What is the difference between a bike dock and a bike rack? Are the two terms synonymous, or are they different? I've always tend to refer to the &quot;racks&quot; at which you can lock a bike as a &quot;bike rack,&quot; but recently, when I started to use bike rentals, I've been hearing more and more of &quot;bike dock,&quot; e.g., &quot;check out the bike at bike dock #6&quot; or &quot;please return the bike to bike dock #5,&quot; etc...
In the context described, I believe that bike docks are specific to bikeshare systems. They lock the bicycle in place, and the locking mechanism is integrated into the docks. Each bikeshare system tends to have one main model of bicycle and the docks are specific to that model. Some bikeshare systems are moving to a dockless format, where you would park the bicycle in a reasonable location, the lock is integrated into the bicycle, and a user would use the app to locate and unlock a bicycle.
A rack (in the context of the question) is just a metal loop that you would lock any bike to. You could even lock a bikeshare bicycle to a rack. However, you are paying for that bikeshare bike, so it would probably be best to find the dock closest to your errand or destination and end your rental there. The bikeshare systems are not intended for rentals lasting several hours; they work best when you ride point to point and then the bicycle becomes available for a different user. Hence, their pricing systems make it expensive to take out a bike for several hours.