@ascentale @bikenite A7. The lack of accessible cycle space on transit and trains is a real problem for me as a disabled cyclist who has a disability that affects her ability to lift as well. I currently ride a folding recumbent trike, but it's not a commuter fold like a Brompton. A strong abled person could probably fold it fast enough, but not me. And even if they did, the luggage area is not big enough for it...it would need to go into the cycle space but those are never built for anything but upright bicycles.
I have given presentations about accessibility in cycling, but I'm not much of an engineer so I haven't been specific about exact rack solutions to this particular aspect of ableism in cycling/transportation/urbanism.
Part of it involves wheelchair accessibility - that is, some of the trains, trams, and light rail systems I've taken have level boarding that immediately gets up to a second level inside with no ramp. We need things to be on a level with the platform and to stay on that level. Some rail I took in Austria managed this.
On land, Sheffield racks or a single long bar are the best for their adaptability to locking up a number of different cycle designs. But on transit the difficulty with the bar is that abled upright riders can easily max out the space and there's nothing left for a trike/recumbent rider who's disabled. As much as possible, I'd want a design that works regardless if people are only thinking of themselves. If the design does most of the work, they you don't have to have rationing & policing.
Some train cars I've seen were almost entirely dedicated to bikes (not cycles). So they had more room and the racks were meant for the bikes to go head or tail in. I think a system like this *might* work if the ones nearest the doors were reserved for wider/longer cycles like trikes/recumbents since they cannot go along the aisle and turn as easily to get to a center spot. And if the arms between the spaces were adjustable, then you could adjust the width of the spaces according to upright bike, cargo bike, trike, recumbent, etc. But it would still rely on (self-) policing more than I'd like.
Ultimately, what works best for accessibility is cultural change. What I mean by this is that if abled people actually feel deep shame if they make things harder for disabled people, they will think about accessibility from the beginning, design well, and even any compromises will be maintained better due to the culture valuing accessibility over the personal convenience to abled people. But we're a long way from that in most cultures I know of.
In a Steve Marsh video, I saw a Flixbus that came with a bike trailer. Which was very cool! Except it was a wheelbender rack designed for upright bikes only. Perhaps articulated buses with one side being reserved for cycles, using better designed racks?
Regardless, I think that making things accessible, and allowing people to travel with the sorts of things people end up having to buy or rent a car to have the freedom to take with them would do a LOT to shift folks out of personal cars.
#BikeNite #Accessibility
