Tristan Fowler’s contribution to the progressive collaborative blog Pushback:
“How’s this for innovation? Colleges and universities are giving away free bikes so students don’t bring their carbon-spewing, planet-killing cars to campus. The University of New England gave a bike to any new freshman who promised to keep his or her car at home. It’s a heck of a lot cheaper for these institutions to donate the bikes than it is to build a new parking lot, manage the traffic, and issue those annoying parking tickets. Plus, it’s a better way to live! I mean, the Dutch sure love their bikes in Amsterdam, and who doesn’t want to live more like the Dutch?
While some colleges aren’t quite generous to give away bikes away for free, they are using loan progams and working with local bike shops to encourage their students to ride instead of drive. At the University of California at Berkeley, students can rent a bike for a day. Students can join the program, Green Bike Share, for just $15 a semester. With a little luck, programs like these will go national, and we will listen to the charming sounds of bike chimes rather than car engines and backfire.”
WHAT TO DO NOW?