More moped parking: Bellingham
Scooter parking on Railroad Avenue (Orin O'Neill photos)
Things were a bit out of whack for me this week. A spot of car trouble kept me in Portland about three days longer than I’d planned. But I’m not complaining—it was nice being back in the Rose City.
I’m working on a Grand Treatise for Scooter Parking, which you’ll see later. In the meantime, here are some tidbits from my iPhone’s Camera Roll.
I was hoping the local Ford dealer would have an obscure bit that might enable the wretched motorized seatbelt on the Fourth Estate’s driver’s side to function properly. They didn’t. But it’s nice to see they considered the possibility their customers might arrive some way other than by car.
Bellingham’s surprisingly high-rise downtown includes the Flatiron Building. Which has an odd-shaped space that makes for perfect scooter parking. Unless some doofus tries to park a Hummer there. Yes, that has happened.
While there’s a Starbucks and a Haggen within walking distance, both have stores on the opposite side of town. Which makes for a nice ride. It would be nice if the Haggen close to me had de facto scooter parking like this.
Of course, a Honda Ruckus fits in spaces even a GTS must avoid. This particular Ruck is the one that got ridden to Sehome Village when it was 20°F and the roads were one big ice rink.
The Met was a few steps away. Remember, if you’re parking your scoot in a car space, park it so at least one more can fit. We can always hope some property manager will get the hint.
I spied this scoot in the courtyard of a condo complex in Fairhaven. It fits the space well. And it is near the bike rack.
While this pic was taken at a place where I have been told to park my “moped” near the bike rack, the cover of vegetation is nevertheless welcome.
Have a good weekend. Hope there’s some riding in your plans. 
Comments are closed.
Scootin' Old Skool 
We were about to send the rescue squad out to look for ya.
Santana, huh? Always loved “Oye Como Va,” but gonna have to do some Spotifying to answer the others. Patience, please.
In the meatime, how about some Steve Morse, or Robben Ford, perhaps.
Dear Orin:
Your blog episode is both timely and laden with subliminal messages for shopping mall developers who pave millions of miles of parking lots from coast to cost in the US. There should be a lot more consideration for scooter and motorcycle parking. There are many places in parking lots — at corners, edges, and other irregular areas — that could easily accommodate bike/scooter parking… But these are all afterthoughts and generally demonstrated by riders who park their machines in theses voids, albeit illegally.
There is a risk for parking a motorcycle/scooter out in the general lot… A risk that a driver will not see the bike in the slot until the last second (in their haste to grab an open spot) and knock it over. A risk that swnging car doors will damage custom paint… A risk that screen-in by parked cars, the side bags and top cases of our rides will be the subject of prying hands.
Yet I do not believe that motorcycle/scooter parking will be a priority for any commercial developer until gas is $5 a gallon, and millions more people are riding these. I am inclined to share with you the story of how I cut hours from my Christmas shopping one year by taking my motorcycle — and parking it in the “thatched out” areas in parking lots (close to the entrance of the stores), or just parking it on the sidewalk (by any existing bike racks, which are also rare here). My concern about doing this now is that so many municipalities are cash strapped that they are isuing parking tickets — or towing — at the speed of light.
I would be very interested in publishing any parts of your parking treatise that you would care to share on “Twisted Roads,” in the interests of getting a broader section of the motorcycle riding community behind your recommendations.
Fondest regards,
Jack/reep
Twisted Roads