Getting around campus quickly can be tough, but for students aware of the Binghamton University Bike Share, lectures, the library and the gym are only a ride away.
This semester marks the beginning of the fifth year of operation for the Bike Share, which started in fall 2013.
At its beginning, the student-run program only had seven bikes, which were donated by Outdoor Pursuits. At its peak, the Bike Share had roughly 20 bikes available to students. Now, the program maintains eight bikes to rent out. According to Benjamin Vanderaa, president of the BU Bike Share and a senior majoring in systems science and industrial engineering, the number of bikes available to rent depends on the needs of the student body.
“We have pared down our bikes to the 8 best this semester and, so far, that seems to be sufficient for the program to operate,” Vanderaa wrote in an email.
The bikes are available to any student and are completely free to rent, provided that renters return the bikes without damage. Students can rent the bikes at the information desk in the Tillman Lobby in the Old University Union from noon to 8 p.m., and are allowed to keep the bikes for up to five hours. While the bikes are in their possession, students can go anywhere, on or off campus, with the exception of the Nature Preserve.
In addition to renting bikes, the Bike Share also repairs them through the bike shop located in the basement of Old University Union. Hong Choi, treasurer of the BU Bike Share and a sophomore majoring in finance, said that the repair process includes an appointment between the bike shop volunteers and the client to determine the best way to fix their bike.
“They bring it in, and we look at it with the client,” Choi said. “We discuss what we need to do with it. Sometimes it is a just an adjustment, but sometimes we need to order parts. Usually they leave the bike here and when we’re done with the repairs, we email them with a time they can pick it up.”
This semester, the Bike Share will be implementing the BU BUC$ system to allow clients to pay for repairs more easily. Right now the bike shop only accepts cash, but Vanderaa said this will be changing in the coming weeks.
“We are hoping to implement the BUCS system so that we can charge for some of the consumable parts that we often replace on peoples bikes,” Vanderaa wrote. “This will allow us to standardize and and collect money for those parts in a more sustainable and effective way.”
Daniel Yarmarkovich, a senior majoring in French, said he only used the Bike Share a few times per semester, but that he had always had a good experience.
“Ideally, I wish you could rent the bikes overnight, because there are a lot of students who live close to campus and having the ability to take the bike home and ride it back in the morning would be awesome, but I think the people who could use it the most are the freshmen who are just coming into the school,” Yarmarkovich said. “They could use it with their families to see campus and take a ride.”
According to Choi, the Bike Share is ideal for people who love bikes and want to ride conveniently.
“We do it because everyone in the program likes riding bikes and we realize that the University doesn’t really have anything to expose people to that,” Choi said. “Bike-share programs are pretty common throughout the United States, and even internationally it’s becoming popular. We want a local place to give people the opportunity to ride on campus.”