ISO Bike to/from DCA

[Henry]

Curious about using the dockless option on CaBi ebikes at the airport. Were you dinged the $25 fee for parking the bike in a exclusion zone?

[komorebi]

I've biked to DCA for personal travel at least 4 times, all pre-CaBi station installation. I used my beater bike, because a friend had a bike stolen there and the racks aren't covered. For weekend trips, I carried everything in a backpack. For longer trips (4-5 days), I strapped a small duffel to my back rack:



Most of my riding to or from the airport has been in the dark, either because of an early departure or late return. I agree with wheels&wings that the entry and exit feel spooky. It would help if the lighting in the tunnel were better.

[secstate]

Curious about using the dockless option on CaBi ebikes at the airport. Were you dinged the $25 fee for parking the bike in a exclusion zone?

I don't think so and I hadn't realized DCA was an exclusion zone. The bike's battery died toward the end of the trip, though, so it's possible that CaBi was forgiving about the docking location.

[smb9600]

I’ve biked multiple times to the airport, both on a beater bike and just recently via a CaBi E-bike. I wasn’t charged an extra fee- I had no idea it was an exclusion area since there was a CaBi station there. I have an “overnight” bag that straps to my bike rack, which can fit 5-7 days of clothing (it fit awkwardly on both the CaBi basket & bucket).

The trickiest part for me is navigating the helmet- I don’t want to leave it strapped to my bike & it’s awkward to bring with me. I once made the mistake of putting it in my roller carry-on, which got gate-checked & then picked up with the regular luggage & in the mean time was tossed around like pizza dough. Never again!


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[Henry]

... just recently via a CaBi E-bike. I wasn’t charged an extra fee- I had no idea it was an exclusion area since there was a CaBi station there.

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Just to be clear, the exclusion zone fee would theoretically only apply to ebikes locked outside the station. Glad to hear it's not been charged (at least that I've heard).

Henry

[sarahybillington]

Late entry, but I biked at least twice a week to & from DCA for a 6 month period when I had a small construction project there. Sometimes it was on my way into work to DC and sometimes it was to & from my office in DC. For those short trips, I usually used my beater single speed I kept at the office for short rides across the mall. I usually locked it to the bike racks that used to be on either end of the terminal on the lower level by baggage claim as this was more convenient. I think they probably got rid of these. For overnight work or day flights to NY, I would usually park the bike at the racks by the metro station entry as these have video surveillance on them. I never parked any of my bikes at the bike boneyard shown in others’ photos. There are also a couple of obscure bike racks near the pet relief areas if you can find them.

[sarahybillington]

Late entry, but I biked at least twice a week to & from DCA for a 6 month period when I had a small construction project there. Sometimes it was on my way into work to DC and sometimes it was to & from my office in DC. For those short trips, I usually used my beater single speed I kept at the office for short rides across the mall. I usually locked it to the bike racks that used to be on either end of the terminal on the lower level by baggage claim as this was more convenient. I think they probably got rid of these. For overnight work or day flights to NY, I would usually park the bike at the racks by the metro station entry as these have video surveillance on them. I never parked any of my bikes at the bike boneyard shown in others’ photos. There are also a couple of obscure bike racks near the pet relief areas if you can find them.

For luggage, I use either TwoWheelGear suit bag or their duffel. Both attach to rear rack like panniers.