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When Ray Bengen learned that he was going to start work at the New York Times new Eighth Avenue office tower back in July as a software engineering consultant he thought, "Great. It's just up the street from where I live. I can ride my bike to work."
There was just one problem. While the Times and developer Forest City Ratner were promoting their new Renzo Piano-designed skyscraper as a "technologically advanced and environmentally sensitive" exemplar of green construction, a lack of bike parking and policies hostile towards cyclists were discouraging employees from commuting to work by the city's most environmentally-friendly mode of urban transport.
"I couldn't believe they built such a supposedly 'green' building without a bike room," Bengen said. "This isn't exactly the best neighborhood to leave a bike outside all day."
For a few weeks a friendly security guard allowed Bengen to bring his "cheap old Giant" bicycle into the building through a freight elevator. Then one day in September the guard said that he wasn't allowed to do that anymore.