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Project Updates for collection: Bicycle Related Projects

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  1. CUUATS reported Grainger lighted crosswalk not recommended

    Associated Project(s): 
    Encourage Active Transportation

    The Champaign-Urbana Urbanized Area Transportation Study (CUUATS) prepared a report on the efficacy of the Grainger lighted crosswalk on Springfield Avenue at the Engineering Quad.  Due to high maintenance needs, difficulty with the light activation system, and a false sense of security for pedestrians and cyclists crossing Springfield Avenue, this system is not recommended for future locations on campus.  Safety for people crossing high-traffic streets can be enhanced with alternative lighted crosswalk systems that are more effective and provide more consistent safety improvements.

  3. Progress with MTD, Zipcar, and Chilled Water extension project

    Associated Project(s): 
    Encourage Active Transportation

    There is a Chilled Water extension project planned for this summer and fall along Springfield Avenue from Mathews to the Grainger Crosswalk.  The Crosswalk pavement and ramps will be upgraded at that time, for enhanced pedestrian safety.

    Met with the Parking Department and MTD about the costs for transit service and faculty/staff access for the University in the new MTD contract for FY13-15.

    Met with the Zipcar partners in town about the status of the Zipcar program in the community.  Our account rep will be changing for the first time in a couple of years, and we are eager to keep the program running strong.

  4. Bicycle Facilities and Programs Projects Continue

    Associated Project(s): 
    Encourage Active Transportation

    Student intern met with employees at Christopher Hall to make recommendations for new bike parking.

    Submitted additional information about bike parking to the SSC, and were granted an award for $250,000 to revamp existing bike parking areas at various key locations throughout campus.

    Campus Transportation Committee met and reviewed all bike related iCAP projects. 

    Bike sharing survey went live from the LINC course, as described above.

    Staff met with employees at the Arboretum to make recommendations for new bike parking near the parking lot between the Idea Garden and the Japan House.

    Staff met with Housing representatives to discuss a potential pilot trial of distributed bike parking enforcement.  This would allow F&S to train and authorize certain key facility managers in proper procedures for impounding bikes parking improperly.  Housing will draft a proposal in the next few months, then F&S will discuss the merits with appropriate campus representatives (such as Legal Counsel, the Parking Department, and Campus Planning) and determine how to proceed.

    Sample Varsity Bike racks were provided for a one-year free trial to Champaign County Bikes.  The Architecture Review Committee approved testing them at the east side of the Illini Union.  The Union’s approval is pending an approval from SSC for the bike parking improvements at the southwest corner, with FY10 SSC funding.

  5. MTD Contract Renewal and Car Sharing Promotions

    Associated Project(s): 
    Encourage Active Transportation

    Continued contract renewal work for the University and MTD three-year contract form FY13-FY15.  The students approved recommended transportation fees which will be forwarded to the Board of Trustees this spring. 

    Staff held weekly conference calls with Zipcar about promoting car-sharing on campus, and provided input to the University of Iowa and Eastern Illinois University regarding their car sharing plans.

  7. Bike to Work Day and Campus Bike Project Make Progress

    Associated Project(s): 
    Increase Bicycle Use

    Bike to Work Day (BTWD) planning is underway. Staff raised $1,250 in February from sponsors, which goes to Champaign County Bikes for the event.  Three on-campus Bike Station locations were organized, in addition to several off-campus Bike Stations.  University Housing graciously agreed to provide food and drinks for the on-campus Bike Stations, as they did last year.

    The Bike Sharing key staff members met with project champion, Mike Lyon from AITS, to provide a status update on the bike sharing feasibility study.  The bike sharing intern developed a presentation about departmental bike sharing, which will be taken to Legal Counsel and Purchasing contacts for final approval.  Then Colleges will be contacted before departments are approached to encourage departmental bike sharing implementation.  

    F&S Planning staff interviewed firms to engineer road improvements, including Fourth Street bike lanes from Armory Avenue to Kirby Avenue, and Sixth Street bike lanes from Armory Avenue to Gregory Drive.

    The bike parking intern completed and submitted a proposal to the SSC to replace existing “donut-hole” racks with campus standard racks.  He also met with staff at Christopher Hall and the Illini Union about upgrading their bike parking areas.  Additionally, staff worked with a representative from Champaign County Bikes to arrange a pilot test of an alternative bike parking rack, the Varsity Rack.

    The Campus Area Transportation Study (CATS) agencies met in February and agreed that the Campus Bike Plan document should be for University-owned pathways, and it should be in agreement with the City of Urbana Bike Plan, the Champaign Transportation Plan, and the County Greenways and Trails Plan.

    The Campus Bike Project submitted a proposal to the SSC for expanded open hours with student assistants.

    Plans are underway for a bike race on May 5 in the Research Park.  About 300-400 race participants are anticipated.  There will be a community ride that morning, as well as a race in the City of Urbana on May 6.

  8. F&S Makes Progress on Bicycle Projects

    Associated Project(s): 
    Increase Bicycle Use

    F&S continues to work with a number of student groups and individuals on bicycle-related projects:

    • Bicycle Intern and Urban Planning student Grace Kenney has returned from a semester abroad and is now completing the Bike Sharing Feasibility Study this spring, as well as implementing departmental bike sharing with interested departments, using the Departmental Bike Sharing Manual produced by the Fall 2011 LINC class. Grace also helped with the master bike plan in January, and will be working closely with the Bike Sharing Steering Committee in the coming weeks and months.
    • Bicycle Intern and Urban Planning student Holly Nelson is continuing to work on bike lane design recommendations.
    • Bicycle Intern and Urban Planning student Patrick Clark is working on bike parking upgrade designs and recommendations, including SSC-funded improvements at the Illini Union, as well as developing the formal grant proposal for bike parking upgrade funding for SSC.
    • GIS student Marcus Ricci proposed a GIS class project to analyze the location and quantity of bike parking in relationship to building doors and bike pathways.
    • The UI Bikes LINC course, as mentioned above, is working with F&S on several projects related to both bike sharing and bike parking.
    • An MBA class is studying the Campus Bike Project, among other bicycle-related topics, and will make a recommendation to the CBP for developing a self-sustaining funding model.
    • Student Senator David Huang has drafted and will introduce a formal resolution to the Illinois Student Senate proposing the implementation of online bicycle registration through Ride Campus. (http://www.ridecampus.com/)

    Members of The Bike Project steering committee met with representatives of F&S and SSC to brainstorm opportunities to help make the Campus Bike Project a financially self-supporting operation.  This is in parallel to the efforts of the MBA class looking into this issue.  The Bike Project will be submitting a Letter of Inquiry to the SSC before their current funding expires in May.

    F&S staff attended the monthly Champaign County Bikes meeting in January, to discuss a potential use of Ride Campus and Varsity Rack in Champaign-Urbana. F&S is also working with CCB member Jeff Yockey to develop a steering committee to explore the possibility of implementing Ride Campus at the University of Illinois.

    F&S staff and Patrick Clark met with the Illini Union to discuss improving bike parking facilities around the Union, and potentially having the Union be a pilot test location for the Varsity Rack. 

     

  9. Campus Makes Public Transportation Improvements

    Associated Project(s): 
    Encourage Active Transportation

    Funding was approved for several pavement improvements on campus streets.  These improvements will reduce gas consumption and corresponding emissions for vehicle traffic; restripe the bike lanes on a portion of Gregory Drive; extend the bike lanes on Fourth Street south to Kirby Avenue; add pedestrian countdown traffic signals at two signalized intersections; implement traffic calming measures, such as curb bump outs for increased pedestrian safety in key locations; and improve one block of the Illinois Marathon route on First Street, between Peabody Drive and Kirby Avenue.

    Staff are participating in weekly conference calls with Zipcar to encourage the use of car sharing and active transportation on campus. A Zipcar winter welcome special offer was shared in the OS newsletter and through the OS twitter account.

  13. Campus Bike Center Funding Letter

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center
    Student Sustainability Committee (SSC)

    This proposal seeks to fund 50% of the cost of part-time shop manager position as transition assistance to become fully self-supporting. This grant will help the Campus Bike Project become a financially sound, self-sufficient, self-funded shop, where all operating costs are recouped through memberships and the sale of recycled refurbished bicycles, new and used parts and accessories. The Campus Bike project is a cooperative where students can learn how to repair and maintain their bike for transportation throughout the year. The campus bike project provides significant services toward increasing bicycle use on campus, and has received significant previous investment from F&S, the Committee and the Institute of Natural Resource Sustainability. The Student Sustainability Committee is in favor of funding a grant in the amount of $7,500.

    Attached Files: 

  14. Bike Sharing Feasibility Study

    Associated Project(s): 
    Bike Sharing Feasibility Study
    Student Sustainability Committee (SSC)

    This proposal seeks to conduct a feasibility study off different options for implementing a bike-sharing program at the University of Illinois. A feasibility study for this project is a necessary step before implementation of a campus bike sharing project can be considered, in line with the Illinois Climate Action Plan. University bike-sharing programs exist in different forms across the country and the challenge is finding a model that will be highly used by students as well as being mostly self-sustaining. Committee funds will be used to support a half-time summer intern as well as for other expenses relevant to the study, with any unspent funds held for implementation of improvements to campus bicycle parking infrastructure. The Student Sustainability Committee is in favor of funding a grant in the amount of $10,000.

    Attached Files: 

  19. Campus-wide Bike Parking Funding Agreement

    Associated Project(s): 
    FY09 SSC Bike Parking Upgrades [ARCHIVED]
    FY12 SSC Bike Parking Upgrades [ARCHIVED]
    Student Sustainability Committee (SSC)

    Bike parking is essential for supporting green commuters as well as raising awareness and supporting biking on campus. In 2009, the SSC funded $10,600 for standard bike parking at three popular locations on campus, Freer Hall, the Undergraduate Library, and the Agricultural Engineering Sciences Building. Later in 2012, SSC provided $225,000 in order to replace old donut-hole bike parking with U-loop parking at the Armory, the Main Library, the Foreign Language Building, and other high-traffic areas on campus.

    Attached Files: 

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