Colleges Employ Bikes on Campus
I read an interesting article on how colleges are promoting bikes as their preferred mode of transportation across campus. At Emory University, near Atlanta, Georgia, students and faculty can purchase bicycles at a low cost to make traveling across campus more convenient. It is part of the $250,000 dollar initiative known as "Bike Emory", which encourages more bike riding and less driving in automobiles; the initiative began one year ago.
Emory also has a bike-share program that allows students to borrow bikes at no cost. All people have to do is write their name on a sign-out list and pick up their bike. According to the head of the program, it is increasing in popularity. In April, only 12 names were on the sign-out list, but that number rose to 45 in June. Emory employees find riding bikes a plus. The article talked about how two co-workers check out bikes to get to meetings across campus much easier rather than driving and looking for a place to park. One of the employees said riding bikes can reduce pollution from automobiles (which is good for our health) and provide better safety on campus for pedestrians.
Other colleges and universities getting into the act of providing bikes to students are: Ripon College, Duke University, Northern Illinois University, Illinois State University, and The University of Washington. I think offering bikes on college campuses to students and/or faculty is a good idea. Anything that can help you save money, time, and protect the environment is beneficial. To quote one student, "And, honestly, I think that anything free when you're in college is good, especially something like a bike that is worth something."
Who knows? One day, you may be riding one of these bikes to your entry level job or internship on campus.
To learn more about the "Bike Emory" initiative, go to http://bike.emory.edu/.
Source: The Morning News
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