As U commuters crowd UTA’s University TRAX line, FrontRunner commuter rail and buses, their bikes often block the doorways.
TRAX cars, designed to hold two bicycles at each end, average four to five cyclists per car in the mornings.
“It’s so bad at Gallivan (Plaza, where Sandy passengers transfer to the University Line),” said April Wilde, a senior in Spanish and communication who commutes to the U six days a week with her bike and TRAX. “There are just so many students trying to get onto a train that will not hold them all. If they were really strict about enforcing the rules, I would never get on the train.”
In light of the bicycle congestion on public transportation this semester, UTA will start to remove seats near the doorway in some TRAX trains and install benches to allow for more bikes. FrontRunner cars are also under redesign. To start, seats will be removed near the doors on the first level, and UTA might outfit future FrontRunner cars with some sort of bike rack.
Sam Hansen, a graduate student in social work, leaves from the Murray Central TRAX station with his bike every morning. He has been late to his internship this semester because the train was full, forcing him to stay behind and wait for the next train.
“There were already people in the stairwell,” Hansen said. “I just thought no way. The train leaves so fast anyway. I just decided to wait for the next one.”
Buses, however, might not have a future solution.
“Buses are much more difficult to deal with bikes than the other modes of transportation that we offer,” said Carrie Bohnsack-Ware, a spokeswoman for the Utah Transit Authority.
Two years ago UTA installed bike racks on buses that held more than two bicycles.
“We used them until we found out it was illegal to use racks with over two bikes on them because not enough light was getting through from the headlights after dark, so we had to go back to the old system,” Bohnsack-Ware said.
Cyclists can board the bus with their bikes if the bus is not full. But buses to the U are often full in the morning, which is when most students are heading to class.
This is the catch-22 that Paul Seevinck, a senior in Spanish, finds himself in every morning.
“I would love to be able to use my bike but there are not enough racks on the bus,” he said. “I would not be able to guarantee that I can get on the bus if the rack is full, which it usually is when I get on.”
With full buses and train cars, some students are deciding against public transit.
“I’ve talked with my classmates,” Hansen said. “They don’t (use public transportation), because it gets too crowded. I think that’s stopping some people from riding TRAX.”
Frustrated, Wilde wrote a letter to UTA and the U last week complaining about the congestion.
“My letter basically said they’re aware that there will be more commuters, (so) why are they only sending two cars?” she said.
Alma Allred, director of Commuter Services, replied to Wilde’s letter.
“The length of the trains is limited by the length of the smallest platform on the route,” Allred said. “Four car trains are longer than several of the stations. New cars have been ordered by UTA that will allow four cars on existing platforms.”
But Wilde sees a larger problem now than limited space for cyclists.
“Students are paying for these passes, but not every student is using them,” Wilde said. “(UTA) is willing to take the money out of everyone’s tuition, but they can’t accommodate all of the students. For me that’s really unethical for UTA to take the money out of our tuition or fees and then tell us that there would be no way to support everyone using it.”