And if one group on campus has its way, students will have access to bikes all across campus within two years — if they are willing to accept a slight increase in fees.
The Tar Heel Bikes Steering Committee, which was created two years ago, is launching a two-week long campaign today in collaboration with Student Government to assess how much of an increase in the student transit fee students are willing to pay for a bike sharing program.
The committee currently has a partnership with the Residence Hall Association as a part of its pilot program.
Residents from Hinton James, Craige, Morrison and Ehringhaus can rent a bike for free by showing their One Card, and more than 5,000 bikes have been checked out in the test run.
Akhil J ariwala, the co-founder of the Tar Heel Bike Steering Committee, said the model that the organization is using resembles those in larger cities such as New York City or Washington, D.C.
“The idea is that you would have hubs around campus where students would be able to take a bike from one hub to another,” he said.
“As long as you have an account you will be able to check out a bike using your phone, 15 to 20 minutes to go say, from North Campus to South Campus, or the dining hall to an academic building.”
