An astronaut, a cowboy, Mario the Plumber and their rowdy band of costumed followers jumped on bicycles Thursday to travel the new campus bicycle routes.
Ten members of the U Bicycle Collective celebrated the installation of the new routes and raised awareness of the bike lanes with a Halloween ride.
“The bicycle routes are going to give cyclists a place to ride and not encounter pedestrians,” said Weston Edwards, a junior in mechanical engineering and the director of the U Bicycle Collective. “There have been some nasty accidents involving bicyclists and pedestrians (on the campus sidewalks).”
The bicyclists in the ride said that a parade would draw more attention to the lanes than a regular ride.
The Halloween outing had a slowed pace because of masks with limited visibility, bulky clothes and capes, but riders said they wanted their costumes to stay on no matter what to maintain festivity.
Jordan Huntington, a junior in photography, dressed as the video game character Mario.
“I’m sure once the adrenaline kicks in, I won’t even notice my moustache,” she said as she scratched underneath her large fake moustache.
Archie Phillips, a campus architect and 20-year bicycle commuter, said the new bike lanes, which appeared last weekend, are a mystery to students. Phillips worked closely with Commuter Services on the sidewalk bike lanes project. The lanes are a work in progress, he said, and Campus Design will add bicyclist stencils and speed limit markings before this weekend.
“If everyone communicates with Commuter Services about where they want bicycle routes, that will make (extension of the paths) go much quicker,” Phillips said.
The bike routes proceed from the Heritage Center to the Marriott Library and then to the Student Services Building. The lanes will extend to the Warnock Engineering Building as soon as the water piping construction in the area finishes. Phillips expects to extend the routes to Presidents’ Circle next and connect routes with city bike lanes.
Lennie MahlerNicholas Nascimento, dressed as Death, readies his protective helmet before riding with the U Bicycle Collective around new bike trails on campus.
Lennie MahlerJordan Huntington, as Mario; Van Hoover, as Superman; and Nicholas Nascimento, as Death, ride their bikes with the U Bicycle Collective around campus Thursday to promote new bike trails. The trails will designate parts of sidewalks around campus to bicyclists.