Parking and Transportation Services provide students with additional bicycle parking
A new, expansive bicycle parking space on the University of Idaho campus — dubbed the Academic Mall Bicycle Parking Station — is complete after a summer’s worth of construction. The bike rack is located between Renfrew Hall and the Agricultural Science Building and contains 36 new bikes racks, amounting to 72 bike stalls.
Ian Bartlett | Argonaut
Renfrew Hall’s new covered bike racks are completed and keeping bikes dry in the rainy weather that has arrived with October.“The site was intentionally chosen to provide more parking to the campus core where the most people will get the use out of them,” said Shawna Bertlin, parking information specialist for Parking and Transportation Services. “Twelve of the bike racks are covered.”
The new parking space is equipped with an air filling station and each of the roofed areas has a light system for easier access at night.
“This is important because it is the first covered bike parking on campus,” Bertlin said. “We are hoping that the covering will encourage students to bike more”.
The new racks are already being utilized by students.
“It is a really nice central bike spot,” said Jordan Sanders, a student who parks his bike at the new station. “Having the air pumps is really nice.”
Bertlin said the center of campus, called the campus core, was in most need of additional bicycle racks because of its high foot traffic during the week.
Another reason for creating more spaces for students to park their bicycles is to cut down on illegal bike parking, she said. Parking on hand rails or parking a bike where it blocks traffic is illegal on campus, and Bertlin said UI has a system for addressing the issue of illegally parked bicycles that includes warning notices and impoundment.
Bertlin said she has noticed a dramatic decrease in the number of illegally parked bikes on campus since the completion of the parking area.
Ian Bartlett | ArgonautThe new Academic Mall Bicycle Parking Station is located between Renfrew Hall and the Agricultural Sciences building and features the first covered bike racks on campus.
Students who have seen the new parking area may have noticed a similarity to other installations around campus — the style is part of a new standard for all modern renovations and constructions on campus property.
“The shelter is part of the UI campus standard for design,” Bertlin said.
She said the contract amount for constructing the Academic Mall Bicycle Parking Station was $169,825 and the sum was paid for by internal revenue from PTS. The cost included the base bid, an alternate for extra rocks and an extra shelter.
“Per unit shelter worked out to be about $30,000 each,” she said.
While only 12 of the new racks are sheltered, Bertlin said PTS hopes to increase the number of roofed racks to further encourage students to bike to school. She also said PTS is not finished with bike improvements and there is a lot more in store for students in the future.
“The bike shelters were installed as part of Parking and Transportation Service’s long range plan for bicycles on campus,” Bertlin said.
Macklin Brown can be reached at [email protected]