Fencing
A valet needs an enclosure. Anything more than 200 bike capacity should have 2m+ high metal fencing. Chain link or temporary construction fencing make excellent barriers. For any fence height under 5' or 150cm, bikes should be parked away from the fence to lower the risk of people handing bikes or other objects over the fence.
Temporary plastic fencing, such as snow fencing, is a cheaper but less secure option. If you have a surplus of racks, they can also be used as fencing in combination with tarps, banners, or rollable plastic fencing, though this is not ideal.
Large event valet service should work with hosts to provide fencing for the valet enclosure, as they generally will rent fencing for the event. Some valet providers supply their own metal fencing, although this requires vehicles and abundant storage space.
The Enclosure
The first step to setting up an enclosure is selecting the one and only entrance. The entrance should be marked with a tent – think of it as the office – which should house a table, chairs, tags, bins, computer or tablet. The entrance is also where you will want to plan your parking layout from, to minimize the amount of walking (particularly for large events).
Enclosures should be fully surrounded by fencing or some other barrier that is sufficiently dense and tall as to prevent access from all but the tented area used for bike check-in and pick-up. In the below image, the service is housed within temporary event fencing for all four sides. Valet services can also be set up using existing fences or even along the back of a wall of tents to reduce fencing needs. The essential part is that bike valet staff can secure the entrance and prevent unauthorized entry. The entrance to the valet is guarded by valet staff.
Considerations— The Seven Esses
1) Size- Is your enclosure large enough for the number of bikes you want to accommodate, as well as circulation space for staff handling them?
2) System- has your setup allowed for a usable and easily understood system of organization?
3) Slope- racks and e-bikes should be placed along the contour (perpendicular to the direction of the slope) in a way that prevents them from tipping over. Too much slope can result in dangerous e-bike domino collapses, racks falling over, or bikes sliding to one end of a rack (in the case of improper rack placement).
4) Sightlines- Even in the case of enclosures with 2.5m (8ft) fencing, tents should be placed so that you can see as much of the enclosure as is possible. This is to prevent theft, but also so each valet staff can see each other and help each other out.
5) Shade- In summer, e-bikes should be parked in the shade if possible, as e-bike batteries can degrade when exposed to hot temperatures.
6) Spacing- Racks and e-bike rows should be placed with a 1.3m (4’) minimum pathways so that staff can safely maneuver bikes between them. Triathlon rack rows should be placed 3m (10’) apart to facilitate this. The wider set, the easier it is to circulate, but keep in mind that the wider the row the more walking staff will have to do.
7) Speed- How fast can you get from the tent to every part of the enclosure? A more centrally located tent will speed up parking and retrieval times.
Enclosure size
Bikes come in all shapes and sizes, so it's important to leave enough room to park the wide variety of vehicles you might encounter. Generally, a minimum of 1.5sqm (16sqft) per oversize bike and 2sqm (22 sqft) per regular bike, is adequate. Regular bikes parked on triathlon racks require access from both sides of the rack.