I, Aparna Padmakumar from the Department of Urban and Regional Planning am pursuing a master’s degree with a concentration focus in the field of transportation and currently is looking to take up a potential capstone project with the transportation iCAP team hoping to contribute to better bicycle safety/access on the UIUC campus. After multiple discussions and meetings with Sarthak Prasad,  the projects that I will be helping out with would be the ‘Bicycle Friendly University Status’ and ‘Reducing Bicycle Theft on Campus’ through the months of October until May. In today’s kick-off meeting (10/3/2022) previous data, studies, and information were shared with me for better clarity and expected to go through all the previously collected information on the iCap portal. Sarthak guided me through the 2022 Bicycle Friendly University (BFU) application to achieve Gold-level BFU certification and also the Bike at Illinois website as a source of information for the second ongoing project. I am also in constant touch with the other concerned team members to note down important background information on these 2 projects for a better sense of direction before our next weekly Monday meeting’

In fall 2022, the university has seen a great increase in the number of e-scooters, skateboards, and e-bikes on campus. Sarthak Prasad reached out to University Housing in summer 2022 to discuss whether University Housing has any plans to install any infrastructure for students living in Residence Halls to charge their e-bikes or scooters or skateboards batteries in their dorm rooms.

Other universities have also seen similar situation on their campuses, however, due to the fire safety risk involved, they also do not allow these in their dorm rooms.

University Housing confirmed that at this time, they have not received any query from students regarding the charging of their e-bikes, scooters, or skateboards. They also emphasized that the University does not allow these vehicles inside university facilities, including dormitories, (see CAM FO-35: In-Line Skates, Roller Skates, Skateboards, e-Scooters, and Self-Balancing Personal Transportation Devices).

They also shared the same concern regarding these batteries being fire hazards and referred to the Fire Safety policy (see attached) created in 2020 in collaboration with F&S Safety & Compliance.

Following email was sent by Sterling Laylock regarding the update:

Hi Sarthak, Yes, we have completed the analysis and are prepared to present our findings for the Astronomy Building.

We will also be sharing relevant data and insights from additional buildings across other regions of the state as well.

Proposed Presentation Date

Thursday, November 10th is our proposed date to present our findings as requested by Morgan White. 

We also plan to conduct a Design Thinking Session that will include numerous stakeholders as requested by Senator Elgie Sims, Vice-Chair IL, Appropriations II. 

He is seeking input regarding a strategic allocation of funding for clean indoor air assessments in K-12 and public buildings around the state in order to elevate public outreach and awareness regarding this critical issue.

Design Thinking Stakeholder Attendees

Primary stakeholders from outside UIUC-iCAP who have expressed a high level of interest in participating include but will not be limited to:

• Cook County Facilities and Sustainability

• Cook County Asset Management

• Chicago Transit Authority

• South Suburban Mayor and Managers

• Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago Asset Management

• The Obama Foundation Presidential Center

• Sinai Chicago Health System

• Indoor Climate Research and Training Center (ICRT)

• Illinois Growth & Innovation Fund for Social Impact

Why Are They Interested?

As we all know, almost all buildings blindly struggle to have enough clean indoor air for us to breathe. 

Stakeholders need help ending potentially harmful health and financial consequences, so people will feel safe using buildings again.

In order to do this, we have proposed an Illinois version of the EPA Clean Air In Buildings Program using eligible American Rescue Plan (ARPA), Bipartisan Infrastructure and Inflation Reduction Act Funding. 

Although ARPA dollars have already been allocated in IL, a significant level of funding is still scheduled to be allocated specifically for ventilation and filtration in the near term.

We believe our Energy-Efficient HVAC Infection Control Project under iCAP can serve as an excellent hub for the many fragmented efforts being attempted across the state as we all seek to address this lingering pandemic and pre-pandemic issue. 

Now that we're in the recovery period of our post-pandemic journey, it is imperative that we use this opportunity to address these issues. 

Closing the gap between public health and building science is a key effort that will help us deliver on developing Applied Health Strategies for Climate Adaptation, which is why iCAP exists in the first place.

Let's set a time this week to discuss our proposed date and time so we plan accordingly for a successful event.

Thanks, Sterling

The bicycle retrieval for abandoned bicycles that were impounded over the summer 2022 has completed, as of September 23, 2022. We had collected nearly 500 bicycles over the summer, and 24 bicycles were retrieved by the owners. The remaining bicycles will be donated to the Bike Project of Urbana-Champaign and Campus Bike Center for refurbishment, resale, and recycle. Nearly 60% of these unclaimed bicycle will be donated to Working Bikes, a not-for-profit bike shop which fixes up old cycles for sale or to be donated to global communities.