Bike Parking at the Courthouse

I've had to go to the Milwaukee courthouse the past couple of mornings for work. I don't mind riding my bike to court. Walking through the halls of the courthouse wearing a suit and tie and carrying my helmet and panniers is usually good for a couple of perplexed glances from others. Sure, the court is frequented by bike messengers, but their bulging messenger bags and their rejection of established standards of grooming usually trigger an instant cultural recognition on the part of others such that it is unnecessary for messengers to actually be in the presence of their bikes for them to project an image of bikeness. Not so for me.

I vaguely look like a lawyer, what with my suit and files (although there is room for improvement in my adherence to grooming standards). I'm afraid that carrying a bike helmet and my battered old panniers may undermine my lawyerness, at least in a visual way. Actually, I'm not really afraid. I kind of like it.

Anyway, this post was supposed to be about bike parking at the courthouse, so here goes.

The courthouse has miserable bike parking.

I'm not sure why that is. The rest of downtown Milwaukee is graced with lovely u-shaped bike racks that dot nearly every corner. They are solid racks. Simple and elegant. They don't attempt to make any profound cultural statements. They provide for cyclists without embarrassing them in the process.

For some reason, those racks don't seem to exist anywhere within a 3 block radius of the courthouse (correct me if I'm wrong - I didn't research it too thoroughly). Instead, what you get is this:



I've been near this rack during a strong wind and I was genuinely concerned that it was about to take flight. I'm not certain if it's even attached to the ground. Whereas a layman might think that this rack can hold a dozen or so bikes based on its ingenious front-wheel loading system, in reality, most people haven't locked their bike in such a fashion since they were in grade school in the mid-'70s. Nowadays, people do as the owner of the bicycle in the photo did. They lock it to the side of the rack. As a result, what you have is lots of rack and little useable space.

I usually lock my bike to a pole:


I've seen others lock their bikes to the metal grating which surrounds the undernourished trees which adorn the west side of the courthouse. Almost no one uses the bike rack.

I think I rely on bike racks too much for my general sense of security. I'm always hesitant to lock up my bike to anything other than a designated rack out of some irrational fear that the Incredible Hulk will come along, yank the pole to which my bike is attached out of the ground with one clean jerk, and make off my 20-year old heap-o-crap. I know. It's silly.

That's why the lack of sturdy racks at the courthouse troubles me so.

The court's lack of proper rackage is surprising, especially considering the fact that at least two Milwaukee County judges ride their bikes to work. On second thought, I think they get to bring their bikes into the building with them. I don't blame them. I have a feeling, however, that I wouldn't get away with doing that.