Where do your store your bike overnight? You'll be much more motivated to use your bike every day if it's easy to get it onto the street every morning. (Don't become a Jerry Seinfeld, with a great bike that never leaves the apartment!)
You want to avoid making a special trip to your apartment storage locker, or lugging a bike up and down many flights of stairs every time you leave for work. Also, if your bike is hard to bring into your home, you may be tempted to lock it outside overnight, putting it in danger of theft.
Bike Theft
Your bike should be securely locked or behind locked doors. Ideally, it shouldn't either be visible from the street or hidden in a dark, secluded and thief-friendly place. In Toronto, where I live, garages and porches are the top theft locations.
Weather
Protect your bike as much as possible from wetness and freezing. When you bring a sloppy bike in from rain or snow, knock most of the solid mud or ice off the wheels and frame outside, and then put newspapers underneath to catch the drips. If the bike lives outside, cover it with a tarp.
Roommates and Significant Others
The bike storage decision is one best made with their full participation. Even a bike lover like me gets fed up with puddles of mucky salt dripping in the hallway, and I've known otherwise stable relationships to be threatened by questions like: Do used inner tubes belong on the kitchen counter?
Elevators
You can bring bikes on elevators. If the bike is light, stand it straight up on its back wheel so it takes up less space. If it's heavy, roll it in nose-first, then pivot it to allow other people to get on with you.
Bikes and Landlords
Some building owners and managers disapprove of bicycles, saying that they bring in mud and inconvenience other tenants. Some buildings (especially condominiums) explicitly ban bicycles from elevators. You may be able to help yourself and other cyclists by firmly, diplomatically insisting on being allowed to park your bike safely. Remember that car drivers are often assigned a whole floor (or two) for a parking garage.
Politeness to neighbours will encourage them to support you rather than complain about you. See what happens if you offer to rent one-tenth of a parking space to park your bike parking – you just never know!
In my next article, I'll discuss learning to ride a bicycle.
