News, updates, commentary and more from BikeAthens. BikeAthens is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization based in Athens, GA. BikeAthens promotes transportation and land-use policies that improve alternative modes of transportation, including pedestrian, cycling, and public transit options. The mission of our organization is to make alternative transportation a practical, convenient, and safe option for all citizens of Athens-Clarke County.

Monday, August 11, 2008

Emory Univ selling low cost bikes

Check out this article from CNN. Our neighbors down at Emory are really encouraging bicycle use!
UGA, take note and follow the leader!

Excerpt:

The school is selling discounted bicycles to students and faculty, adding bike lanes to campus roads and stocking bikes that can be borrowed for free.

The university is pushing its $250,000 "Bike Emory" initiative, launched a year ago, in hopes of convincing students and faculty that the eco-friendly bikes are a better alternative to their four-wheeled, gas-guzzling counterparts.

Cycling already has a foothold at many colleges, where hefty parking fees, sprawling campuses and limited roads make it tough to travel. Still, most students are reluctant to leave their cars parked.

"They're using them to drive from residence halls to class, which is a two- or three-block commute," said Ric Damm, an administrator and cycling coach at Ripon College, which is giving away $300 bikes to freshmen who leave their cars at home. "We thought, 'How can we provide an incentive to get them out of that behavior?"'

2 comments:

Jason said...

Well, thumbs up to Emory for doing this, but jeez louise, the students are DRIVING two or three blocks to class? I've not been to Emory, is it laid out like Phoenix or something?

brent said...

ha -
I've seen plenty of students (and adults) downtown drive from one end of Clayton to the other... it's a sad but prevalent phenomena. Folks used to suburban settings have a difficult time wrapping their head around the concept of walking places.