Helping and Facilitating the "Invisible Cyclist"

While it has been frustrating for me to sit on the professional sidelines of bicycle and pedestrian planning, my recent job foray as a professional driver has given me the ability to see and observe a great deal of the real-world transportation environment of northeastern New Jersey.  Recently I had to get the vehicle washed that I was driving at the Super Car Wash of Elizabeth on Rt 1 & 9 just south of the Bayway Circle.  Super Car Wash employes an army of men to do the detail work of sweeping the inside of the car and drying it off everywhere when it comes out of the mechanized washed.  Nearly all of these hardworking men are from Spanish speaking America.

Well, to my surprise Super Car Wash provided a bike rack for its employees and from the look of the rack in the photos, it would seem that a large number of its employees get there by bike.  While the rack is of the less than idea "wheel bender" variety, it seems to work rather well here as the employees can keep an eye on their wheels. 

Hats off to Super Car Wash for providing bike parking for its employees.  While maybe not quite a "Bicycle Friendly Business" in the eyes of the League of American Bicyclists, Super Car Wash provides a good basic model for other businesses who have a employees that rely on a bike to get to work.  Is providing bike parking really all that hard, particularly when so many of an employer's workers use a bike to get to the job?