Transit Windsor wants riders to take bikes to Detroit

Transit Windsor wants to put bike racks on the front of tunnel buses, allowing riders to take their bikes to Detroit.

The racks would be like those on any other bus, able to accommodate two bikes at a time, explained Carolyn Brown, corporate leader of transportation for the City of Windsor.

The move comes after an incident in June when a man illegally biked through the tunnel because he was late for a concert in Detroit.

"We'll take two cyclists, on a first-come, first-served basis, and then what we're going to do is the same thing we do for regular city service," she said. "They either disassemble the bike and put it in a bike bag and take it on the bus, if space permits, or they wait for the next bus."

Brown contacted American and Canadian border officials about the bike racks. Neither organization had issues with bike racks.

"They indicated the bikes would be checked as would any other goods brought into either country and other than that, they had no reservations," she said.

Bike racks will add a metre to the length of the bus, which could make it a challenge for drivers when they back up after stopping at customs on the Detroit side, but Transit Windsor has done manoeuvrability tests to ensure the racks would work.

If city council approves of the change, Brown says the last step would be to apply to the provincial Ministry of Transportation.