Bicyclists can make quick stop at Buena Vista Park for repairs

Bikers can borrow tools and make fixes to get back on the road

SAN JOSE — A small park sandwiched between two major San Jose thoroughfares can serve as a pit stop of sorts for bicyclists since several cycle-friendly features were recently installed there.

Riders whose bikes break down on the road can now pull over at Buena Vista Park, between West San Carlos Street and Parkmoor Avenue, and borrow tools to adjust gears or fix a flat at a bike repair stand.

The stand is one of several upgrades completed earlier this month, along with a Free Little Library box for lending or borrowing books, a new drinking fountain and exercise equipment. Also added was a “sharrow”—a shared-lane marking similar to a dedicated bike lane“—on Scott Street.

Many of the new features resulted from a joint effort by neighbors and city parks staff to complete the bike commuting experience, said District 6 Councilwoman Dev Davis. For example, the new fountain is designed to easily fill water bottles, which Davis said will become more common in city parks as older fountains are replaced.

“It’s a standard thing now because people are carrying their own water bottles,” Davis said. “There are community members that really enjoy cycling and the parks staff knew the sharrows were going to go in, so they thought (the fountain) was a good idea.”

Buena Vista Neighborhood Association President James Rincon called the changes significant for bikers because of their proximity to the sharrow.

“This will be a resource for cyclists as well as one less impediment for people using bikes to commute,” Rincon said in an email.

Bike repair stands are common at Stanford and usually have some tools such as an air pump and wrench tethered to them, according to Davis. The Dero brand repair station at Buena Vista has everything necessary to change a flat or adjust brakes, and also a hanger arm so pedals and wheels can spin freely while making adjustments. Davis hopes the repair stands will become a standard park amenity in San Jose.

“The one at this park is actually a pilot project,” she said. “It could become more common if this is a successful project and it works out and people use it.”