You see them everywhere on campus, speeding past, legs pedaling furiously, brakes screeching at the Evans Avenue crosswalk to avoid oncoming traffic.
DU needs more bike racks (take note, USG). Until this happens, there should be a bit more freedom about where bikes can be chained.
Bikes: the perfect form of campus transportation. They’re affordable, sustainable, generally safe and easy to park.
They’re promoted by USG and DU as a campus with the B-cycles and its new sharing programs, bicycle auctions and bike repair days.
But in reality, bikes aren’t easy to park on this campus at all. While there seems to be a more-than-adequate supply of bike racks stationed at nearly every building on campus, there never seem to be enough spots on said racks.
The time you would have saved biking to class is spent trying vainly to find a spot on the ever-full bike racks.
Unable to find one, you spend the next five minutes swearing under your breath as you try to shove the bike into the throng of wheels, pedals and spokes.
Arriving flustered and two minutes late, fingers covered in bike grease, you hope you’ll be able to dislodge your bike later.
Just the other day I was running an errand before class. There are at least four bike racks near the north side of Driscoll.
And guess how many spots were open? None. Not even the side spot that isn’t really a spot at all.
I circled the racks a good three times before finding a tiny opening; tediously wiggling and shoving my bike until the front tire was squeezed in enough to lock it up with barely enough time to run my errand.
If it’s that difficult to find a spot amongst four large bike racks, imagine the difficulty around the rest of campus.
Nelson and Nagel share a bike rack. You don’t even use your bike for fear of losing your spot.
The buildings on the farthest ends of campus, like Olin and the Mass Communications building, only have one or two bike racks each.
As some of the farthest locations for classes, you have to bike – or run – to class, not being able to park really cramps your style.
Not only are there few places to park, but you get a ticket for using “substitute” parking on trees, poles or benches.
If a bike isn’t properly locked up, it merits a ticket as well.
What’s a student to do?
