This week the MTA in New York approved something advocates of bicycling in Connecticut have been demanding for years: bike hooks on Metro-North commuter trains on the New Haven Line.
It's just a test, with only two hooks to be installed on each of fifty cars, but enthusiasts have been pursuing the trial for years.
"We're really excited about this," said Matthew Feiner, owner of Devil's Gear Bike Shop in New Haven. "To be able to put a bicycle on Metro-North and be able to travel in and out of New York City with a bicycle so you can be a better, more effective commuter is huge."
The bikes are not to be used during peak-fare times, during rush hours, for fear of crowding passengers.
"We wish they'd work around that," said Feiner, "because that is when the commuter goes. People will work around that and I know in the future Metro-North will back off that.
He is confident the test will be a success and that the Connecticut Department of Transportation will approve and pay for more hooks for more cars.
Shore Line East allows bicycles on board its trains between New London and New Haven, but to put a bike on an Amtrak train requires removing the pedals, turning the handlebars, packing the bike into a box and checking it for $10.
