Author: Becca Miller
The Urban and Environmental Policy Institute (UEPI) is developing a bike sharing program on campus. Students in UEP Professor Mark Vallianatos’ Environmental Problem Solving class began planning the program last semester as a way to make green transportation available to Oxy students. For the past year, students in the class have been planning and researching the bike sharing initiative and examining similar programs at campuses around the country, hoping to create a program that will fit Oxy’s location, size and student body.
Currently, the plan would involve a fleet of eight to ten bikes locked up at a special bike rack outside the library. Students would check out a bike as if it were a book or laptop by showing their Oxy I.D. at the front desk to receive a key and a helmet. After signing a waiver, students could then unlock the bike and keep it for a day, returning the bike, helmet and key at night. The program directors are also considering making students take a brief, mandatory safety class prior to their first rental.
The program originated with Tessa D’Arcangelew (senior), who wrote the proposal as a way of sharing her own biking experiences with other students. “My motive for starting the program is my belief that Oxy students need to get out more and explore Los Angeles, starting with neighboring Eagle Rock and Highland Park,” she said.
According to Professor Vallianatos, the program has the support of Facilities and of Campus Safety, who are working with the initiative to make bike sharing a reality at Oxy. Campus Safety will donate bikes left illegally on campus over the summer to the program, giving Oxy the start of its potential fleet.
However, the confiscated bikes need to be fixed before they can be safely lent to students. Vallianatos’ class is working to establish a business relationship with the Bike Oven, a local bike shop that would train students in bicycle maintenance and help repair the confiscated bikes. The Bike Oven is a volunteer-run bicycle co-op that encourages bicycle use as a viable alternative to costly car usage. With the Bike Oven’s help, Oxy’s bike sharing initiative hopes to eventually become self-sufficient.
The cost of the program is still relatively unknown, although Professor Vallianatos estimates that the cost for eight bikes, helmets, locks and lights will be somewhere between $2,000 and $5,000. A small rental fee might be implemented in the future, but for now the organizers plan on the program being free to encourage student participation. The program will apply for money through the Sustainability Fund, which contributed $7,000 for bike racks last semester.
The initiative will also secure funding by partnering with Oxy’s Bike Club, which is eligible for ASOC money. The club, headed by Ava Mikolavich (senior), holds weekly rides that are currently only available to students with bikes. With the bike sharing program, students could check out bikes and participate as well. “I am 100 percent behind it,” Mikolavich said of the program.
Preventing bike theft could add an additional cost. Right now, the program is considering locking all the bikes in cages at night, but the class is still trying to solve the problem of balancing safety with accessibility. Another obstacle for the program is risk management. The group is working with Oxy lawyers to set safety standards that can be maintained throughout the year.
D’Arcangelew said that, while liability is “the biggest hurdle” for the program right now, it will not prevent bike sharing on campus. “Many other schools have bike sharing programs, some with a risk much higher than the one proposed for Oxy. However, they have found a way to limit liability to make bike sharing a viable program for campus. I think we can definitely do that as well.”
The program’s creators also hope that free bikes will encourage students to reduce their fuel dependency and help students who are required to live on campus have more opportunities to explore surrounding areas. There is talk of establishing a Web site about biking in Northeast Los Angeles to promote recreational bike use. “We’ll also provide maps with bike-friendly routes highlighted and organize group rides to inspire less-experienced riders,” said Lewis Crary (junior), one of Vallianatos’ students, who has researched the logistics of the program.
If students are interested in getting involved with the bike sharing initiative, they should e-mail Professor Vallianatos. “Our campus is at an important transition time with a new energetic president willing to make great improvements to this campus. If students rallied behind this program, they could make it happen,” D’Arcangelew said.
The program is slated to start next semester.
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