Several very stylish, well-built bike racks have been placed on sidewalks in different downtown locations. I don't know who owns them, or how they got permission from the city for this business.
Can I put my bike in one of these racks while I am downtown? Is this a service provided by the city? Is this something from CARTA? Where are the bikes?
Perhaps I missed an article or news item about the racks. Are we about to limit the use of personal vehicles downtown, other than bikes? Would someone enlighten me with some facts?
I ask because I have lived off of Main Street since 1998, and regularly ride my bike through downtown, to the northshore, and thereabouts. Will I have to use one of these racks to park my bike? I did not realize that bike-parking was a problem downtown. If the city really thinks we need racks to park our bikes, perhaps they would install one by the Chattanooga Market. And, if we are about to have a major influx of bicycles downtown, perhaps they should all be registered, just like we register our other vehicles. This would possibly deter theft, and would certainly raise some much-needed revenue for our city.
I hope someone can answer my questions.
Billy Hopkins
Chattanooga
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Mr. Hopkins,
It looks like the racks will soon have bikes installed for people to rent. Here is a link to a website talking about these new racks. http://www.bikechattanooga.com/
Hope it helps answer your questions.
Della Phipps
Librarian
Chattanooga Public Library