A bike on the Gautrain

[kosmonooit]

Some trains in the UK have a special compartment for bikes. Also travelled in France. Ireland with my bike and used trains to get form region to region, or out of the city, and never a problem.

 

But no, don't bring a bike anywhere near the glorious Gautrain, who's rails have already gone wonky and who's feeder buses ply their trade empty most of the day.

[FondyMig]

This problem is not unique to the Gautrain. In the Netherlands, bicycles are allowed on certain designated train coaches only, and you have to buy a "dagkaart fiets" ticket for your bike which costs you 6 Euro. I don't suppose they ever considered this for the Gautrain, so they need to go back to the drawing board and come up with proper options. We need to keep the trains in good nick, and they need to support the idea of carrying bicycles on the trains.

[Tomik]

Try take a bike on the London Undergound. The Gautrain is the same idea - takes up too much space that people can use. A designated area might work but then dirt (from MTB's mostly) could become a problem.

 

They are unlikely to have a problem with a proper folding bike - these are actually allowed on London's Underground as they don't take up more space that a small suitcase. But I don't know many people who have these in SA.

[WesselvdWalt]

A friend of mine has one of those fold up bikes... and as far as I know he bikes to the stations and back.

[Ed-Zulu]

I was on the GT a week ago, there was a lady commuter with a folding bike in a bike-bag getting off at Sandton when i boarded for the airport

 

Interesting thing is that the bag did not cover the wheels completely and she wheeled the bike out the train and into the lift

[Evan Andreou]

Tern makes a nice folding bike

[kosmonooit]

Try take a bike on the London Undergound. The Gautrain is the same idea - takes up too much space that people can use. A designated area might work but then dirt (from MTB's mostly) could become a problem.

 

That is true, but the year I lived in London I managed to avoid The Tube by commuting by biike. And besides, they have Boris Bikes now.

[I FLY]

I looked into this a few months ago and the response I got was that the rules say bikes need to be in boxes

 

The wording in their rules says:-

"Bicycles permitted only in travel bags"

 

If you are concerned go onto their website and printout the list of rules and carry that with you.

[Cellar]

Sorry if this is a bit of a hijack, but does anyone travel from Rhodesfield to Marlboro in the mornings and back in the afternoons, and what times do you generally travel? Would be interested to know how busy the Gautrain is, as the biking option is starting to look better and better, given e-tolls and fuel prices.

7:30 ish To Sandton Daily. Its pretty packed . Also, much later than 7:45 ish you wont get parking @ Rhodesfield. The best option then is park @ Emperors and bus back to Rhodes field I wont leave my car on the street @ Rhodes field.

[Dahon SA]

Hi

 

We have the Dahon Folding Bike bag for sale, for the world's most popular folding bike.

Free postage to anywhere in SA.

https://www.bikehub.co.za/index.php?app=hubmarket&do=view_item&item_id=83043

 

Regards

[kosmonooit]

The wording in their rules says:-

"Bicycles permitted only in travel bags"

 

If you are concerned go onto their website and printout the list of rules and carry that with you.

 

Problem is those security guys are on a serious power trip. I came back from Asia with a bow (and in bow and arrow, aged indigenous tribal artefact, I collect those type of things) they wouldn't let me through the gates to the station because I had a "dangerous weapon" although the arrows were away in my luggage, meantime I had just travelled with it as hand luggage on the aircraft all the way from Manila

[Cellar]

Problem is those security guys are on a serious power trip. I came back from Asia with a bow (and in bow and arrow, aged indigenous tribal artefact, I collect those type of things) they wouldn't let me through the gates to the station because I had a "dangerous weapon" although the arrows were away in my luggage, meantime I had just travelled with it as hand luggage on the aircraft all the way from Manila

I don't get it. You refuse to follow the rules and keep bitching about it? I must go reread your remarks on the JHB is a 3rd world dump again. You can have a world class city with rules or you can have a generic African pile of crap.

Edited March 14, 2014 by Cellar

[Minion]

If anyone's thinking of taking their bike in a bag, I'm selling a cloth bag that would be useful the purpose:

https://www.bikehub.co.za/index.php?app=hubmarket&module=core&do=view_item&item_id=83055&new=1

 

I bought it with every good intention of Gautrain commuting and then got lazy, so it's unused.

[kosmonooit]

I don't get it. You refuse to follow the rules and keep bitching about it? I must go reread your remarks on the JHB is a 3rd world dump again. You can have a world class city with rules or you can have a generic African pile of crap.

 

It's an issue of how the rules are applied. How can an antique bow (with no arrows) be seen as a dangerous weapon?

[Cellar]

It's an issue of how the rules are applied. How can an antique bow (with no arrows) be seen as a dangerous weapon?

 

Bows can kill things. And the guard is just doing his job.

 

I'm not happy with people that look for any excuse to claim the rules don't apply to them, cause they're oh so special, but I'm even less happy with people that fight with the guard who is doing what he was told to do for probably just above minimum wage. You care and/or feel so strongly, go and find the man. Pick a fight with him. And when they tell you to abide by the rules, try that.

 

Look at it this way: they're lenient with you and your bow, the next thing you know, the gautrain looks like one of those regular metro rail daily transport deathtraps, and people like you can say "look, I told you so" when the gautrain closes down and we all suffer.

 

We're trying to build a better future, aren't we? Can't each of us just do the right thing when it comes down to it?

Edited March 14, 2014 by Cellar

[Cellar]

It's an issue of how the rules are applied.

 

I agree. The rules is the rules. If a set of rules allowed you to carry this item on some other form of transport, that's their rules. The gautrain rules apply their rules.

 

It's like that Oscar thread and the plakkies. The one train won't let you in the dining car with flip flops. That's the rules. Don't like em, starve, or abide by them. Seems simple to me, and the gautrain will let you on wearing plakkies. Go figure.