Monday, August 01, 2011
Monday, July 18, 2011
Revival
After a two-year hiatus, I have decided to dust this blog off and put it back to good use. The summer months ought to prove fruitful, but we will have to wait and see if blogging can be sustained through the thick of architecture school come September.
New bicycle racks are beginning to pop up in Brooklyn...
The racks are nothing special at first glance, but it turns out that since 2009 they have been replacing the now defunct parking meters along the blocks where DOT's relatively new Muni Meter system in place. While it is refreshing to see obsolete infrastructure reincarnated, it begs the question, why haven't parking meters simply doubled as bicycle racks all along?
To be fair, they practically have, albeit unintentionally. Cyclists inevitably latch onto just about any meter, tree, fence, or sign post that accommodates a lock. This can largely be attributed to a shortage of actual bicycle racks. Had these fixtures initially been designed as both meters AND racks, they could have been left alone, free from the burdens of the conversion process in the post-parking meter era. Also, a configuration like that would alleviate the cluttered streetscape by providing an adequate number of properly functioning racks for cyclists who, in all likelihood, would prefer to use proper bike racks.
Furthermore, several other re-purposed/dual-purposed streetscape accommodations come to mind, some existing, some not. Imagine locking your bicycle to a meter-rack, having a seat on a flood-proof subway grate bench, pulling out your laptop, and picking up on a WiFi signal emitting from the router installed in the old payphone kiosk down the block. That's just one scenario.
New bicycle racks are beginning to pop up in Brooklyn...
The racks are nothing special at first glance, but it turns out that since 2009 they have been replacing the now defunct parking meters along the blocks where DOT's relatively new Muni Meter system in place. While it is refreshing to see obsolete infrastructure reincarnated, it begs the question, why haven't parking meters simply doubled as bicycle racks all along?
To be fair, they practically have, albeit unintentionally. Cyclists inevitably latch onto just about any meter, tree, fence, or sign post that accommodates a lock. This can largely be attributed to a shortage of actual bicycle racks. Had these fixtures initially been designed as both meters AND racks, they could have been left alone, free from the burdens of the conversion process in the post-parking meter era. Also, a configuration like that would alleviate the cluttered streetscape by providing an adequate number of properly functioning racks for cyclists who, in all likelihood, would prefer to use proper bike racks.
Furthermore, several other re-purposed/dual-purposed streetscape accommodations come to mind, some existing, some not. Imagine locking your bicycle to a meter-rack, having a seat on a flood-proof subway grate bench, pulling out your laptop, and picking up on a WiFi signal emitting from the router installed in the old payphone kiosk down the block. That's just one scenario.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Monday, June 01, 2009
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Thursday, March 26, 2009
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