Landlords Prepare for Droves of e-Bikes As Office Workers Return 

December 2020

It was as if somebody hit the pause button on the global office market in 2020. The pandemic accelerated the work from home trend and forbid many employees from going to the office. But this will all change. Though it might seem as if we'll be stuck in this Covid twilight zone forever, the pandemic will end, we will have a vaccine and yes, we will return to the office. Remote work will certainly play a bigger role in the economy, but the notion of a shared physical office space is not going away. One of the things that will change in the germophobic, post-pandemic world is how people get to and from the office. Spoiler alert: they won't be taking the train or the bus, they'll be riding e-bikes. Office landlords are scrambling, or at least they should be, to prepare for all these sleek, new bikes arriving daily to their properties.

 

Mass transit ridership is down as much as 90%, while global bicycle sales have skyrocketed since the beginning of the pandemic. Our fears will eventually subside as things return to “normal,” but some of our new habits will become ingrained and endure long into the future. Attitudes toward hygiene, social distancing and, therefore, an aversion to tightly packed public transit seem likely to persist long after the end of the pandemic.

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Weatherproof Bike Storage for Apartment Buildings

November 2020

Building Managers Seek Weatherproof Bike Storage for Apartment Buildings

As the nights close in and the days get colder, many cyclists prepare to put away their bikes for the winter— and building managers seek to accommodate them through weatherproof and secure bike storage . With limited floor space, apartments do not lend themselves easily to bike storage and landlords are often loath to allow wall-mounted bike racks. ALPEN Storage offers insight into the premier solution for apartment buildings and other residential or businesses.

Bicycle Storage Solutions for ‘Too Small’ spaces

Small spaces such as studio apartments do not offer many options for bike storage. When indoor bike storage is not possible, tenants seek a secure alternative storage option. Unfortunately, many outdoor bike storage solutions fall short when it comes to security or weatherproofing. Many apartments offer their tenants bike storage in cages or on bike racks which may provide adequate weatherproofing for winter conditions, but fall short on security. 

Best Outdoor Bicycle Storage

When it comes to keeping your tenants’ bicycles safe from weather and thieves, the ALPEN Bike Capsule is the high-quality choice of discerning apartment building managers. No other solution on the market offers this combination of features:

Durability - Our Bike Capsules are made from roto-molded, UV-resistant polyethylene. Metal components are 100% corrosion-resistant stainless steel and aluminum.

Sleek, precise design - The sculptural, circular design repels water and slides open and closed easily, locking automatically when closed.

Security - The Bike Capsule is a Class 1 secure bike locker, with an integrated lock and key system and optional Bluetooth functionality. The entire unit’s surface can bolt or adhese easily to the ground, to prevent theft of the unit.

Convenience - Mounts to decks, patios, balconies, rooftops, alleyways, garages and even lawns, offering easy access as you come and go from home on your bike.

At a size of 79x32 inches, our Bike Capsule fits easily into unused dead spaces in parking garages, optimizing a building’s car storage for tenants. If you’re interested in  ALPEN Bike Capsules for your apartment building, contact us at info@alpenstorage.com.

Bike Thefts Are Up 27% in Pandemic NYC: 'Sleep With It Next To You'

October 2020

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/14/nyregion/bike-thefts-nyc

As more people are buying bikes, more bikes are being swiped from sidewalks, garages and basements. Locks are not always a deterrent.

By Kimiko de Freytas-Tamura

One of the more unexpected side effects of the pandemic has been a surge in cycling, fueled by people avoiding trains and buses and seeking a way to stay in shape. That triggered an extreme shortage of bicycles. Then came the thieves.

Bikes are being plundered from sidewalks, garages and apartment building basements in rising numbers in New York and across the country. Similar spikes in thefts have also been recorded abroad, including in Britain and France.

No one, it seems, is immune.

A father recently posted a sign on a Brooklyn street to publicly shame the thief who stole the bike his 10-year-old son got for his birthday. A bike along with the railing it was locked to was stolen from a Brooklyn apartment building. In the Bronx, a 15-year-old boy riding a bike was attacked by eight men who stole his cycle.

“When you buy a bike you just hope that you hold onto it for as long as you can,” said Jacob Priley, 29, explaining how he had two bikes stolen, one after the other.

The first was at a protest against police brutality in Brooklyn where he said he was arrested after being out past a curfew and left his bike on the street. He replaced it with an electric mountain bike costing about $800. That one was stolen, too, after he left it overnight in the street, albeit locked.

While locks are obviously a good idea, many are no match for the electric saws that thieves commonly use.

“Every lock — you can break it,’’ said Sty Gonzalez, who works at Trek Bicycle shop in Manhattan. “The stronger ones just buy you more time.”

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E-bikes are taking over and finding suitable bike storage has never been more important

September 2020

www.alpenstorage.com/pages/electric-bike-storage

E-bikes are taking over the streets. The global e-bike market is projected to reach $38.6 billion by 2025, up from $21.1 billion in 2018. Particularly in 2020, cafes, restaurants, and other public spaces are closed or have limited service due to the pandemic. Public transportation comes with safety and social distancing concerns, and cities are closing streets to give pedestrians more room to navigate their cities. With this confluence of events, it is no wonder that e-bikes are becoming a favorite way to commute, explore and yes, exercise. 

With the cost of electric bikes averaging $3,000 to $8,000, and some models going for as much as $10,000, e-bike safety and storage has become an important consideration. Insurance companies are offering e-bike theft insurance, and the first tip you will read is “invest in a good lock.” Whether you are an individual e-bike enthusiast, or the property manager of an apartment building, investing in secure e-bike storage is a must. 

E-bikes require considerations that traditional bicycles do not, and their owners will be disappointed if their specific needs are not accommodated. ALPEN has some ideas about how to store a bike safely, with special consideration for e-bikes. 

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A New York Biker’s Headache: Where to Store It

August 2020

www.nytimes.com/2020/08/18/realestate/new-york-bike-storage-headache

With New Yorkers avoiding the subway and buses, landlords and building managers grapple with the expanding need for bike storage space.

By Ronda Kaysen

The long bike rides that Carolann Martini takes from her Murray Hill co-op down to Battery Park are invigorating. Dragging her bike out of the storage room? Not so much.

The tight space is a maze of long-forgotten bikes and trikes tethered to elementary school-style racks. To retrieve her Eduardo Bianchi road bike, she has to untangle it from a web of handlebars, pedals and frames. “It’s just aggravation,” said Ms. Martini, a hospitality industry executive. Cycling in the city “is a pleasure. So why should I be aggravated?”

The pandemic has ushered in a golden age of cycling for New Yorkers who, like Ms. Martini, have discovered that riding a bike everyday is fun, and less confined than a trip on the bus or subway. But with daily biking comes a hitch that seasoned riders already knew about: storing a bike in the city is a grind.

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Cities Are Transforming As Electric Bike Sales Skyrocket

May 2020

https://www.theverge.com/2020/5/14/21258412/city-bike-lanes-open-streets-ebike-sales-bicyclist-pedestrian

Returning to a car-dominated city after the pandemic lockdown is ‘out of the question’

By Thomas Ricker and Andrew J. Hawkins  

Cities around the world are grappling with the same issue: how to safely reopen in the COVID-19 era. Public transportation systems in places like New York, London, and Paris typically carry millions of people to work and to shops each day, amounting to roughly 1.5 billion trips each year. Now, nobody wants to be on a crowded subway and risk exposure to the virus if they can avoid it. But if everyone jumps into cars instead, traffic will grind to a halt, interfere with emergency vehicles, and reverse advances many cities made toward reducing carbon emissions during lockdown. That’s why city planners and residents alike are looking at the humble bicycle as their way out.

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Covid-19 Pandemic Supercharges Global Bike Market

by ALPEN Storage, Inc. | April 2020

Contagion fears are driving urban commuters away from mass transit toward bikes and scooters. Learn how the pandemic may have a silver lining for the micro-mobility market. 

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