In Montclair, First bike depot in State wows crowd at ribbon cutting - offering safe, secure eco-friendly option to many

New Jersey’s First Bike Depot opens in Montclair to cheers

Lilli
Don't know what this is? Who can blame you? It is the very first bike depot rack, fitting 24 racks on upper and lower levels, in New Jersey.....located in Montclair, naturally.
The ribbon cutting was a cheerful event, with numerous partners on hand to celebrate this visionary achievement in Montclair.
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Diane Lilli
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This cutting-edge facility represents Montclair's commitment to ‘having bikes and feet on every street,’” said Councilwoman Baskerville, 4th Ward. “It will allow commuters to bike from home to the train and have safe, convenient bike parking, and it will also allow people who come from other areas to our beautiful Township to have access to their bicycles as a means of visiting our shops, restaurants, entertainment, museums, parks and more.”
Dr. Renee Baskerville, 4th Ward Councilor, Montclair

Like a giant game of Montclair hopscotch, this latest visionary bike success took many steps from the first early days of bike lanes and town wide bike tours to strong pedestrian programs to today's giant leap, into the first New Jersey bike depot. After years of hard and diligent work by many local volunteers and leaders, including Bike/Walk Montclair and past Montclair Mayor Jerry Fried, this newest eco-friendly bike depot has once again made township history, since Montclair is yet again a sustainable, green leader - and first to boot.

Montclair is a visioinary town. From the community inspired art to the progressive recycling programs, or the very fact that there are six train stations within its borders, Montclair offers a place to live and enjoy the journey from home to work to fun.
Yesterday, members of the community cheered as the newest gem of the township's innovative and award winning bike/walk friendly attitude became a reality: a bike hub, located right inside the commuter parking lot on Pine Street at the Bay Street station.
And, as so many of this green town's efforts, the new bike depot is the very first one in New Jersey.
In case you don't know what a bike depot is, try to imagine a light-filled room with space for 24 bikes, that magically and securely fit on two levels of bike racks. This is the place you can ride your bike to the train, and lock it up safely, inside and secure, where it will await you until your return from work or shopping or dining.
This is the place you reduce your carbon footprint, since you won't be driving a car to and fro, and instead, will be able to arrive in style, of your own leg power, and lock up that bike while you do whatever you want to do that day - without producing harmful gas emissions.
In this time of global warming and pollution, biking instead of driving is a simple, practical thought, but one that is still rarely utilized here in the garden state, since bike depots do not exist elsewhere in the state.
Now, at least in Montclair, there is a place for bikers to carefully store their bikes, indoors, dry and safe.
Like a giant game of Montclair hopscotch, this latest visionary bike success took many steps from the first early days of bike lanes and town wide bike tours to strong pedestrian programs to today's giant leap, into the first New Jersey bike depot.
After years of hard and diligent work by many local volunteers and leaders, including Bike/Walk Montclair and past Montclair Mayor Jerry Fried, this newest eco-friendly bike depot has once again made township history, since Montclair is yet again a sustainable, green leader - and first to boot.
"Montclair wants to expand access to our six commuter train stations by providing alternative transportation options and the new Bike Depot is an integral part of this,” said Montclair’s Mayor Robert Jackson. “Not only is it another step toward becoming a more sustainable community by helping reduce vehicle emissions and lowering our carbon footprint, it also encourages residents to adopt a more healthful lifestyle. We thank all our sponsors for their generous support for this endeavor.”
Fourth ward councilwoman Dr. Renee Baskerville said she is thrilled to see the first bike depot in New Jersey not only in Montclair but in her fourth ward.
"This cutting-edge facility represents Montclair's commitment to ‘having bikes and feet on every street,’” said Councilwoman Baskerville, 4th Ward. “It will allow commuters to bike from home to the train and have safe, convenient bike parking, and it will also allow people who come from other areas to our beautiful Township to have access to their bicycles as a means of visiting our shops, restaurants, entertainment, museums, parks and more."
The space offers spots for 24 bikes and lockers for 18, all available for rent. There is a special secure keypad in order to enter the space, and 24-hour video camera.
Forget the days of letting your bike rust in the rain, or worse, get stolen.
“Most bike racks at NJ Transit stations are out in the open, leaving bikes subject to be vandalized or stolen,” said Cyndi Steiner, executive director, New Jersey Bike & Walk Coalition. “Because commuters can now store a bike securely in the Bike Depot, a safer, higher quality bike can be ridden to the train station, providing alternative transportation options to commuters from a greater distance. The Bike Depot will serve as a model for other NJ Transit train stations."
Raymond Solomon, from Sustainable New Jersey, had tears in his eyes as he described the joy he felt looking at the now open bike depot.
"This bike depot is really significant," he said. "What it does enables people to bicycle, with dignity. (It enables) regular people (to bicycle) mainstream people will not bicycle unless they feel like they are supposed to do that - with the powers that be and the infrastructure and culture and public sentiment saying yes, we affirm this is the right thing to do."
Essex County, always supportive, helped with this project, and also gave Montclair a new grant of $150,00 which will be used to turf Washington Park.
The Bike Depot is made possible through grants from the Sustainable Jersey small grants program, PSEG, Partners for Health, and in-kind support from The Pinnacle Companies, a local real estate developer with a focus on sustainable projects. Additional sponsorships are available for companies with a bike/pedestrian or sustainability vision.
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