Secure motorcycle parking near Balham? Post Reply

[SouthLondonDaddy]

We are considering moving to Balham by next year.
Quick question: is there any kind of (semi)secure motorcycle parking in the area?

Some councils offer motorcycle bays with anchors to tie bikes to, but I haven't seen those around Balham. Did I miss them or is there no such thing in the area?

Is there maybe a car park that would take motorcycles?
Some kind of locked car park would be better; portable angle grinders are cheap, easy to get hold of, and can cut through any chain if you leave your bike on the road.

I know the council rents garage spaces, but I understand the waiting list can be very long.

Thanks!

[SouthLondonDaddy]

No one?

[Annabel (admin)]

Hi
I may be able to help! There are some secure bike bays on Bellevue Road but I'm not sure if they are the sort of thing you're looking for!

Outside Prestige...

[JonIrwinLD]

Hi there,

Generally Wandsworth Council are pretty relaxed about putting motorcycle parking on streets for residents.

I know of one situation where a resident requested it, and it went through pretty quickly. Not the same speedy response if you ask about cycle parking or pedestrian crossings unfortunately.

ATB,
Jon

[SouthLondonDaddy]

Thank you, but I suppose I was unclear.

Annabelle, there is a motorcycle bay between Bellevue and Wiseton road, but that is simply a bay, and bays are never secure. I was thinking more of indoor parking, parking spaces secured by some kind of gates, basically any kind of service – facility where the motorcycle would not be on the open road. I appreciate these services won’t be free, of course. I’d be willing to pay to store my motorcycle securely, reduce the risk of theft, and lower my insurance premium.

By the way, some motorcycle bays in Chelsea and in Westminster have ground anchors, so people can tie a chain to the anchor and to the motorbike, preventing gentlemen from lifting the whole bike, loading it into a van, and worrying about the chain later. However, even that is of limited use against things like portable battery-operated angel grinders, which are not too expensive nor hard to find. These tools can cut through any chain – it’s just a matter of time.

Jon, when you talk about motorcycle parking, do you mean just a bay to park a motorcycle? That would be useful, but less so than in other councils, since Wandsorth allows motorcycles to park in car bays, including those for residents. Plus it doesn’t address the security point.

http://www.wandsworth.gov.uk/info/20045 ... ndsworth/6
“Motorcycles can park in any permit holder or shared use (permit holder and pay and display) bay without displaying a permit or pay and display ticket.”

[this_is_cat]

There are lots of dedicated motorbike bays which either have ground anchors, or have railings around them for a security lock to attach to, in addition to the motorbike bays which are just a painted bay.

I found this list on the council's website, but I don't know how up to date it is
http://www.wandsworth.gov.uk/info/20045 ... g_zones/18

Quite a few people on my road keep their motorbikes and mopeds in their front garden also, either attached to a secure post, or in a metal shed

[SouthLondonDaddy]

Do you need planning permission for bike/motorbike sheds in a front garden in Wandsworth? Some councils (maybe Brighton) forced people to get rid of storage sheds for pushbikes because they required planning permission!

[this_is_cat]

I'm not aware of anyone needing planning permission or being sanctioned by the council for having sheds

The Trimetal sheds are pretty ubiquitous