In a first-of-its-kind project, BikeRackMap.com member cyclists mapped and evaluated bike parking at 1,665 locations across the Las Vegas valley, including locations provided by major corporations and organizations. This is the second article in a series that will show how unusable bike parking repels cyclists and excellent or outstanding bike parking can attract cyclists.
Albertsons Companies’ Recipe for Change: We are committed to running a business that makes a positive difference in our communities and planet, and Albertsons Companies is committed to helping people across the country live better lives by making a meaningful difference, neighborhood by neighborhood.
Cyclists reveal the reality
In a matter of seconds, cyclists took a photo and clicked a few checkboxes to map and evaluate Albertsons bike parking at 22 of their 32 Las Vegas Valley locations. After adding a pin to the map, they clicked a link under the rack photo to rate and review the locations. 81% of the racks were rated zero out of five stars, "unusable," and 19% were rated one star, "the bare minimum."
Some look more like medieval torture racks than bike racks, and all them are prohibited by the Association of Pedestrian and Bike Professionals (APBP) and by Clark County's bike parking design and placement guidelines. Adding insult to injury, many of the racks are located far away from the entrance with difficult access and obstructed placement. Cyclists rated 64% of Albertsons racks as obstructed with difficult access. The 22 racks, shown below, repel cyclists. They do not make a positive difference in our communities. Rather, they force shoppers to use expensive and polluting vehicles instead of clean transportation that improves our communities, planet, and shoppers mental and physical well-being,
The good news is that our analysis also reveals many opportunities for improvement like our projects with Sprouts Farmers Market. However, Albertsons has to want to achieve their stated goals by attracting rather than repelling cyclists.
Corporate resistance
We first spoke with Sharon, the excellent Store Director at Albertsons Ann & Drexel location, in August of 2025, about her zero-star rated rack. Sharon was very receptive and walked with us as we explained why it was rated zero stars. She sent our request to speak with corporate management to explain how they could attract cyclists by improving their bike parking. Several months passed without any reply. Instead, they ordered replacement racks for this location and the results were predictable.
They ordered cheap and inappropriate racks made in China, incorrectly installed in the same low visibility space as the previous rack, directly against the wall as was the previous rack, and with four standard bolts that could be quickly removed with a crescent wrench as demonstrated by one of our cyclists in California. We met with Sharon and explained the many problems. She took photos and once again emailed them to corporate management and copied us on the email. Instead of speaking with us, they had the installers move the racks a few inches from the wall which did not solve the fact that they are the wrong racks installed in wrong space, painted black so they are effectively invisible from the parking lot, among several other problems.
Supermarkets like Albertsons are experts at planning and designing every inch of the shopping experience: from vehicle parking, building design, colors and graphics, to every inch of the interior store designed to maximize store profitability. That is their expertise. Bike parking is not their expertise. Rather, to cyclists, bike parking appears slapped on as a check box to complete, using the cheapest possible option, often located far away from the entrance with difficult access and obstructed placement.
Bike parking design and placement is as important to attracting cyclists as supermarket design and placement is to attracting and retaining other shoppers.
After many months visiting and discussing this with Sharon, we are finally in discussion with Albertsons corporate management. We hope they work with us to design and install bike parking that respects and attracts cyclists with the same level of thought and care as their other customers. It’s good business, good for their profitability and creates community goodwill.
Let us know your thoughts and comments below, and share this post with everyone who cares about bike parking.
Great article! I agree it’s impressive the thought and energy that goes into the inside of a grocery store and the disappointing effort or lack there of for adequate bike parking. Thank you for highlighting this so clearly!
Wow, quite a contrast between the 2 stores. Did you show them photos from Sprouts? The installation close to the wall is particularly frustrating and common. They could not even get it right the second time! Also, location near the door is important. Thanks for all your good work.
Thanks Bruce!
We did show them our Sprouts articles and photos.
My immediate reaction was “WTF is that!?!?” However, upon reflection it seems clearer than ever that there must be a legal definition and firm design guidelines as to what actually constitutes a functional bike rack. Without that, a property owner could plant a randomly arrayed set of metal pitchforks with rings hanging off of them in some concrete and proclaim themselves champions of green transit and healthy communities.
The problem with bike parking design and placement ordinances is they only apply to new development. All of the 1,665 racks our member cyclists have currently evaluated across the Las Vegas Valley are already installed, so ordinances do not apply.
Our mission is to create connected networks of 4 and 5-star rated bike parking to attract cyclists. That means we have to improve existing bike parking as a requirement for viable active transportation and bicycle commuting.
Great work! Make the decision makers get on a bike themselves and experience the pain of poorly designed and implemented bike parking. I will go out of my way to praise businesses that get it right.
Thank you for revealing the lack of attention Albertsons has shown regarding bike parking. Jeez. Cyclists like you are willing to show which rack design/placement works and which don’t. Albertsons should listen to its shoppers who ride bikes and want to park them safely at the store.
Companies that want to support sustainability through excellent bike parking should work with the experts at BikeRackMap.com to ensure that the projects they want to install follow best practices. Failure to do so as in the case of Albertsons is greenwashing. Its likely unintentional and we applaud their interest but we want to see them work with the right people to do it right. – Ky Plaskon, Nevada Bicycle Coalition President.