# Office Law #112: No carrying bike up/down stairs



## asterisk (Oct 21, 2003)

I recently started a new job and I just asked the facilities guy about getting my bike down to the designated bike parking area in the basement. He said it must be wheeled in the side entrance, pushed some distance through office hallways to the elevator. Why? He cited an OSHA(?) regulation that bikes couldn't be carried up or down stairs. There's a rear entrance mere feet from the elevator but it has a couple of stairs leading up to it. 

Just curious if this is the case at anyone else's work place. I'm not complaining too loudly, at least they have indoor bike parking.


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## superjohnny (May 16, 2006)

I used to work on the 4th floor of my building and carried my bike up & down each day. Never heard a word about it. I got some strange looks, but I'm against taking the elevator unless it's absolutely necessary.


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## Becky (Jun 15, 2004)

A quick search of osha.gov didn't yield anything. I can't think of any circumstance where carrying the bike up/down stairs would violate OSHA regs. Parking it there would be another story....

Call yer regional OSHA office and see what they have to say.....


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## PdxMark (Feb 3, 2004)

*I was told insurance company forbade bikes down stairs*

I worked in a new highrise office building that had very nice bike facilities. The building was designed with a door that cyclists would come in and carry their bikes downstairs to the facilities. In practice, that door was always locked. The building manager said that it was the building insurance company that said that cyclists could not carry bikes down stairs for fear of a bad slip & fall. As an exit door, the option remained to go up the stairs and out the door, but to come in we had to use another route - riding down a parking garage ramp. As it turned out, I once took a spill on my bike going down that ramp because it was steep, wet/icey, and had a sharp turn at the bottom.


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## wooglin (Feb 22, 2002)

I would assume the facilities guy is talking out his wazoo, and that this is one of those stupid rules that someone (maybe him) made up for some unknowable, arbitrary reason. Get a trials bike and ride up and down the steps. See what he has to say about that.


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## asterisk (Oct 21, 2003)

It could have been insurance, he wasn't real clear when I asked but didn't seem like the type to make up rules for the hell of it. There are also stairwells at every entrance and the elevator is a super slow freight variety so it'd be exponentially quicker to just go up and down the stairs. 

As much as I'd like to tell him what I really think of the rule I'd like to keep the job longer than a couple weeks. The trials bike is a good idea though.


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## 10ae1203 (Jan 14, 2007)

That does sound made up. I have taken the 10 hour OSHA class twice (I'm just lucky, that's why), and know where to look for things.

Like <a href = "http://www.osha.gov/Publications/osha3124.pdf"> OSHA Publication 3124</a>


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## JohnnyTooBad (Apr 5, 2004)

My facilities manager told me the landlord said no bikes were allowed in the building.

I think that was listed under arbitraryrulenumber 628. What BS! As if she actually asked the landlord!


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## 10ae1203 (Jan 14, 2007)

All you people with faciliy managers should develop a bit of a relationship with him or her. 

I am a construction superintendent, and the facility mgr can either be a friend or foe. You'd be suprised how far a kind word and some breakfast now and then will go. Right now in the building I just finished working in, I have my own key to the innards of the building, I know where to find <i>all</i> the keys, and I have a parking space in the garage for storage.

Just sayin'.


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## JohnnyTooBad (Apr 5, 2004)

10ae1203 said:


> All you people with faciliy managers should develop a bit of a relationship with him or her.
> 
> I am a construction superintendent, and the facility mgr can either be a friend or foe. You'd be suprised how far a kind word and some breakfast now and then will go. Right now in the building I just finished working in, I have my own key to the innards of the building, I know where to find <i>all</i> the keys, and I have a parking space in the garage for storage.
> 
> Just sayin'.


I tried. believe me. We just acquired, built out and moved into this building (dang nice building, BTW) a little over a year ago. I sent lots of nice emails and voice mails, and was given a nasty attitude and answers of NO at every turn. The one, unfortunate, thing I've found about big corporations, is that parts of them can be very bike unfriendly. The other facility I was in, which is about 5 miles from here, was very friendly. But they had a fitness center manager that I dealt with, and already had bike lockers in the garage. I asked the FM here if they could get some bike lockers or move one or two from the other building (which has 10, and are never half full, if you don't count that the exterior maintenance guy keeps a trash can in one) moved here. She simply responded NO. yeah... thanks for that.


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## mf9point8 (Jul 17, 2006)

It's easier to beg for forgiveness than to ask permission...
Just shut your mouth and walk your bike up and down the stairs... what is the guy seriously going to do?


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## Scot_Gore (Jan 25, 2002)

I was told exactly the opposite. No bikes on the elevator, carry them up and down the stairs.


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## Fixed (May 12, 2005)

*Ada*

Tell them you have a disability (e.g., you don't want to die of clogged arteries), which is only treated by riding your bike to work. Tell them that you are requiring an accommodation of your disability by being allowed to bring your bike into the office, because if you leave it out, it will get stolen or vandalized. They'll then have to talk to personnel or the lawyers, who will advise that it may be b.s., but to avoid a lawsuit they should accommodate your claimed disability.

Any additional reasons you can identify for your being in a protected class by law would be great, such as religious beliefs, ethnic beliefs, national origin ("I'm Italian, and everyone in Italy rides to work"), "physical orientation" (that will get them thinking), mental health, political beliefs (saving the environment), complaining about a condition of employment ("whistleblower" protection)... you get the picture. 

They can't discriminate against you on the basis of your protected class. Even if your claim is colorable, they'll probably decide it isn't worth the risk of fighting it.


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## BenR (Dec 14, 2001)

mf9point8 said:


> It's easier to beg for forgiveness than to ask permission...
> Just shut your mouth and walk your bike up and down the stairs... what is the guy seriously going to do?


That's my take on it too. While 10ae1203 has a point about networking and "greasing the skids" in your professional life, this is a little different. Brown nosing should not be required to be allowed to "break" a rule of questionable origin that shouldn't exist in the first place. It'll only get worse if people are pushovers when confronted with stupid sh!t like this. It'll get worse anyway, but maybe not quite as fast. In the meantime, make sure the rest of your behavior is squeaky clean - work hard, always on time, not leaving muddy tire trails behind you or stinking up cubicle, etc.


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## TheDogMan (Sep 29, 2004)

mf9point8 said:


> It's easier to beg for forgiveness than to ask permission...
> Just shut your mouth and walk your bike up and down the stairs... what is the guy seriously going to do?


+ 10...

... and get yourself the biggest U-Lock you can find, and if the guy gives you any more lip, show him one of the more creative uses of said U-lock :thumbsup:


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## tarwheel2 (Jul 7, 2005)

Sometimes it's best not to ask questions. When you ask for permission to do something, somebody always seems to come along with objections. If somebody complains or takes up the issue with you, then deal with it. Otherwise just plead ignorance.


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## asterisk (Oct 21, 2003)

mf9point8 said:


> It's easier to beg for forgiveness than to ask permission...
> Just shut your mouth and walk your bike up and down the stairs... what is the guy seriously going to do?


Usually I would agree but the dude is like 6'8", I don't think I could take him. Also I kinda enjoy the job.

It's not a huge problem, just the trek through the offices with my bike which may be miserable if it's been raining. Just dashing in the back and down the stairs would take much less time.


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## _velodoc_ (Dec 26, 2007)

You should ride it down the stairs! That'll show em'


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## asterisk (Oct 21, 2003)

Contrary to what you may have seen on youtube, track bikes do not like stairs... road bikes either for that matter.


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## Henry Chinaski (Feb 3, 2004)

How about the freight elevator?


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## Hippienflipflops (Aug 21, 2007)

JFD! Just F-ing do it. Give me a break. Lets use a little more energy by taking the elevator? Stupid


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## Zero Signal (Feb 8, 2008)

Tell that to the fatties who use the elevator to move only one floor. I work on the 6th floor but still use the elevator since the loaded bike weighs way too much to carry up the stairs without struggling with it. If I was only a floor or two up, I'd probably deal with it and carry it, who's going to stop you.


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## averen (Jan 1, 2008)

asterisk said:


> Contrary to what you may have seen on youtube, track bikes do not like stairs... road bikes either for that matter.


Sounds like someone needs a cyclocross bike  

My bike is out in the parking garage at the moment...I don't even have the option of bring it inside. However it's still covered and protected from the elements...plus it's about 50 feet from the smoking area so it's always under the eye of someone...and our office building is small enough that probably 80% in the building know who's bikes are out there and who's aren't...so I feel very safe leaving it there. However having it indoors would be nice...nicer still if it were right here beside me!

Jared


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## Slim Again Soon (Oct 25, 2005)

*Outlaw in my building*

I found out, in an exchange with an agitated building person, that you cannot take a bicycle into our building.

Forget the elevators. Forget the stairs. Keep the dang thing outside.

He told me that they didn't want the bicycle nuts to be lugging their steeds down the stairs during fire alarms.


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## Keeping up with Junior (Feb 27, 2003)

*Talked to an OSHA guy*



asterisk said:


> ...He cited an OSHA(?) regulation that bikes couldn't be carried up or down stairs...


Just tell him you talked to an OSHA attorney and he said the rule is typically misinterpreted. The rule states employees should not carry items more than 25 pounds down more than three stairs. Basically you are calling his bluff as he cant produce a written OSHA rule (of course neither can you). The nice thing here is you let him save face as you did not say he was wrong, you just refined the rule he made up.

Also talk to him about how you need to work with him so you dont get grease or dirt on his building that he would have to clean up. Using the nice guy/team approach will get you further than whining to management. 

Most leases I have seen typically have a rule against bicycles in the building. Just boilerplate language that is used all the time.


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## filtersweep (Feb 4, 2004)

the real issue with stairs is that too many cyclists swing the wheel around, and leave black wheel marks on the walls. I lived in an apt building that had marks everywhere from tires.

Of course, they will always give you some made-up reason.... but at least they allow bikes. I would RIDE my bike through the halls if they didn't let me use the stairs, and you had some distance. If they give you crap about insurance, point to the helmet on your head. 

Another ploy, is to pretend you cannot understand English and do whatever the hell you want.


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## wayneanneli (Jul 8, 2004)

When I worked in banking in downtown Montreal, I simple asked my bank manager if I could leave my bicycle in the men's bathroom. She said ok and that was it. Even the security guard thought it was a good idea.


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## bas (Jul 30, 2004)

Keeping up with Junior said:


> Just tell him you talked to an OSHA attorney and he said the rule is typically misinterpreted. The rule states employees should not carry items more than 25 pounds down more than three stairs. Basically you are calling his bluff as he cant produce a written OSHA rule (of course neither can you). The nice thing here is you let him save face as you did not say he was wrong, you just refined the rule he made up.
> 
> Also talk to him about how you need to work with him so you dont get grease or dirt on his building that he would have to clean up. Using the nice guy/team approach will get you further than whining to management.
> 
> Most leases I have seen typically have a rule against bicycles in the building. Just boilerplate language that is used all the time.


Umm, I think that osha rule would be for employees on the clock, during work.

Carrying your bike up and down would be something off the clock.

Anyways - who's bike is over 25 lbs? lol.. they make them 15 lbs these days


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## MikeBiker (Mar 9, 2003)

bas said:


> Umm, I think that osha rule would be for employees on the clock, during work.
> 
> Carrying your bike up and down would be something off the clock.
> 
> Anyways - who's bike is over 25 lbs? lol.. they make them 15 lbs these days


My commuter bike is close to 40 pounds. Not everyone rides their high-end racing bike to work.


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