Valet Bicycle parking

For years the Ohio City Bicycle Co-op has helped people use bikes to attend large public events like Burning River Fest or Parade the Circle by parking and watching their bikes in a secure, convenient location (and assisting with minor, on-the-spot repairs as needed).

We also rent semi-secure portable racks and streamlined this service so that it can be administered by event organizers’ staff or volunteers, or even offered as a self-park if demand is small but secure bike locking spots are scarce.

This service helps organizers produce events that are more attractive to cyclists and safer for all, by providing an organized, designated area for bike parking.

Valet bike parking makes events more attractive by:

  • reducing traffic jams and congested car parking for all event attendees
  • giving those who already cycle to the event a more welcoming experience
  • accommodating those who may not attend at all because of car (or bike) parking hassles
  • encouraging cyclists to stay longer at events knowing their bikes, helmets and cargo are safe
  • advertising to the public that the organizers are sensitive to transportation and environmental concerns

Valet bike parking improves event safety by:

  • offering a solution to bikes parked haphazardly where they can obstruct pedestrian traffic
  • reducing potential for bicycle/pedestrian crashes and conflicts in crowded areas
  • giving security staff a diplomatic answer to cyclists riding among pedestrians
  • eliminating bike theft and vandalism, and damage to grounds, freeing event staff for other tasks

    Provisions needed for bike valet parking:

    • 5000 sq ft space for parking up to 300 bikes (100 x 50 ft grassy area preferred)
    • $750 for up to 8 hours of parking up to 500 bikes (+additional space)
    • Additional cost of $150 for snow-fence installation/removal to secure parking area if the event space has no usable existing enclosure (e.g., parking structure, single-entrance alley, police “bike-rack” barricades, etc.),
    • We charge an additional $100 truck rental to deliver racks and snow fence.
    • Therefore, if the venue can provide 20 police “bike-rack” barricades in an appropriately enclosed space, we can transport all we need for this service by bike, and save your event $250!

    Rack Rental:

    For self-parking situations where security is not critical, we can rent out our racks (each rack holds up to 15 bicycles) for $15 each per day. The racks are less than 6 feet long and nest nicely, so a standard pickup truck (with tie-down straps) can hold enough to park ~ 200 bikes.

    Sorry, we are no longer able to provide delivery for our rack rental service.

    For events with longer duration and few peak times, we can, in addition to rack rental, also train event organizer’s staff/volunteers on how to provide a hybrid, “ticketed self-park” service.

    This offers more security than self-parking, but with minimal labor compared to a full valet service.For more information about our Valet Bike parking service or rack rental please email Info@OhioCityCycles.org