Bicycle Thefts at Maplewood Train Station

Well I have not seen any signs posted saying as much but yep , probably the same principal.

Well I have not seen any signs posted saying as much but yep , probably the same principal.

A bit of a thread drift - I don't know why some bikes get left at the station, I'm sure there are several reasons. At one point I reported some to the police and they were eventually removed. The theft problem really stinks, I lost a nice bike there myself, some may recall how upset I was.

I was wondering about maybe putting bike racks on the jitneys - maybe some would want to only ride in one direction (to not bike up that hill, maybe the weather turned bad, or other reason). Or maybe your bike broke down and there's no simple way to get it home. There are plenty of public transit busses with bike racks, might be feasible, but don't know if people would like this idea. It might provide a way to transport bikes that would otherwise be left overnight or longer. Just throwing it out there...

I like your newsletter misterpeepers and would like to subscribe.

Would adding bike racks create any issues with insurance or anything? If the town was up for it and could give a cost for installing the bike racks maybe a fundraiser of some kind could be held to purchase them?

I believe, and I could be wrong, that some new South Orange jitneys will have bike racks. It was in the "Looking Ahead" section of the APrking Authority presentation.

I wonder again about the bikes being left there for weeks or months on end.....they are basically rusting away and unusable at this point. There really is no reason anyone should leave a bike there more than a month! I reported the problem to NJTransit, hopefully they do something about that. I know many of my fellow bikers are annoyed by this situation.

Bike racks on Jitneys? Maybe if you charge the bicycle owner extra $.

Still trying to get my arms around bike racks on jitneys. In case it starts raining in the afternoon? For folks riding single speeds who live up by Wyoming?

Seems to me that you either live someplace where you can walk or cycle round trip (in the rain when that happens, which it does), or you take the jitney. I don't see the value to too many people of racks on the jitneys.

Asking as a new station cyclist, can anyone comment on the safety/etiquette of locking a bike to the circular racks at the corner of Baker and Maplewood Ave. near the pay lot? Are they meant for commuters?

Hi Folks,

My thought process about the bike rack idea (and I'm glad to hear S.O. is doing it) mostly revolves around the incline that many have to face when biking home from the station. I've been riding that hill for ten years and I can see how it might be a deterrent to some potential bicyclists. It doesn't look like racks are very expensive, not worth charging extra fare for their use. I think for many, getting to the station is the easy part, and that it would encourage more people to ride. Making it easier to ride (legally) away from the station would also be a nice move, that is another subject.

ctrzaska said:
Still trying to get my arms around bike racks on jitneys. In case it starts raining in the afternoon? For folks riding single speeds who live up by Wyoming?

You have some serious hills there. I could easily imagine someone being willing to coast down to the station in the morning and preferring to ride a bus back up in the evening.

I don't understand bike abandonment, either. I guess it's inertia. You know your bike is there but you don't feel like riding it home and are glad to save the space at home. It's inconsiderate, though. I once left a bike there, took the train to the city, and rode home in my wife's car. We went straight home, and I forgot the bike for two months. I actually thought it had been stolen form my porch. Then I saw it by surprise at the station, and I realized what had happened. Boy, am I ditzy!

Another cause can be losing the key to your lock.

Another can be vandalism which leads you not to care about the bike any more. It can be discouraging. It's still not nice to leave it there.