Apex 3

Frequently Asked Questions

• Since it is so easy to use, have you heard of any problems with theft of bikes off of the racks?

  This has been a concern that has been raised by other agencies prior to a bike-on-bus program. Public transit agencies deal with this potential situation differently. Many agencies put disclaimers on their marketing and instructional information. Others use a permit system, where they have users come to a particular location and learn to use the rack (despite its ease of use), and sign a liability release. Other agencies actually allow users to lock their bike to the rack (most users do not take this option). The rack mounts on the front of the vehicle, with the driver looking down on it acting as a deterrent to a potential theft. Furthermore, use of the rack is so fast, the bus is not sitting idle any longer than it normally would be without a bike on the front.

• It seems like the support arm is not enough to hold the bike. Have you had any problems with losing bikes while on the road?


  The support arm assembly is the literal backbone of our system. If the support arm is raised past the center point of the tire, nearly touching the brake is best, the bike will be held securely. The patented design creates three points of positive contact on the tire, affording safe and secure transport.

• I am concerned about stepping out in traffic to load my bike. Is the rack safe to use?


  All of our bicycle racks are designed to be used from either the curb side or the front of the vehicle, well out of harms way. In fact, the front mounted design allows you to be in full view by the bus driver while loading and unloading your bike. In the twelve plus years we have been selling these racks we haven’t had one liability claim against us. This product was designed with the safety and convenience of the passenger in mind.

• How is liability handled by the transit agency?


  Our customers typically transfer the liability to the user through disclaimers via signage or within the instructional material.

• Are there concerns with the bicycle racks interfering with or damaging the bus washers?

  Sportworks designed the Bike-Rack-for-Buses to pass through the bus washer without damage to the rack, the bus washer, or the bus. Sportworks has racks mounted on thousands of public transit buses all over the country. Only occasionally a bus washer challenges our engineers. A careful look at the washer or a slight modification to the bike rack typically eliminates the problems. In the recent years, we have become adept at bike rack and bus wash compatibility, and have even added a “Bus Wash” section to our Operators Manual.

• Does the front of the bus get clean when it goes through the washer with the rack installed?

  This answer is entirely dependent on the type of bus washer and the type of bus. The densities of the bus wash brushes and the slope degree of the bus front both affect how well the front of the bus get cleaned. Typically, the front of the vehicle does not have a problem getting cleaned.

• Will the bike racks interfere with towing our disabled buses?

  The answer to this concern is dependent on the towing method and the bus type. Listed below are the varying towing related options:

  - Many of our customers can tow their vehicles without removing the bike rack.
  - Sometimes, by deploying the rack, one can tow the bus.
  - Sportworks has different mounting brackets available for the same bumper, giving customers the choice of a mounting method.
  - By removing the rack but not the mounting hardware, one can tow the bus. One person can remove the rack from the coach in less than one minute the rack weighs less than 30 pounds and simple hand tools can remove the two pivot fasteners.
  - If necessary, we are able to customize the mounting bracket to accommodate different towing requirements.
  - The new Ten Second BracketTM

• Will the racks fit our buses?

  Absolutely! Sportworks has many different mounting brackets and we continue to build to this repertoire. Our design and engineering team has been able to fabricate a bracket for every bus we have ever encountered.

• Will the racks interfere with vehicle safety equipment including headlights and turn signals?


  The amount of potential interference will vary from vehicle to vehicle. Sportworks works diligently to optimize the position of bike racks on current and new model buses. We can also customize almost any portion of the mounting bracket to adjust how and where the rack sits on the front of the vehicle. The majority of Sportworks mounting brackets include multiple holes allowing the rack to be adjusted vertically to identify the most ideal location. This vertical adjustment alone overcomes the majority of interference concerns that may be attributed to the bike rack.

• Are bike racks on transit vehicles compliant with federal and state regulations regarding vehicle lighting?

  FEDERAL: Sportworks has designed our transit racks and mounting brackets for transit vehicles to satisfy the requirements of the U.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARDS AND REGULATIONS, No. 108 (FMVSS 108). FMVSS 108 covers vehicle lamps, reflective devices, and associated equipment, as they pertain to new motor vehicles and new motor vehicle equipment. In 2008, Sportworks submitted several questions to NHTSA (National Highway Transportation and Safety Administration) in an attempt to clarify FMVSS (Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard) 108 as it pertains to bicycle racks on transit buses. These interpretive efforts clarified three important things:

  1)  NHTSA stated that bicycles in racks are temporary loads and not subject to NHTSA requirements:

  “1. Neither bicycles, passengers, nor other temporary loads carried by a motor vehicle constitute “motor vehicle equipment” as that term is used in 49 U.S.C. § 30102(a)(7) and the NHTSA regulatory scheme.”

  2)  NHTSA stated that presence of a rack in and of itself does not violate FMVSS 108, as long as lighting requirements could be met with the rack in place:

  “it would not be a violation of 49 U.S.C. §30122 for a manufacturer, distributor, dealer, or motor vehicle repair business to install a bicycle rack in a way that, when used, does not render required lamps or reflectors, or any other item required by a Federal motor vehicle safety standard, inoperative.”

  “You state in your current letter that “Sportworks’ racks have many installation configurations, and they are intended to be selected and installed by the manufacturer or operator so that the rack itself does not render any devices inoperative.” If this is so, and your client’s bicycle rack were installed so that a bicycle can be placed on it in such a way that, with or without a bike placed on it in the normally anticipated position, the rack and the bike do not block a required lamp, then installation of the rack would not violate the make inoperative provision.”

  3)  NHTSA stated that bicycle racks installed by transit agencies and other end users are not subject to FMVSS 108, and instead subject to state law:

  “Your understanding is correct that the “make inoperative” provision of §30122 would not apply to a vehicle owner, such as a transit agency, that installs the bicycle rack in its own buses in its own repair and maintenance facility. However, please see our answer to question 5 for a more expansive discussion of §30122. In addition, there may be applicable Federal or State operational requirements relating to transit buses.”

  STATE: We have found that some states have adopted FMVSS 108 verbatim into state law to apply to vehicle operation within the state, while others have not. Sportworks does not know which states may have augmented or deleted any portions of FMVSS 108 as adopted into state law. To our knowledge only one state, Pennsylvania, has passed legislation specifically addressing bicycle racks on the front of transit buses with regard to lighting.  This legislation, Pennsylvania Vehicle Code Title 75 section 4303 a) states:

  Head Lamps – “Every vehicle, except trailers, operated on a highway shall be equipped with a head lamp system in conformance with regulations of the department. The regulations shall not prohibit a bus from being equipped with devices used to carry pedal-cycles on the front of the bus.”

  In conclusion, Sportworks designs bicycle racks with many design constraints, both functional and legal, in mind. We are confident our transit rack products, when installed properly, meet federal law. Our intent when configuring a rack is to minimize any effect on installed vehicle safety equipment, including lighting, when the rack is both stowed and loaded with bicycles. Due to the variation of bicycle types and diversity in state law, Sportworks is not in a position to assure, validate or otherwise comment on compliance with state law. Our customers have found that local authorities are amenable to working with transit agencies in resolving any differences of opinion or interpretation of state regulations regarding lighting.

• Can the rack fit on our smaller community "cutaway" shuttles?


  Yes. We pay close attention to this market, and have designed various mounting systems that accommodate the existing features of these vehicles. Whether you have a Ford or Chevy cutaway, or larger International Navistar, we likely have a bracket to fit.

  NOTE: Due to the narrow size and stiffer suspension typically found on cutaway’s, Sportworks does not recommend using 3-position bike racks with these vehicles. Doing so may present safety issues related to bicycle retention, headlight blockage, vehicle turn radius, and lead to pre-mature failure of the bike rack.

• The new Apex 3 bike rack sounds like a very compact layout. Is it safe to use on smaller transit vehicles like cutaways?

  Measuring just 82” wide, the new Apex 3 offers the most compact, maneuverable, and unobstructed layout of any 3-position bike rack available today. One of the key design objectives was to create a highly-compact footprint that provides minimal impact on vehicle turn-radius and headlight/turn signal interference. Sportworks recommends using the Apex 3 on any transit vehicles measuring at least 96” wide excluding mirrors. Online vehicle data suggests that most cutaways measure 96” in width, with a few narrow profile versions that measure 88”. For more information about the width of your vehicles, please contact the OEM vehicle manufacturer or reseller directly.

• Do you have a bike rack that carries more than two bicycles?

  In 2002 we introduced the TrilogyTM three position bicycle rack. This rack boasts the same features as our original, proven, DL2 bike-rack-for-buses. The protrusion distance (how far it sticks out when deployed) is nearly identical to the DL2, two bike rack. The rack is wider than the DL2 allowing it to accommodate three bikes in slightly elevated and offset positions. The bikes sit slightly closer together yet still maintain the ability to be loaded and unloaded independently of one another. Currently we have shipped in excess of 1000 of these racks out our door and have been well received.

• What type and size of bikes does this rack carry?


  Our racks are designed to carry an average size bicycle. We recommend bicycles with no longer than a 44 inch wheel base, 2.3 inch wide tires, wheel diameters of 20 inches or larger and a total weight of 55 pounds or less per bike. However, in many cases we have heard that some agencies stray from this recommendation in order accommodate the needs of their passengers. The rack was not designed to be used with motorized vehicles such as motor scooters, which generally fall outside of the carrying capacity. Coming in early 2006 we will be releasing the VeloPorter 2, this product will accept tires up to 3 inches in width, 16 to 29 inches in diameter and increases the wheel base to 46 inches.

• Can anything else be carried by this rack?


  We have heard it all! Unicycles, Surfboards, Kayaks and even Christmas Tree -obviously the rack was designed to carry bicycles and that is our endorsement.

• Can we mount this rack on the back of our bus?


  The rack was designed to mount on the front of the vehicle; however we do have customers who mount it on the rear. If your needs call for mounting the racks on the front and the back of the vehicle, we encourage the customer to take a careful look at their state DOT vehicle length requirements before ordering. If capacity requirements are highlighting the need to carry more bikes, you might want to check out our InterlockTM interior bike rack.

• Our routes run very tight, with virtually no time for loading and unloading bicycles. How long does it take to load and unload bicycles?

  One can load or unload the bicycle from our rack in less than 10 seconds. Some tests have proven an average load/unload time to be approximately 7 seconds. Our video clearly demonstrates how quick and easy the rack is to use. The best way to overcome this barrier is to set up a demonstration and let people try it without any instruction. Nay-sayers will be surprised!

• What is the impact of garage parking since additional space would be needed?

  In the stowed position, the bicycle rack folds up against the face of the bus. The amount of protrusion in this position varies from bus to bus - however it is minimal, ranging anywhere from 5.5” to 7.5”. For those who do not have even an extra few inches we have designed quick release accessories and brackets facilitating the quick removal of the rack or brackets.

• What are the costs of purchasing and maintaining racks?

  The costs associated with the initial purchase of the bicycle racks are minimal. Please contact Sportworks Northwest, Inc. for a detailed quote based on the vehicle type. This is less expensive than a standard transit bus tire! Best stated by Keith Martin, General Manager of Yuba-Sutter Transit, the racks are “low cost, high impact enhancement to [their] system, . . provide[s] increased system visibility, better multi-modal convenience and increased system productivity by attracting new riders”. Sportworks designed the Bike-Rack-for-Buses to last the life of the bus. Sportworks always has a full spare parts inventory and our customer service team is ready to respond to immediate needs. Our standard warranty covers parts and labor for one year, and we have yet to see any major bike rack warranty issues.

• Can the racks be repaired if damaged?


  The racks are designed to be transit tough. However, there are situations where the rack is involved in a collision and needs repair. We offer the parts necessary to do just about any repair to the rack. From hoop splices to support arm grips, we have the part you need to keep your buses rolling!

• Should I have concerns about the rack being in my way when working on the front of the vehicle.?

  The rack is designed to not interfere with the regular maintenance at the front of the vehicle. In fact, we have heard that in some cases it makes a great work table when performing regular maintenance. In more in depth repair situations the rack can be removed by simply removing two pivot bolts.

• How are the racks mounted and can my maintenance staff do the job?

  In almost all cases the rack interfaces directly with the bumper. No body panels need to be modified for installation. The stand-off mounting method is the most common and when it is an option, it is preferred, as it provides a secure base for the rack to mount to.

• How long does it take to get a rack?

  We build to order. What this means is that we do not typically stock large numbers of racks. Therefore, on most racks delivery can take on average from 2 to 3 weeks. However, in cases where there is a “bus down” or vehicle out of service waiting for a replacement rack we are usually able to respond quite quickly on these smaller quantity emergency orders. In most cases our customers keep one or two replacements on hand in anticipation of such events.

• What type of material is best for me?


  We currently offer our racks in two types of steel; stainless steel and powder coated mild steel. While the first racks to be shipped out our door were mild steel, we have seen a large shift toward stainless steel. Stainless steel offers superior corrosion resistance and keeps up its appearance considerably longer than powder coated mild steel. We offer our mild steel racks in black but have done other colors upon request. Please contact our sales department for more information on these and other finishes we offer.