Wondering why...

[Sailorchick]

...cycle shops never have bike stands outside.

I know you take your bike in if you need a repair, but if I want to go to the cycle shops around here for anything there is nowhere to lock my bike up. Surely they don't want everyone dragging their bikes around the shop as it would get a bit crowded very quickly. Is it just Southampton cycle shops that do this?

 

[ianrauk]

It probably has something to do with local councils against 'street furniture'.
My LBS when opened last year did have a problem with the council about putting up bike stands. On a very wide pavement. After much to-ing and fro-ing, the license was granted.

 

[marinyork]

It's just laziness.

In my experience it's not that councils are "against street furniture" it is that they simply don't understand the geography of the area and then concoct elaborate excuses that aren't even relevant. If someone competent at the council looks at putting a stand in, there's normally some kind of vaguely sane rationale as to yes/no/do it later.

P.S. none of the shops round here have them except Halfrauds etc.

 

[Sailorchick]

One of the local cycle shops has got car parking out front so there should be no issue with putting some stands in but there is still nothing. Lots of bollards that are no use for chaining a bike up but no stands.

 

[Norm]

None of the stores that I use has a stand outside... and one of them even gets huffy if I lean my bike against their windows!

 

[SavageHoutkop]

one of my LBS's does - has about 4 I think? One at least usually in use by the staff....
Another has - one stand.
Edinburgh Bicycle Coop also have some.

 

[ColinJ]

'Blazing Saddles' in Hebden Bridge had a row of big metal hoops bolted to the wall at the side of their old shop for cyclists to lock up to. I'm not sure if the new shop does, I'll have to check next time I'm walking past.

 

[skrx]

Most (perhaps all?) of the high streets near me have at least a few bike stands, some of them have loads. Its a local thing!

I don't know if it's any use to you -- I've never been to Southampton -- but there's a bike guide (click the PDF) which has a map of official cycle parking, and on the other side says to use street furniture otherwise.

 

[skrx]

For example, Putney High Street (Streetview) has a load on the main junction with Upper Richmond Road, a few along the High Street, and four or five down many of the side streets. At busy times it's still not enough!

(And having just looked all the way up the street on StreetView, it's good to see that almost all of the stands are at least half-full, but since lots of the guard rails are full too there's still not enough of them!)

 

[Sailorchick]

I'd quite happily use street furniture if there was any around. Most of the cycle shops are well out of town centre and in areas where there really isn't much around to lock a bike too (excepting halfords although their stands are awful).

Just seems odd to me that bike shops don't have cycle stands outside.

 

[brokenbetty]

All the bike shops I use regularly are happy to let people take bikes into the shop

 

[BigSteev]

If the bike shop doesn't let me take my bike in/provide suitable safe outside parking, they don't get my business. End of.

 

[summerdays]

One of the local cycle shops has got car parking out front so there should be no issue with putting some stands in but there is still nothing. Lots of bollards that are no use for chaining a bike up but no stands.

The Evan's in town has a couple of car parking spaces but no hoops - however they let you bring your bike in (though there is a big step in the doorway - that I reckon they ought to replace with a slope to make it more accessible.

All the bike shops I use regularly are happy to let people take bikes into the shop

At least 2 of the bikes shops I use are happy for people to bring in bikes and one of them is so small that basically its single file to the counter (probably 3 or max 4 bike lengths) and the staff help you to turn your bike around.

One shop - Garlands, has a nice stand outside:
http://maps.google.co.uk/?ie=UTF8&l...=tkQW5EzZKiU6nIJYimIQdA&cbp=12,133.85,,0,14.2