This Circle K placed their bike parking next to the door (behind the trashcan) and still had room for water machines, phones, a Red Box machine and propane tanks.
Despite having more space than the Circle K, this QuikTrip placed their bike parking around the corner.

I’ve written a lot about the bike parking code change that will allow developers to place their bicycle parking further away and require fewer numbers of racks. You can read those posts here, here and here.

In two weeks the the Tucson City Council is scheduled to hear the code update. They have the authority to require better parking standards, but officials and advocates say the only way that will happen is if cyclists make their voices heard by writing the council members.

So get your letter-writing skills ready, it’s time for a contest.

Tucson Velo sponsor, The B Line donated a gift certificate for a free breakfast to give away in a contest. The B Line installed their own bike racks because many of their customers come by bicycle, so I figured I would use the certificate for a bike parking contest.

Here is how the contest will work.

1) Email or write a letter to a city council member telling them why you support better bicycle parking. Here is why The Living Streets Alliance says quality bicycle parking is important.

2) Send a copy of what you wrote to the council member, mayor or other official to tucsonvelo@gmail.com.  I’ll publish some of the letters so people can get an idea of why others care about bike parking.

3) I’ll put your name into a bucket and at the end of the contest, I’ll have my daughter pick a name out of the bucket (and film it like the last time Luci picked a Tucson Velo contest winner). If you mail your letter to several people, I’ll put your name in the bucket twice.

Here are the names and emails of  a few people you could contact:

City of Tucson Mayor and Council, c/o City Hall
255 West Alameda Street
Tucson, Arizona 85701

Mayor Bob Walkup – mayor1@tucsonaz.gov
Regina Romero, Ward I – ward1@tucsonaz.gov
Paul Cunningham, Ward II – ward2@tucsonaz.gov
Karen Uhlich, Ward III – ward3@tucsonaz.gov
Shirley Scott, Ward IV – ward4@tucsonaz.gov
Richard Fimbres, Ward V – ward5@tucsonaz.gov
Steve Kozachik, Ward VI – ward6@tucsonaz.gov

Tucson Development Services head Ernie Duarte – Ernie.Duarte@tucsonaz.gov

10 thoughts on “Contest: Taking a stand on bike parking”
  1. Wrote to my Ward guy last week and the Mayor just now. It was kind of cool writing to the Mayor. Never done that before. 🙂

  2. Question: On the Living Streets Alliance page, they write that “This is despite National Standards, which recommend all bicycle parking be within 50 feet of the main entrance of businesses.”

    What is the origin of these national standards? They don’t cite a source and I did some Google searches without finding anything. I am reluctant to use this information in my letter without a source. If someone could find a link to these “national standards” that would be really awesome.

  3. Ok, just wrote the mayor and the council, hopefully emails will help. Maybe they will remember a letter or email that they just got the day before the big meeting ( who knows )

  4. Ok, just wrote the mayor and the council, hopefully emails will help. Maybe they will remember a letter or email that they just got the day before the big meeting ( who knows )

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