Getting around New Haven, part deux: Biking

We've received several questions recently about biking in New Haven and thought we would take some time to talk about New Haven's offerings for the cycling community a little more in depth than our first post about getting around the city. As you will see by the length of this post, if you are a cycling enthusiast or even cy-curious (bah dum ching!), there are lots of opportunities for you to get your bike on for transit and for fun.


Shops

There are four main bike shops in New Haven, scattered throughout the city. There are two downtown where most Yalies go to get their bikes and bike equipment. The lesser known of these two is College Street Cycles (252 College Street) In fact, Patrick had never heard about it before he started Googling. It's a very small shop that's easy to miss in an otherwise very busy block of downtown. Major perks of College Street is its new rental service and the black Labrador that will greet you at the door.

The Devil's Gear

The other bike shop downtown is The Devil's Gear (151 Orange Street), which is by far the most popular of any of the bike shops in town. The shop fills two major roles for bicyclists in New Haven: it is where they probably got their bikes, and it is the hub of the biking culture. On the shop front, they have a wide selection of new and refurbished bikes, lots of accessories and equipment, and a friendly and knowledgeable staff. Many divvies come looking for a used bike, and because the Devil's Gear is so popular, its rotating selection of refurbished bikes mean you can check back a few times a week and be able to find something you like and in your size in no time. On the other hand, the accessories at Devil's Gear are notoriously expensive (though you get 10% when you buy a bike), so you might be better off buying your helmet, lights, etc., somewhere cheaper.



Riding

Orange St. in East Rock

Many streets in the city, including all of Orange Street north of Edwards Street in East Rock and many of the major streets going through Yale's campus, have dedicated bike lanes. Most others have painted markers ("sharrows") on the street indicating a shared road. Because there are so many bikes in New Haven, cars in theory know to watch for bikers (though you'll soon learn how crazy Connecticut drivers are...).

There are bike racks in front of many buildings throughout the city, which is excellent. In addition, in New Haven, there is free parking for all bikes against any parking meter. Yep, that's right, the police allow and encourage it. Also, because the Div School is at the top of a very large hill, especially if you're coming from East Rock, many people will lock their bikes to the inside of the wrought iron fence that runs along St. Ronan Street behind the school. Others attempt the climb up Canner, Edwards, or Prospect Street, which is quite a workout.

Transit probably isn't the only time you'll use a bike while in New Haven. Biking is fun too, after all. Elm City Cycling (see below) has several of their favorite rides written up, but there are three large local parks that beg to be ridden: East Rock, West Rock, and Sleeping Giant. There is also the Farmington Canal Trail, a rail-to-trail project that covers 84mi of trail between New Haven and Northampton, MA. Over half of this distance has been paved. Prospect Place provides the easiest entry to the trail in New Haven.


Safety/Security

Patrick's new bike, acquired just this week!

ALWAYS LOCK YOUR BIKE. Let us repeat that. ALWAYS LOCK YOUR BIKE. Most crime in New Haven involving students is theft, largely bicycles. The most secure system of locking is a U-lock with a cable lock to secure the front tire. Relying on just a cable lock, of any size, is probably not the best idea in the world, but a cable lock is better than no lock at all.

Buy and wear a helmet. Though bike accidents are not incredibly common in New Haven because of all the measures they take to help cyclists, accidents do happen. A student who just graduated was saved from a concussion recently  because she had a helmet on when her brakes gave out coming down a hill, though she got very scraped up and broke a few bones. We know, helmets cramp your style and mess up your hair, but the reason you're coming to New Haven in the first place is your brain: you should probably protect it at all costs.

And finally, lights are extremely important if you plan on using your bike as a normal means of transportation. LEDs are extremely cheap and bright, and allow for flashing, strobing, and other kinds of alert-grabbing arrangements.


Community/Resources

A wonderful resource for cyclists is Elm City Cycling, New Haven's bike community and advocacy organization. In addition to organizing rides and events, ECC advocates for bike lanes, routes, racks, and so on to the New Haven city government. Recurring events offered include:

Fall colors at the Farmington Trail

• Tuesday Night Canal Ride (±30mi ride along the Farmington Canal Trail, leaves from Café Romeo at 5:30pm every Tuesday)
• Wednesday Night Mountain Bike Ride (rides to either the top of West Rock—challenging—or East Rock—moderate, ending with an ice cream social, leaves from Devil's Gear at 7:00pm every Wednesday during the summer, RSVP preferred to Devil's Gear)
• Sunday Lulu Ride (distance and pace varying with a break for breakfast, leaves from Café Lulu at 10:00am every Sunday)
• Little Lulu Ride (20-30mi ride with no-drop—stop at hilltops to make sure no one is left behind—leaves from Café Lulu at 10:00am every Sunday)
• Critical Mass (bike awareness ride, slow-paced through New Haven streets, usually ends at a house party or a New Haven spot, BYOB and snack for the party, leaves from New Haven Green flagpole at 5:30pm every last Friday of the month) 

The City of New Haven itself works to make biking easier in the city limits, and to provide support to the biking community. Its brand new Bike New Haven website has a lot of information on laws, maps, and request forms for lanes and racks throughout the city. It also offers an invaluable resource, the "Smart Cycling Handbook" (pdf).

Yale Transit also offers biking support and education for Yale affiliates. The Yale Bike website is a useful directory of many of the resources already listed above. Yale Environmental Health & Safety offers hour-long Bicycling Safety Training classes on a regular basis for new riders. The Transit Office itself offers a Smart City Cycling Skills course, designed to provide cyclists, of all experience levels, the opportunity to develop and improve their cycling skills, competence and confidence with a special emphasis on bicycle commuting and safely navigating urban traffic.

There you have it. All in all, New Haven is a great city for biking, and is getting even better.