Leave the Car at Home; Royal Oak Considers Bike Corrals

The Royal Oak City Commission unanimously approved directing staff to determine locations for downtown bike corrals at its meeting Monday at City Hall.

"We've seen increased popularity of biking in the city," said Mayor Pro-Tem Dave Poulton, who asked that staff come up with a list of appropriate locations and costs for bike corrals. He also asked that the Downtown Development Authority (DDA) consider funding the corrals.

Commissioner Mike Fournier suggested bike corrals play into an overall marketing strategy to welcome cyclists to do their business in downtown Royal Oak.

Location, location, location

"As a cyclist I always want to park as close to where I’m going as possible because locks are easily broken and you always want to keep an eye on your bike," said Commissioner Peggy Goodwin, adding, "It’s not like parking a car. Parking a bike is much more tenuous and needs a lot more thought."

City Manager Don Johnson told commissioners the DDA has discussed bike corrals on a couple of occasions and there has been informal discussion of removing on-street parking and putting a corral on the street.

Last year, Ferndale made history when it became the first community to install an on-street bike rack along Woodward Avenue. The Michigan Department of Transportation signed off on Ferndale's DDA plan to install a bright yellow, 12-bike rack in a former car parking space on the east side of Woodward just north of Nine Mile Road.

Where should downtown bike parking be located?

Bike parking is part of the non-motorized policy to ensure roadway development considers all types of transportation, including pedestrians, bicyclists, people with disabilities and others, as well as trains, buses and automobiles.