Bikestation

Everyone spends their money on different things. I save tons of money by not owning a car. It's great! I've decided that paying for someone else to do the greasy mechanical work on my bike in a fraction of the time it would take me is totally worth it. Additionally, I'm supporting a local business!

The expertise and hard work of the technicians here (namely, Peter), is obvious. I paid $20 for them to install my new tires, which I had purchased online.

I will continue to use this place for work and helpful advice!

First Review:

Strictly a review of the bike mechanic service for a bike I own. I didn't rent a thing.

Air had been leaking really slowly for weeks out of my bike... and I felt it was time to put in a new tube. I had gone in just for air, but wanted to see how much it was to have them do it, as I find it's a pain. Everybody pays for some services, right? $17 including the tube..... awesome.

The guy (Peter) could not have been more helpful. He really examined the tire for the cause of the problem, and found a tiny! piece of wire stuck in the tire (so tiny), and it was likely there for a while, and I probably wouldn't have found it! Impressed.

He then went on analyzing the bike, and explained that I needed new tires and brake pads. I knew he was right, and wasn't trying to sell me on any service. He was so thorough! He recommended specific parts, which I ordered today online. Really pleased.

Pretty convenient bike shop. I got a tune up here almost a year ago and was pleased with the service.

Only thing was that they didn't have the tires. I called back a few times and still no tires. So I finally get around to calling back and the guy actually remembers me and puts a new back tire on the next day. Still have to come back for the front one tho. Plus he was nice enough about it being almost a year later.

Best bike service in DC. As honest as they get and outstanding work. Keep an eye on the ratings. Staff changes could alter my view and because it's not convenient to my home, I don't get here much.

Being new to DC, I'm not sure which local bike shop the cool kids use. I don't have a fancy bike and I didn't need anything complicated - just a basic tune-up for my commuter bike since it's been hibernating in the shed all winter. I called all the usual places in the District, and Bikestation was not only the best price ($60), but also had the quickest turnaround (next day). (Several others were over $100, with a two-week wait!)

The staff were very helpful and friendly, and John (?) did a great job on my bike. I am even thinking of going back this weekend to buy one of their used rental bikes for my wife. Overall it was a great experience - would definitely use them again.

As good as it gets. Something this convenient, thorough and professional should cost a lot more. Peter at Bikestation hooked up my commuter bike-- immediately diagnosing not only the problem, but the most cost effective way to address it. Explained the issues without the air of a-hole you sometimes encounter in high-end shops. Expert repair job, and great customer service. And steps from Union Station!
Best repair shop in the city. Definitely going back.

I can't say enough good things about the bikestation. It's cheap. It's safe. It's convenient. It's reliable. All this place needs is a shower and it would be perfect.

This is what the future looks like. This is the America we dreamed of.

Sorry to make this request through YELP. This is for the office in Long Beach, but I'm a DC member. I'm at a loss for how to get in touch with someone. I've been emailing since Dec 13 and haven't received a response. I finally got someone on the phone about a month ago, because I need a new fob after mine fell out of my backpack and was destroyed. When I spoke with someone she said the fob would be sent in the next couple days, but I haven't received it. I just tried calling again, and I get a message that the wireless customer I'm trying to reach isn't available. At this point I've been without a fob for a couple months, which basically renders my membership useless so I'd like an update on when a new one will be sent, and if I will receive a partial refund of my membership for this year. Please check your email that's on your site for messages from me. I am a DC member. Thank you.

The bikestation is not safe and its staff are nasty and pompous.

I paid for a membership to the bikestation thinking it was very convenient for me, living a mile from union station. Having had my bike minorly vandalized a handful of times on the public bike racks outside union station, I thought bikestation would be a fantastic way to affordably keep my bike safe. I was wrong.

One day in 2010 I had parked my bike in the bikestation for maybe the fifth time ever, and I arrived at about 8:30am and picked up my bike at about 6pm, times within the staffed, monitored hours of the bikestation. When I picked up my bike, it had been vandalized. I started to ride it and found that the handlebars had been loosened to the point that I almost hit a car (I had been a victim of two car/bike accidents twice in 2010 already!). It was to the point that there is no way that the bolts that held the handlebars in place could have possibly been loosened in just 8 or 9 hours by normal ware and tear. The handlebars were sliding in and out with extra space to spare.

I walked my bike back to the bikestation and demanded an explanation. The manager on duty tried to tell me that the bolts come loose by themselves. I was so mad that someone would think I was stupid enough to believe such a story! I did not have tools with me so they did fix it for me, but when I called the corporate bikestation office in California to complain, they acted like they were taking it seriously but never followed through. The person I talked to there asked me for the date and time and I told him, and he said they were going to watch the surveillance tapes. I called them three times to ask what the outcome was, and they wouldn't respond. I assume that this means that they simply watched the tapes, realized that one of their employees did vandalize my bike (for no reason at all!) and then refused to admit it for fear of a law suit. I don't know, but I never heard back and I highly recommend that the bikestation be boycotted.

I realized after this incident that it was actually safe and more convenient to just park my bike in the public area, because even with the normal vandalism that goes on, it is still safer to me to park the bike outside where there is a lot of foot traffic and cops rather than inside the bikestation where someone can unscrew the bolts in my bike and cause me to have an accident again.

I never experienced vandalism again in the public bike rack area and so I highly recommend that you save your dollar and just park yours in the area in front of the station as well.

Revised review with 2 stars. The last 2 years of my 3 yr membership haven't been happy ones.

It's true that parking your bike at the Bikestation prevents it from being exposed to the elements but now with more and more people using the facility, your bike will be prone to have parts missing, get tangled with other bikes that will thereby compromise your gears and get banged and battered each day you park there.

To be fair, the mechanics are wonderful and very helpful. However, many of the staff have no regard for the members. They block the entrance to the doors, they block the sidewalk in front of the Bikestation and they are neither friendly nor courteous when interacting with us.

Much of their bad attitude I've chalked up to them just doing their job and being under pressure to rent bikes. However, since members have been a good revenue stream for the DC Bikestation since it opened, I would like to think we deserve a bit of kindness and consideration.

What we do not deserve is being reprimanded and yelled at first thing in the morning for riding our bikes on the side walk in front of the Bikestation. Here are the details of my run-in this morning that has prompted my revised review....

Peter was the manager on duty this morning. I'm told the rude employee I encountered this morning is named is Dominic. Obviously having a bad morning and very little employee training, Dominic decided it would be appropriate to yell at me as I approached the entrance of the Bikestation screaming, "this is a sidewalk, not a bike trail." This was in reaction to me telling his fellow co-work to "watch out, I'm on your left" when it appeared he was about to back up into me. Once inside, as I was locking up my bike, Dominic approached me continued with his "reprimand" me his condescending tones that he was calling a "friendly reminder" to slow down.

To be clear, I was not going fast. Even if I wanted to speed up to the front entrance, there were too many pedestrians around to do more than peddle, ever so gingerly to the front door of the Bikestation.

After bantering back and forth with Dominic, he finally shared that yesterday a woman raced up to the door, yelled at him to get out the way and apparently almost knocked him down. That was YESTERDAY. That was ANOTHER woman. I have no desire to be a part of his misplaced animosity towards something that happened yesterday and that did not involve me. As a side note, I asked the other staff member if he was offended that I asked him to "watch out" and he informed me that he was not. I'm not even sure why Dominic had anything at all to say to me at all and I certainly did not deserve to be spoken to in such an inappropriate manner. This incident coupled with my bike being vandalized and the bad attitude of numerous staff at the Bikestation has prompted me to revise my review down to two stars. They are getting two stars instead of one only because the mechanics are the the nicest, most helpful group of folks at the Bikestation.

If you can avoid it, save your money and park outside.

I have been here twice. The first time, they tried to rip me off. The second time, they were away for lunch during business hours. Lame.