Parking bike in public places

[nextfriday]

As i gain more miles under my belt, i find myself wanting to take my bike to the gym, bookstore, etc. I usually try and find a spot up close to the building or in those inconspicuous striped areas up near the front of stores. I've never come across specific striped areas for motorcycles. Ever park your bike near the bike racks on the sidewalk? Illegal? I've seen a few bikes put on their sides by careless motorists in parking lots, i dont want to ever find myself in that situation. Good ideas?

 

[ELIZABETH]

A few places do have motorcycle specific parking, but I often see motorcycles parked in those yellow striped areas as well. If you can't find those, your best bet is to park far away all by yourself, so you don't get knocked over by a cager that doesn't see your bike through their rear view mirror.

 

[Fz6Sa]

This is a hard one, - parking in a secluded place will maximise your risk of someone else stealing your bike, - parking in cage-area (harms way) is not ideal either.

Here in Denmark it is (in most places) legal to park on the side-walks, as long as you don't get in the way of the pedestrians. So I normally park my baby up against a wall, tree or another fixed object. That minimises the risk of it being tipped over (or at least this is my belief, so it gives me peace of mind).

 

[macem29]

good question...always very careful where I leave it, same attitude as when
riding: assume the worst...one place I NEVER park is on the side of the road

 

[CCHOUSEKY]

This is a great question and one that I've always meant to ask an officer the answer to. That is, is it legal to park your motorcycle on the sidewalk as long as you don't interfere with pedestrian traffic? I see it done randomly in my area and I don't know whether it's legal or not.

Common sense tells me it wouldn't be, since your motorcycle is a motor vehicle and thus should be parked in the parking lot. But it's also smaller and harder to see and, IMO, subject to being hit or knocked over more so than a larger car or truck, so maybe LEOs give riders a pass unless someone specifically complains...lol...maybe I'm just completely over-thinking it!!! :spank:

As for what I do right now...I usually try and park out by myself in the middle of the parking lot. Of course, more times than not, when I come out of the store I'm now surrounded by stupid cages! It's like they migrate to your bike or something!

 

[Gilo-FZ6]

As if a damaged bike isnt enough..last year my father in law found his diversion in a heap on the floor..with a scrawled hand written note asking him to get in touch with his insurer (apparently because the bike fell on some guys mercedes) he left the bike on the centre stand but as there were no witnesses he had to pay up

 

[deeptekkie]

Ditto on what Fz6Sa said - usually up close to the building on the sidewalk. (Not saying it's legal but I've never seen one ticketed for it)

 

[PVFZ6]

In most situations you would be fine parking on or near the walkway at a store. Being that the stores are on private property the traffic laws such as stop signs that are in the parking lots are more like suggestions. Now that is not to say that LE cannot enforce laws on private property but we generally don't get involved unless there is a traffic accident. The only time you could have a problem would be if the property owner decides he\she doesn't like your bike wherever it is parked and has it towed, for some reason. Hope that helps.

 

[Wes_cf]

WHAT!!!! PARKING YOUR BIKE. Not here we don't.{N.Ireland} The weather is that lousey,you don't get off your bike in case the seat gets wet.lol. Never had any bother from the law over parking, as long as you'r not obstructing anything.{This doe's not include, single yellow lines,double yellow lines,dashed white line,infact anything that has a line!!!}:thumbup:

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

In the city I used to work as a police officer in, there were city ordinances for parking on a side walk. I never wrote one for a bike on the sidewalk, handicap spots and fire zones, thats something different.

I try to find an end space(in the lot), with a curb on one side and park slightly closer to the curb but back far enough so a cage doesn't see my bike and fly into my spot....

 

[x47b3207]

My local Cycle Gear store is the only place I've ever seen bike only parking :thumbup:.

A very long time ago (Ann Arbor, MI), I had received a ticket for parking on the side walk. But being a college town, they ticket everything.

I usually park in the middle of nowhere only to come out and find one car parked on top of me. If I need to go to a major shopping area, I drag my son with me and have him stay with the bike.

 

[Kazza]

Sometimes park it on the pavement, either that or reverse it backwards into a parking space with the front of the bike right at the end. That way they are more likely to see it. Quite a few places in Perth have motorcycle parking, but they don't have enough of it.

 

[VEGASRIDER]

When I bring this subject up during class on how and where to park your motorycycle, this is what I tell them.

Your riding strategy on the road is based on that motorcycles are very difficult to spot due to it's small size. The parking lot is no different, and actually even worse because half of the people are backing up. Also, most of them don't even back up properly as far as using the proper head over the shoulder technique, and relying too much on their mirrors while talking on their cell phones.

My roomate is a valet attendant for one of the major casino's and I asked him one day why do valet's always back the guest's vehicles into the parking space? His answer, is because there is less chances for conflict when pulling out of the parking space.

With that in mind, in the .01 percent chance that you find me parking in a parking lot, I will park my bike towards the rear of the stall rather than the middle or front. I will take my chances that someone will see that the spot is occupied while driving forward.

If I place my bike towards the front of the stall to let people know that the space is occuppied, I'm leaving my bike vulnerable for the idiots who may not see the bike because they are careless or have the inability to back up properly. What does someone usually do when they back up and see an open space behind them? Chances are they will utilize that open space by going into it, making it easier for them to back up. Because of the bike being so small and low to the ground, they may not see your bike. You could possibly save it from being hit if it's toward the back, leave some buffer zone just in case.

You should always try to have the bike facing outwards. Meaning, back the bike in. One it makes it easier to pull out, and most importantly, your bike is much more visible from the front vs the rear. The Windscreen and fairings, if you have one will make the bike appear much larger.

Just like crashes, parking your bike so that it doesn't get knocked down can be prevented in most cases.

Use common sense when parking, especially if you are going to park in an area that is not officially designated as parking. Allow plenty of room for pedestrian traffic and don't block the flow of foot traffic. If parked next to a disable stall, make sure that you leave enough room so that it is van/ramped accessible.

Just this Sunday, I stopped at a sportsbar to watch some football and eat breakfast. I pulled my bike right up onto the side of the entry way of the restaraunt, which was plenty wide. When I walked in, I noticed a cop eating and I happen to sit a couple of tables next to him. He left before me and he walked right past my bike. Obviously, if he had a problem on how or where I parked my bike, I'm sure he would have let me known.

Like I said, common sense.