Pimp My Bike Commute

January 6, 2012 9:50 AM

Is the San Francisco Embarcadero Bike Station too good to be true? I'm considering using it for my commute from BART out to the Presidio. There are 96 spaces available. Is it overcrowded? Will I be stuck when I have to park my bike there on Tuesday afternoons at 5pm? Will my beautiful Felt Z95 get carted off by evil-doers?
posted by duckus to Travel & Transportation around San Francisco, CA (7 answers total)

Is what you're trying to do bike to BART, bring your bike with you to the city, leave it at the Embarcadero station, and then take public transit to the presidio? If so, you can also evaluate a couple of other options. 1) What station are you getting onto BART at? Is there a good place to leave your bike there? This opens up more commuting options because there are hours when bikes are restricted on BART. 2) Have you considered riding from BART to your end destination at the presidio as well? I used to live out near the presidio (20th Ave and Lake) and commuted by bike to 3rd and Market. It's just as fast as any of the other options (which really just means "the bus"), cheaper, and a better workout. There are a couple hills, but they just make your legs stronger.

With all that said, I've never left my bike at embarcadero station, but leaving it in a parking garage near 3rd and Market never caused me any problems, and it was (still is) a fairly nice Bianchi road bike (this one).

I did have the wheels and seat stolen off my cyclocross bike at the Lake Merritt BART station in Oakland once, though (they were locked with a cable, the frame was locked with a U-lock).
posted by tylerkaraszewski at 10:03 AM on January 6, 2012

I used the Berkeley Bikestation from time to time, and it worked great. You can still (and should) lock your bike to the racks inside the station. It is massively more secure than any outside storage solution in San Francisco. You are much safer (but not immune) from both power-tool and liquid nitrogen wielding pros and seat-stealing crackheads.
posted by rockindata at 10:22 AM on January 6, 2012

Response by poster: There is a shuttle that can take me from BART out to the Presidio, but it's a very nice ride that I'd rather be on the bike on.

I drive to Fruitvale BART on the Oakland side. I want to take Fruitvale to Embarcadero, pick up my bike from the bike station, ride it to/from the Presidio, park it at the bike station before I head back to Oakland.

I guess the main thing is I need to leave it overnight.
posted by duckus at 10:23 AM on January 6, 2012

If I look here they say Due to security reasons, we do not allow overnight parking (exceptions are made for reverse commuters, etc. - please inquire). A $5 overnight fee will be assessed each night, and bicycles left over one week may be donated or given to police.
We are not responsible for any articles attached on the bike and bikes left overnight.
posted by Nimmie Amee at 10:34 AM on January 6, 2012

Response by poster: That is for the valet parking at Berkeley/Fruitvale. I'm considering the self-service parking at Embarcadero, which is a locked bike cage accessible with a bikelink card.
posted by duckus at 10:49 AM on January 6, 2012

I work for BART--spoke to our bicycle guy and he said you may park your bike overnight at Embarcadero--a number of people do that very thing. He also said everyone still goes ahead and locks up their bike in the cage. It is very safe because of the "sign in/out" feature of the bikelink card. You can go to bikelink.org to get the card. The card costs $20.00 and then there is a .03 per hour charge while you are parked.
posted by agatha_magatha at 11:45 AM on January 6, 2012

Response by poster: Thanks Agatha .. still curious though about how crowded it gets. My card is on the way. Guess I'll just have to see how it goes.
posted by duckus at 11:51 AM on January 6, 2012