Bike storage is a common problem for apartment dwellers, even in the best of circumstances. Add in the involvement of irresponsible landlords, homeowners associations, and other powerful interests, and the issue can be exacerbated even further.
Such was the case for a Redditor recently, who wrote a post and attached a series of photos, one of which shows a sign posted by their apartment complex's HOA that they would be removing the property's bike rack. Owners were then required to move their bikes to either their patio area or balcony instead.
This decision was seemingly made as a result of severe overcrowding, thanks to former tenants leaving their bikes locked on the rack. The domino effect of those absent-minded (or selfish) bikers is that current building residents then lock their own bikes to the forgotten ones, quickly leading to overflow.
One of the frustrating aspects of this HOA unilaterally deciding to throw away the bike rack is that there is a clear compromise to be made here. The original Reddit post recognizes it too, writing, "I think a nice middle ground would have been to toss the derelict bikes, and keep the bike rack, but HOAs gonna HOA."
For this particular poster, moving their bike indoors seemed to be an annoyance, but one they'll survive. It's the long-term implications of apartment complexes becoming less bike-friendly that are worrisome.
In cities without robust public transit systems, bikes are by far the cheapest energy-efficient form of transportation, and residences dismantling their bike infrastructures are likely to disincentivize potential new riders from investing in such a purchase without guaranteed proper storage. This would be extremely disappointing, particularly as bike sales have reached record heights in recent years and are expected to continue increasing.
At the very least, it seems like fellow bike owners are as disturbed by this development as their fellow Redditor.
One commenter saw right through the HOA's motives, stating, "It's just a carbrain 'bikes bad' mentality that seeks to punish those who use modes of transport the HOA deems invalid."
Another put it more plainly, simply writing, "idk how you didn't throw hands with them bc that would be the first thing i'd do if i saw this on my apt complex."
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