to get around by bike

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