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Projects Updates for Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

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  1. F&S announcement - Summer Bicycle Roundup Underway

    Associated Project(s): 
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    Summer Bicycle Roundup

    Sticker Removal Required for Active Bikes

    Summer Bicycle Roundup - Remove the Orange Sticker by June 30 to Avoid Impound

    Each summer, F&S and the Parking Department identify and collect unwanted bicycles on campus after the end of the spring semester.

    All bikes left on university property will be tagged with an orange sticker that reads, "Remove this tag by 6/30/23, or your bicycle will be removed." Any bicycle still displaying the sticker after that date will be impounded. If you presently have a bike in a campus rack, shelter, or parking location, please remember to remove this sticker to ensure your bike is designated as active.

    To retrieve a bike that has been removed, contact bike@illinois.edu with your bicycle information. All recovered bicycles will need to be registered before being returned (https://bike.illinois.edu/register-your-bike/).

  3. Weekly Update: Bike donations, Updated working hours

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    All, We received 8 bike donations directly from graduating students last week—easily a record during my tenure so far. Not sure how the word got out, but it was effective! Of course, I forgot to ask for a few photos for future marketing use, but one person did request a photo with her bike before she donated it.

    I also worked with TBP volunteers to move a chunk of bikes out of storage, so we’re making headway on that. But still a good number of bikes left, too, which I’ll continue to work on going forward.

    This week we start our summer hours of M/W/F 2 – 6p.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 49
    Sales: $868.25
    Bikes: 3 for $570
    Memberships: 4 for $120
    Tires/tubes: 5 for $36

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Campus Bike Center Coordinator

  4. Bike at Illinois: May Newsletter

    Associated Project(s): 
    Bike at Illinois Website and Campaign
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    May Newsletter sent out on May 10, 2023.

     
    Bike at Illinois Newsletter: May 2023

     

     

     

     

    Happy National Bike Month!

    Thank you for registering your bicycle! We wanted to remind you to collect your bike registration sticker (shield) and attach it to your bicycle, if you have not done so already. There are, currently, eight campus and community shield pick-up locations - found on the Register Your Bike webpage. You will be required to show the Bike Registration Fee payment confirmation email and identification to collect a shield.

    Winners of Bike Registration Raffle were contacted recently and we will follow up with them again today!

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Notices

     

     

     

     

    Do not leave your bicycle on campus over the summer! 

    Do not leave your bike on campus property over the summer. If you do so, the bike will be considered abandoned and it will be impounded via university staff. If you no longer need your bicycle, consider donating it (go.fs.illinois.edu/DonateBikes) to the Campus Bike Center (51 E. Gregory Drive, Champaign) or the Bike Project of Urbana (202 S. Broadway Avenue, Room 24). 

    No appointment is required. Donations are tax-deductible. Bicycles will be refurbished or recycled, reusing as much of the bike as possible.

    More information, including bike storage options, is available by contacting bike@illinois.edu.

    Removal of Abandoned Bike 

    All unattended bicycles on campus will be impounded after the on-bike sticker notification process concludes this summer. Retrieving an impounded bicycle will require an active bike registration and associated fees in accordance with the University Bicycle Ordinance. F&S removed almost 500 abandoned bicycles on campus last summer. 

    Use the Shared Use Path between Huff Hall and Siebel Center for Design

    Due to the construction of a new facility, Steven S. Wymer Hall, between Huff Hall and Business Instructional Facility (BIF), the bike path will be closed. Bicyclists should use the shared-use path (8' wide sidewalk) immediately south of this bike path by Siebel Center for Design from Fourth Street to Sixth Street. 

    This bike path is considered abandoned and will be removed once the construction is complete. For any questions, please reach out to fandscampustdm@illinois.edu.

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Upcoming events

     

     

     

     
    1. Mother's Day Bike Ride - Sunday, May 14
      Starting point: Anita Purves Nature Center (1505 N. Broadway Ave, Urbana, IL 61801)
      Starting time: 2:00 p.m.
    2. Ride of Silence - Wednesday, May 17
      Starting Point: I Hotel and Illinois Conference Center (1900 S 1st St, Champaign, IL 61820)
      Starting time: 7:00 p.m.
    3. Smart Cycling Class - Traffic Skills 101 - Saturday, May 27
      Location: MTD Training Facility (1207 E. University Avenue, Urbana, IL 61802)
      Time:1:00 - 5:00 p.m.
      Cost: $20
      Register to attend here: https://tinyurl.com/yuaxmakr

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Bike Safety: Always lock your bicycle

     

     

     

     

    For nearly 60 percent of the bike thefts reported in the past year, the stolen bicycle was not locked. Always lock your bicycle to a bike rack to keep it safe. Watch this video on how to properly lock your bicycle. Watch other educational videos created by Bike at Illinois.

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Thank you so much for all your support! Have a great finals week and congratulations to all graduates! Contact us at bike@illinois.edu for any questions.

     

  5. F&S announcement - Donate Your Bike

    Associated Project(s): 
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles
      Donate Your Bike!  
     

     
      A bike shelter with vertical racks on the Urbana campus
     

    Don't abandon your bike on campus at the end of the semester. If you no longer need your bicycle, consider donating it (https://go.fs.illinois.edu/DonateBikes) to the Campus Bike Center (51 E. Gregory Drive, Champaign) or the Bike Project of Urbana (202 S. Broadway Avenue, Room 24). 

    No appointment is required. Donations are tax-deductible. Bicycles will be refurbished or recycled, reusing as much of the bike as possible.

    Removal of Abandoned Bicycles 
     All unattended bicycles on campus will be impounded after the on-bike sticker notification process concludes this summer. Retrieving an impounded bicycle will require an active bike registration and associated fees in accordance with the University Bicycle Ordinance.

    More information, including bike storage options, is available by contacting bike@illinois.edu. 

  6. Campus Transportation Advisory Committee (CTAC) spring 2023

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Transportation Advisory Committee (CTAC)
    2014 Campus Bike Plan
    Reduce Driving on Campus
    Commuter Program: Bus, Bike, and Hike
    Student Sustainability Committee (SSC)
    Pedestrian and Bicycle Counts
    It's Your MTD Too!
    Bicycle Registration
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles
    Bicycle Counts
    Bicycle Friendly University Status
    2024 Campus Bike Plan
    Bike Share with Veo

    Please see attached the final presentation for the CTAC spring 2023. Watch the meeting recording here: https://uofi.box.com/s/mid9gjqnhyziake9txcdf9jee08rgx6h

    Attached Files: 

  7. Campus Transportation Advisory Committee (CTAC) fall 2022

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Transportation Advisory Committee (CTAC)
    Bike at Illinois Website and Campaign
    Bicycle Registration
    Pedestrian and Bicycle Counts
    Walkability Study
    ADA Transition Plan and 2017 Supplement
    Commuter Program: Bus, Bike, and Hike
    Reduce Driving on Campus
    Support Zipcar in Champaign-Urbana
    Bike Share with Veo
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    Please see attached the final presentation for the CTAC fall 2022. Watch the meeting recording here: https://uofi.box.com/s/6fp2xuq2qnwv4vgm34itku4pbdy2bioy

    Attached Files: 

  8. Weekly Updates for the week of 11/7 and 11/14

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    [11.7.22] All, Last week we completed the bike donation event with Working Bikes. Thanks to some Bike Project volunteers we were able to pack their truck full of bikes in about an hour and a half. Unfortunately, they were unable to take all of the abandoned bikes as there are about 50 left. I’ll work with TBP to deal with the remaining junk bikes as well as the ~200 we’ll keep for refurbishment.

    Last Thursday we were donated another pull-behind trailer, upping our count to 3 of them now. I will discuss with TBP ideas to make better use of these, as they take up a lot of space and we have zero demand for them.

    This week we will reinstate the First Visit Free policy as the cooler weather sets in.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 47

    Sales: $508
    Bike (refurbished): 1 for $225
    Memberships: 1 for $30
    Tires/tubes: 12 for $61

    [11.14.22]

    All, I was out sick for a portion of the non-open hours, but we were still able to get a few bikes on the sales floor and strip some bikes. This week I’ll grab some more of the good bikes from the barn and we’ll get to fixing those. We reinstated First Visit Free and were able to help folks get rolling.

    I had an interview last Friday with a potential new hire and we’ll be having a staff meeting this week to get some of our new staff up to speed as well as provide a refresher for the returning staffers.

    Next week we will be closed for Thanksgiving break. We’ll reopen Monday, 11/28/22.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 45
    Sales: $434
    Bikes (refurb): 1 for $100
    Memberships: 4 for $120
    Tires/tubes: 8 for $103

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Campus Bike Center Coordinator

  9. Weekly Update: Reduced hours, Working Bikes this week

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    All, While my jury duty service was still in effect, we had reduced hours as needed last week but were able to open fully Wed – Fri. It was the first week of noticeably fewer folks through the doors. As such, we got a few bikes on the sales floor and a dozen or so moved over from storage.

    Tomorrow we will host Working Bikes for our donation event. This is the first one since Nov 2019. We’ll have around 200 bikes to donate and hopefully will have a few folks available to help out and make it go quicker. They’ll be providing pizza for us, too. This event will halve the number of bikes left in storage. The Bike Project and I will sort through the remaining bikes in the coming weeks.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 43
    Sales: $475.50
    Build-a-Bikes: 2 for $100
    Memberships: 4 for $120

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Campus Bike Center Coordinator

  10. Weekly Update: Strong Towns, Bike Summit, Working Bikes

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    All, Big week of events! On Tuesday, Chuck Marohn of Strong Towns is speaking at the Illinois Terminal and I’ll attend to see how our work as bike advocates and a non-profit can help bolster a strong and vibrant community. And Wednesday is the Illinois Bike Summit at the I-hotel. I’ll be there all day and reducing hours at the Bike Center to account for that. Accordingly, we’ll be open 4 – 6p on that day. I never fail to learn something at this yearly event and am happy to see it back here on campus.

    I’ll be counting/organizing bikes for donation as well this week. Hope to have the Donation Day set by end of the week and so we can begin rallying for some support/help. WB has already agreed to pay for Manolo’s!

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 51

    Sales: $1,214.50

    Memberships: 17 for $510
    Tire/tubes: 8 for $94

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Campus Bike Center Coordinator

  11. Weekly Update: Slower times, Business Hours, Sorting abandoned bicycles

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    All, Slower times here at the Bike Center (in terms of visitors). We’re almost slow enough that we can reinstate the First Visit Free policy. Not quite there, as we’ll have lulls but pick back up again.

    It was discovered that the CBC Google Business hours were not updated when we moved to M – F, which explains why we we’ve been so slow on Tues/Thurs. That has since been corrected so we’ll see if that impacts visit numbers this week.

    Last week I started sorting bikes at the warehouse for shipment/donation. We’ll be saving even more bikes than usual as we’re critically low on consumable parts like tires.

    We managed to rehab a Huffy to an acceptable degree. The frame was in good shape and we piloted a new freewheel system that should hopefully help keep those types of bikes rideable for longer. That bike sold in about 20 minutes. Demand for cheap bikes is evergreen.

    This week I’ll do more sorting at the warehouse and coordinating the donation, an interview or two, and otherwise business-as-usual.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 78
    Sales: $479.50
    Bikes (refurb): 1 for $70
    Memberships: 5 for $150
    Tires/tubes: 9 for $58

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Campus Bike Center Coordinator

  12. Weekly Update: iSEE interview, Replenishing bike stock, Working Bikes

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    All, With the onset of cooler weather, we have seen a decrease in visitor numbers. But that has also correlated with a decrease in available for sale bikes.

    Last week I had an iSEE student come by to interview me and talk all things bikes, so I’ll be sure to keep an eye out for that story. All publicity is good publicity!

    This week I’ll start counting/sorting bikes for the Working Bikes donation—actual date TBD—including moving some of the keeper bikes to the Bike Center to replenish our stock of B-a-Bs and For Sales.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 72
    Sales: $958.25

    Bikes (refurb): 1 for $135
    Memberships: 14 for $420
    Tires/tubes: 15 for $70

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Campus Bike Center Coordinator

  13. Bicycle Retrieval for abandoned bicycles: Completed

    Associated Project(s): 
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    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.

  14. Weekly Update: BTWD, LTN, Build-a-Bike, very busy this week

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center
    C-U Bike to Work Day
    Light the Night
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    All, Real busy times last week. Shop was manageably busy, but we had BTWD and LTN on consecutive days. Both events went well. I spent more time at the DRES stop than the Bike Center station, which was a new experience. Lots of folks on that route, and I was able to talk route-planning and commuting strategy with some people new to commuting. Weather cooperated swimmingly.

    We had a deluge of completed B-a-Bs last week. Always good to see the smiling faces of rewarded effort. Marketing folks came by and updated some of our filing cabinets and bins with printed (legible) labels and photos of contents to better help people find and identify parts. We’re still slower on Tue/Thurs as we work to get the word out that we’re now open those days as well.

    We’ll work this week on a couple shop builds we’ve been too busy to finish, prep for the abandoned bike giveaway, and clean shop as we’ve been too busy to do much of any of that in the last two weeks.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 86
    Sales: $1,084.30
    Bikes (B-a-B): 3 for $150

    Memberships: 17 for $510
    Tires/tubes: 10 for $59

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Campus Bike Center Coordinator

  15. Inventory of all impounded bicycles

    Associated Project(s): 
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    Phase 3 of the project was to inventory all the bicycles at Round Barn. With the help of Nathaniel Nevins and Sathish Ravipatti, Sarthak Prasad finished the inventory of all the impounded bicycles by August 15, 2022.

    Sarthak Prasad spent nearly 50 hours during the tagging, confirming, and inventorying phases of this project.

  16. Weekly Update: Refurbished bicycles, Abandoned bikes

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    All, We’re quickly approaching zero stock for refurbished bikes. One particularly eager patron bought two of our more expensive road bikes back-to-back last week. Thankfully, we received 3 bikes in very-good-to-great condition that should—fingers crossed—be on the sales floor for Wednesday.

    We’re in the beginning stages of clearing out abandoned bikes. Approximately 200 will go to CBC/TBP so that’ll help our inventory. The abandoned bikes at the rack in front of the bike center were cut this morning, cleaning up and clearing space for folks to lock there. We’ll be better able to see if any donations have been left, as well.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 21
    Sales: $1,646.75
    Bikes (refurb): 3 for $1,025
    B-a-B: 1 for $50
    Tires/tubes: 15 for $113

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Campus Bike Center Coordinator

  18. Illinois Newsroom article: University of Illinois tags students’ bicycles with stickers for campus bike clean-up

    Associated Project(s): 
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    Illinois Newsroom article by Sydney Wood about "University of Illinois tags students’ bicycles with stickers for campus bike clean-up." Read the article attached or read it online at: https://illinoisnewsroom.org/the-university-of-illinois-tags-students-bi...

    Attached Files: 

  19. 217Today Interview: Abandoned bicycles

    Associated Project(s): 
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    217Today broadcasted an interview about the removal of abandoned bicycles on campus as part of the campus clean up process. You can listen to the interview at the 2:10 minute mark in this episode.

    Also, check out the Illinois Public Media WILL episode for July 15, 2022 here: https://will.illinois.edu/217today/episode/217-today-to-atone-for-racial...

    Attached Files: 

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