question about using the bike carriers on cta bus

  My daily commute for now includes using the CTA to carry my bike across the city. On the buses there ccan be one of two kinds of bike racks. One we will said is red and the other is yellow. The red ones are probably the intially used one before they start to use the better yellow ones. I have come across on a few occasion, where the red ones( the inner rack)  don't hold the bike well, as the screws fell out or something like that, so you have to use the outer one, thus no more bikes can be loaded till I get off.  I don't think the cta mechanics make it a habit of spot checking  them for problems. My question is, is there a way we can report to the CTA that a certain number bus has a broken bike rack? so I guess the bus number and route used is needed, and they should be able to track down the bus garage  location. thanks in advance.

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Permalink Reply by Bob Kastigar on June 6, 2014 at 2:38pm

http://www.transitchicago.com/contact/default.aspx

"Contact Us" page from the CTA website.  Fill-out-a-form, or see the email list, and all the phone numbers.

 

Yes, if you have this experience on any CTA bus you should report it.  It something that probably isn't checked regularly and you're helping everybody by reporting this.

Permalink Reply by Jerry Lee on June 8, 2014 at 9:52pm

Bob Kastigar;

  Thanks for the info, I looked at the web site, and it looks like the customer service email is the way to go.

H'1.0;

     thanks for the info on the various kinds of racks used. I prefer the cane type or the yellow type, there is nothing wrong with the red ones, as long as they are not broken or the screws fell out. I also use Pace, and they are either cane type or the yellow ones.

Next time I encounter a bad rack, I will get the bus number and the  route it was on. thanks for helping out.    Jerry

Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on June 9, 2014 at 3:09am

The yellow ones hold more securely. I definitely recommend reporting defective racks to CTA customer service via email, referencing route #, run # (it's in lower left corner of windshield as you look at front of bus - 1413 in photo above), direction of travel, and time of day.

Permalink Reply by Matt on June 10, 2014 at 2:18am

I often find myself on a bus as part of my commute, particularly in the cooler months (like June?).  Last year, I had zero problems all year.  This year, one of my first trips the yellow arm was pretty loose, but I really didn't think too much of it.  Well, a minute into my commute I heard someone yell, "bike fell!"  Luckily the driver stopped and didn't run it over.  I had to get off and put it on the front spot.  I told the driver the inner one was broken, and she gave me some snide comment about it.  So I used the "contact us" link to report the broken rack.

I've since encountered a couple more busted ones, I think one more yellow one and one red one (though, there's actually a third type similar to the yellow one, but with a black hook at the end).  I make sure that if I ever encounter them, I try to notify the driver and also use the online form to hopefully get them fixed.  Definitely make sure you reference the bus number like everyone else has so far.

I can't say if it worked or not, but I'd have to imagine if they start getting bombarded with emails about them, they might actually do something about it.

Permalink Reply by Waymond Smith on June 10, 2014 at 6:27am

Be very careful about using the racks on the CTA buses; my bike fell off on Lake Shore Dr. and was dragged for 4 blocks until we got off. I had to go beneath the bus in order to retrieve my bike! Luckily only the front wheel split, the rest of my bike was OK except for my shifters which were ground down enough to show the interior. Of course the CTA denied any responsibility for the damage.

I've had to yell at the bus driver on the J14 to slow down as it seemed that they were attempting to 'shake' my bike off the carrier.

Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on June 10, 2014 at 9:02am

I've rarely had trouble with the springs being stiff enough on the yellow racks. The problem I've encountered most often (and not on that many occasions) has been that the squeeze-latch to lower the rack to horizontal position to be able to load bikes was broken, so that the rack could not be put into loading position.  I've never had a bike come loose or fall off.

h' 1.0 said:

I'm definitely not in agreement with the comment above about reliability.  The yellow retainer racks have been failing pretty much since they were installed.  You have to try each one before using to make sure the spring still has some pull.

Permalink Reply by Andrew on June 10, 2014 at 9:34am

I only do it a handful of times annually, but I've had no problem getting my Surly Pacer w/ standard SKS fenders securely onto CTA bus racks.  No issues whatsoever other than the occasional annoyed driver.

Permalink Reply by Matt on June 10, 2014 at 9:35am

My bike has full fenders, and it works fine.  I had a driver "yell" at me once for not putting the yellow arm in the right position, but I explained it's as far as I could put it due to the fenders.  They shrugged it off and let me on.  If there's enough tension in the spring, it will hold the bike just fine.  If there's not enough tension, it won't hold the bike securely regardless.  Fenders don't interfere with the red ones.


Jeff Schneider said:

I've never tried to take a bike on a CTA bus.  From the photos of the racks, it looks like a bike with fenders would be hard or impossible to secure.  True?

Permalink Reply by Kevin Mulcky on June 10, 2014 at 10:12am

I have 45mm wide SKS Longboard fenders, the yellow arms fit right on top of it.

Permalink Reply by Jerry Lee on June 10, 2014 at 1:57pm

 I take the 92 foster bus and 303 Pace connected by the blue line to go to work. coming home I use the 77 Belmont. Most of the drivers are friendly and they say they keep an eye on the bike. Once the bike is on the rack and strapped in by either the red arm, yellow arm or the black cane, the bike will stay put. It's when the parts are loose or not properly attached, will the bike fall over. Now the streets are awful as far as potholes go, sometime these driver go like hell, and hitting a pothole, you look to see if the bike is still there. So far, no loss yet.

 

  do any of you(s) lock your bike, I dont mean to the rack, I thought of putting a padlock on the rotor, because it doesnt take much for someone remove your bike and ride away, especially when you are on a bus thats pack. Of course the padlock will probably destroy your disc brakes and wheel, hopefully you are able to retrieve your bike. Oh well, When it gets hot as hell and no rain I will be riding all the way to frankln Park and back to Andersonville daily. later, Jerry

Permalink Reply by Josh L. on June 11, 2014 at 2:03am

Is this really true that people grab the bikes off the racks? I do recall reading about it once but it seems out there as far as theft goes.  

Jerry Lee said:

 I take the 92 foster bus and 303 Pace connected by the blue line to go to work. coming home I use the 77 Belmont. Most of the drivers are friendly and they say they keep an eye on the bike. Once the bike is on the rack and strapped in by either the red arm, yellow arm or the black cane, the bike will stay put. It's when the parts are loose or not properly attached, will the bike fall over. Now the streets are awful as far as potholes go, sometime these driver go like hell, and hitting a pothole, you look to see if the bike is still there. So far, no loss yet.

 

  do any of you(s) lock your bike, I dont mean to the rack, I thought of putting a padlock on the rotor, because it doesnt take much for someone remove your bike and ride away, especially when you are on a bus thats pack. Of course the padlock will probably destroy your disc brakes and wheel, hopefully you are able to retrieve your bike. Oh well, When it gets hot as hell and no rain I will be riding all the way to frankln Park and back to Andersonville daily. later, Jerry

Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on June 11, 2014 at 4:46am

From what I've heard and observed, the number of incidents seems quite small.  I just sit (or stand) near the front of the bus and keep an eye on my bike.

jolondon30 said:

Is this really true that people grab the bikes off the racks? I do recall reading about it once but it seems out there as far as theft goes.  

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