Secure, interior bike parking is a great thing for everyday bike commuters. However, lacking such a facility, it's not terrible if your outside bike parking has a sign indicating: "Notice: All activities monitored by video camera." This set of bike racks is located outside Sacramento City Hall.Slightly off-topic: The building across the street is the Sacramento International Hostel. The hostel is housed in in a beautiful 1885 Victorian mansion, one of a handful of vintage survivors of the era when Sacramento bulldozed most such historic structures to build parking lots and drab buildings for public agencies. Sigh. Hostels are popular lodging for bike tourists, and the Sacramento International Hostel website indicates: "Practical touches include a fully equipped kitchen, game room, on-site laundry and bike storage."
Image: Paul Dorn
Visit: Paul Dorn's Bike Commuting Tips
When Jym Dyer's Bike Friday was stolen I seem to recall that he mentioned that the theft was apparently captured on Safeway's security cameras but nobody took any action on the evidence.
ReplyDeleteYeah, video monitoring is only slightly better than unguarded. Depends on who is watching the video. And bike recovery, bike theft prevention, and bike thief capture are rarely a top priority of police agencies. (Security isn't much better at video-monitored car parking lots either.
ReplyDeleteThe security at this particular location is enhanced by the nearby bench, where nicotine-addicted city workers take frequent breaks.
One minor correction on Mr. Dyer's victimization. It wasn't his bike that was stolen. It was a borrowed bike. An even bigger bummer.