New York is seeing a bicycle boom, but a bike parking bust

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The coronavirus pandemic has sparked to a boom in cycling in New York, as people aim to avoid public transportation.

And that's highlighted a critical shortage of places to park them safely while at home or work. Now activist groups are calling for bicycle parking to be made a priority. Sarah Walton reports.

There’s been a 25% increase in cycling in the city during the pandemic.

The campaign group Transport​ation Alternatives has now started a petition, calling for the mayor of New York Bill DeBlasio to invest in more bike racks.

Private companies are also moving in to address the issue. Shabazz Stuart created several free parking pods in New York after having three bikes stolen in five years. But he’s struggled to get planning approval from local authorities to build more.

New York’s department of transport​ation says it does take bike parking very seriously, and built more than 1,000 new spaces last year, but cycling groups still hope the city will gear ​up their efforts to put cycles before cars.

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