Bicycle parking facilities are sometimes classified into Class 1 and Class 2 facilities; Class One being lockers or enclosed areas and Class Two being unprotected stands or racks. The Santa Cruz bicycle parking ordinance, for example, uses this system .

Nowadays, however, most communities divide parking facilities into those that provide acceptable long-term or short-term parking. Short-term bicycle parking is usually defined as being two hours or less, such as might be necessary outside a store, or for visitors to an office building or Government service center. Both Portland and Denver recommend racks be within 50 feet of the main entrance to the building, or entrances that are frequently used by cyclists. The Palo Alto bicycle parking ordinance actually requires the furthest bicycle parking rack to be no further away from an office entrance than the nearest car parking space! Other critical factors for short-term parking are that it be:

• well distributed.  i.e. it’s likely better to have four or five racks spread out along one city block rather than a group of four or five racks mid-block
• visible to the cyclist
• in areas of high pedestrian activity, to discourage would-be thieves

In downtown Iowa City, bikes can be locked to parking meters that have been adapted for the purpose.