Bikecheck hopes to expand bike park service this year
Bikecheck was at nine different events in 2016, registering 429 bikes during Ribfest and 352 during Blues Fest
As the weather gets warmer, outdoor events will start popping up around Waterloo region, and for those who choose to ride their bikes to those events, the question will be where to park.
The City of Kitchener launched Bikecheck in 2016 as a safe place for festival goers to store their bikes during events –and they want to make this festival season more bike friendly than ever.
"We are aware, and we have heard in the past that there are theft concerns. People may not feel all confident or safe locking bikes up to a bike rack or to trees," said Danny Pimental, manager of Kitchener's active transportation planning project, which helped launch the project.
"At some of the events, we don't have enough bike racks, so people do have to park them around trees."
Bikecheck is free, and it's as easy as just dropping your bike off while a City of Kitchener staff member or volunteer stores it and watches it for you, said Pimental. When you are ready to leave, you just pick it up.
Expanding Bikecheck
Last year, Bikecheck shared its service at nine events.
Kitchener's Ribfest and Kitchener Blues Festival were the biggest events they serviced, registering 429 bikes during Ribfest and 352 during Kitchener Blues Festival. Both events recognized that bike parking was an issue, making Bikecheck's presence worthwhile, Pimental said.
Pimental hopes to expand Bikecheck this year. However, it will be up to event organizers to determine if Bikecheck is a good fit for their events, he said.
"We'd like to expand if the demand for bike parking is an issue," he said, adding that they are already reaching out to event organizers.
Pimental said Bikecheck will be available again this year during Ribfest, Kitchener Blues Festival and Kidspark.