The bicycle-sharing program approved last spring is a month from arriving. Students will be able to borrow bikes for on campus or off campus riding and make repairs on their own.
Many area cities and colleges offer this program, including the USF Tampa campus and Eckerd College. Student government purchased a fleet of 10 bicycles from ABC/Trek Bicycles, the same providers for Eckerd’s program. The program costs approximately, $10,000, including maintenance and repair for the first three years.
Student government voted to start this program last year and it has been in discussion for more than two years. Previous attempts for a bike share program were halted due to a previous shop’s failure to develop products in time.
“The program has taken such a long time to initiate due to the tremendous number of moving pieces, training Waterfront staff to do weekly cleaning and upkeep, and getting a checkout system with some sort of accountability for lost and stolen pieces,”said Jozef Gherman, who co-sponsored the bill in Student Government last spring,
Now, it appears the beginning of the program is near. The fleet will include four male bikes, four female bikes, and two hybrids. Accessories considered include reflective lights, bells and baskets.
“We are finally reaching the part where we are getting the bikes powder coated and ready to be unveiled,” Gherman said. “At this point, it seems we are about a month away.”
Leaders of the program would like to see students use more eco-friendly means of transportation. Gherman said that SG hopes that the program causes students to think creatively about their transportation options and reduce their carbon footprint.
