Staff Editorial | Carelessness causing bike program to backpedal

When students returned to campus this August, they were greeted by a fleet of shiny pink bicycles. The Shared Bike Program, a result of the Class of 2009’s sophomore class gift and generous donation from alumnus Paul Lehman ’86, began with 30 pink and gray bikes. To participate in the program, students purchase a $10 key lock that must be returned at the end of the year.

Before October break, the Shared Bike Committee took stock of the bikes. Committee chair Colin Walker ’09 said that a majority of the bikes, about 26-28, were accounted for. Of these bikes, however, many have missing or broken seats, bells that no longer work, and locks that are either not being used or completely missing. Students seem to have abused a system that was created solely for their own benefit.

While there is a bike shop located in the basement of Strong House for repairs, few students seemed to have used this resource, as there are still many broken bikes on campus. Just as students must respect the places where they live and study, they must also respect the bike program. Locking the bikes after each use is extremely important, and those without keys who use the bikes need to be sure to keep the lock and bike together.

Similar programs at other colleges have failed because students have not actively appreciated that the communal advantages of a shared-bike program require personal responsibility. Middlebury College, for example, shut down its shared bike program of six years earlier this month after sustained misuse and abuse of the bikes, including students’ neglect of using locks.

Another continual problem plaguing Vassar’s new program is the perpetual unavailability of bikes. There are less than 30 functioning bikes on campus, yet more than 200 keys have been sold. Even if the communal aspect of the system worked seamlessly, people would still be frustrated because there are simply not enough bikes for student demand. College President Catharine Bond Hill is donating five additional bikes to the program and there are further plans for expansion, but how long will it take for the ratio of bikes to students to be more reasonable?

The creation of a Shared Bike Committee is the first step to improving the program. The Committee has already distributed surveys to gauge the success of the program and to find ways to improve it. While these actions are laudable, the Committee has an obligation to both monitor and improve the program this year while simultaneously taking steps to ensure that it will not dissolve after this year. Without a Committee, the program would have neither direction nor accountability and would likely stagnate. The Committee has already put thought into applying to become a Vassar Student Association organization, which could help ensure its ability to retain leaders and funds. With these steady funds and conscientious use, the lock system could still be employed and there might eventually be sufficient funds to replace and repair broken bikes—and perhaps purchase more bikes to begin to equalize supply and demand.

Nevertheless, ultimate responsibility rests not with the Committee, but instead with bike users. As such, The Miscellany News encourages participants to provide the Committee with feedback by filling out campus-wide surveys and holding the Committee accountable to student suggestions. Most importantly, students should take care of the bikes and lock them properly.

The success and possible expansion of the bike program is not the only thing at stake. This program may also be a litmus test or precedent for other sorts of shared resources. Oberlin College, for instance, has taken sharing to new heights by launching the first car-sharing program in Ohio in spring 2006 to provide a valuable resource and promote environmental sustainability (all the cars are hybrids). Oberlin’s communal life-style also extends to a program that allows students to borrow original works of art, bringing the likes of Picasso and Warhol into their dorm rooms twice a semester. While it may be a while before we are able to get the Loeb’s Pollock into a dorm room, Vassar can certainly learn from Oberlin’s example. If students treat the bikes with respect, we may be able to sustain even more ambitious communal programs in the future.

The staff editorial represents at least two-thirds of the 14-member editorial board.