Photo courtesy of SGEF on Instagram
By Jenna Nicastro
Of the various issues students face every day, there were two in particular that caught the eye of the USF St. Petersburg Student Green Energy Fund (SGEF): sustainability and transportation.
SGEF works with many other groups on campus, which is why when Campus Recreation needed a way to “revitalize and revamp their bike checkout program,” they turned to SGEF, according to senior and SGEF proposal advisor, Audrey Everett.
According to Benjamin Pazian, assistant director of programs for Campus Rec, the common agreement from student feedback was that the old bikes were a good system, but uncomfortable.
Therefore, Campus Recreation partnered with SGEF to create a renovated and “more comfort-focused bike,” Pazian said.
When considering Campus Recreation’s proposals, one of SGEF’s main concerns was theft. The approved model eased this concern, with its “bright yellow color and visible tracking number,” said Everett.
Everett also mentioned the “heavy-duty chain lock” that comes with every rental to ensure that students will be able to keep the bikes safe.
While these security resources are provided, the borrower on file will be held responsible if the bike is lost or damaged. Everrett pointed that “students may incur fees for returning their bikes late, losing the bike lock, or for serious damages.”
Pazian explained that some of the updates made to the new beach cruiser-style bikes, were the addition of “wider tires and pedal brakes,” which contrasts the old models which were “single speed road bikes with thin tires.”
In addition to these features, the bikes also have baskets on the front to hold personal items.
The cruiser bike is accessible to all students on the St. Petersburg campus and will allow them to travel around the city while minimizing carbon emissions.
SGEF’s mission is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and lower waste levels to improve the university’s energy efficiency.
One of the various ways they do this is by creating sustainability projects that will not only be intriguing to students but also help influence better habits for the environment.
Everett noted that these bikes help conserve energy by allowing students the chance to “choose a zero-emission mode of transportation” by “reducing reliance on personal vehicles.”
Senior Oliver Laczko, chair of SGEF, noted that not only do these bikes help conserve energy, but they also provide students, “sources for physical activity and exploring the city through new lenses,” he said.
There is no limit on how far students can take these bikes. SGEF encourages students to take them wherever they need to go, whether to work or to run errands. The current limit for how long students can have the bikes at a time is one week.
These cruiser bikes can be rented at the Campus Recreation hub desk, located at The Edge, by simply providing a USF ID.
To promote the cruiser bikes, SGEF is planning a bike tour on Feb. 22. “SGEF Rides (not) at Dawn,” will allow students to see how they work in action. Students can sign up for this event via Bulls Connect and will meet outside the University Student Center (USC) at 10 a.m.
The group will depart at 11 a.m. and bike through “downtown St. Petersburg through separated bike lanes, the Pinellas Trail, and Sharrow Lanes,” according to Everett.
SGEF hopes to create more sustainable forms of transportation in the future for students, such as skateboards or rollerblades.
