Whitman has recently taken initiatives to address student usage of bikes and the number of bikes on campus. The initiatives are an effort of both Whitman faculty and students to make biking more convenient for students on and off campus. A new proposal to create a bicycle policy at Whitman, effective at the end of spring break 2011, is clearing up old and abandoned bicycles locked to bicycle racks, and a new bicycle rental program is anticipated to be in place by Fall 2011 to provide bicycles to all Whitman students at low cost.
Whitman’s bicycle co-op interns are developing a bicycle rental program on campus to address student desire for access to bikes. According to Campus Sustainability Coordinator, senior Nat Clarke, about 53 percent of students at Whitman, would want to rent a bicycle if a bike rental program was available. The rental program will allow students to pay a flat rate fee to rent a bike on a semester basis, aiming to provide students with a low cost means of transportation for both on and off campus needs.
“The majority of use for the bikes is for off campus travel people who want to go to the store downtown, much more so than cars or buses,” Clarke said. “The idea is that renting a bike for the course of all four years will cheaper than buying a bike.”
Although bicycles are already in widespread use on campus, even low-end bicycles can cost students one hundred or more dollars. Senior Ari Frink, Whitman’s other campus sustainability coordinator, believes that providing bicycles to all students is an important issue for the college to address.
“I think it’s really important for this campus to have a rental program so that bicycles are available to all members of this community and particularly to students who don’t have disposable incomes to purchase quality, long-lasting bikes,” Frink said.
Junior Bryant Fong, who along with junior Emily Rhoades is a bicycle co-op intern, said students are relieved that Whitman has begun to focus on this transportation issue.
“It’s important to raise mobility, there’s always talk about being stuck in the Whitman bubble, and if you have a bike your distance coverage is a lot larger,” he said. “I’ve already had students come up to me who say they don’t want to buy a bike on campus.”
The popularity of biking at Whitman has led to some issues, though: bicycle racks are often crowded with students who choose to leave their bike outside rather than in their residence hall or house, and there are some abandoned and incomplete bikes that have been locked to racks for months.
A recent movement to create a bike policy at Whitman is making an effort to clear up bicycle racks for easier student usage. Starting this week, abandoned bikes and lone bicycle parts–a wheel attached to a bike rack, for instance–will have a notification placed on them and later removed to be put in storage if the notification is ignored. Abandoned bikes are defined as vandalized or in a nonfunctional state. The development comes after a roundtable meeting between members ranging from Whitman faculty to ASWC President Carson Burns aiming to make bicycling less of a hassle for students.
“The policy enables the college to act about bicycles while still protecting students,” said Clarke.
Before the meeting, Whitman had no official bike policy, which often left handicap handrails unusable because of the number of bikes locked to them and trees and sculptures used as bike racks. Heidi Dobson, professor of biology and co-chair of Whitman’s Tree and Landscaping Committee, facilitated the effort to create Whitman’s bike policy. According to Dobson, the Tree and Landscaping Committee was encouraged to create the policy because abandoned bicycles have been a continual problem on campus.
“We’re one of the few colleges that doesn’t have a defined policy,” she said. “There are a lot of problems with bicycles that are abandoned and never picked up. This causes problems for the grounds people and it also takes up spaces in the bicycle racks.”
After Whitman’s ground crew identifies a deserted bike, Whitman security will be notified to photograph and tag the bike. If the bike has not been moved within two weeks, security will remove the bike and store it for eight months in the college warehouse located on Reese street –– allowing enough time for students who go abroad to claim their bikes. The only exception to this rule will be during winter and spring breaks when removal of bikes will take place two weeks after the break has ended. Lone locks and bicycle parts will be treated in the same manner.
Starting in Fall of 2011, any type of bikes or bicycle parts that are locked to handicap handrails or locations that are deemed to impair safety will be removed immediately –– without warning, and will be also be stored up to eight months. However, the Spring 2011 semester will serve as an interim period; bicycles and bicycle parts that are located in these areas will be tagged and given two weeks time to be moved before removal for storage.
Students were informed of the new bike policy via an email from Dean of Students Chuck Cleveland, which was sent out on Wednesday March 30.
Although Whitman is already considered a bike-friendly campus, the creation of Whitman’s bicycle policy and the proposal for a bike rental program are providing students a more convenient and hassle-free way to use bicycles.
“It’s about creating access to what is already an important part of our community,” Frink said.
