The Senior Council of the Associated Students of the University of Utah is gearing up for this year’s senior gift.
The plan is to establish a U bike rental program featuring 30 red beach cruisers, a campus maintenance shop and a bicycle repair class. The estimated cost for the first year of the Ubike program is $33,000, and the Senior Council is asking seniors to donate $20.09 to help fund the program.
Although a bike rental program could have some benefit on campus, there are several speed bumps that could easily prevent its success.
First, the selection of beach cruisers isn’t a good fit for the U’s campus, given its hilly terrain. Not only are beach cruisers generally heavier than road bikes, they offer fewer gears. Beneficiaries of the rental program might enjoy the ride downhill, but they are in for a workout if they are coming up from lower campus. Using beach cruisers might be an interesting idea, but it isn’t practical for the U.
Besides the unreasonable bike model, running a successful bike rental program is a difficult enterprise. The chances are pretty good that a significant number of the bikes will be stolen or damaged. For those who have paid the $400 tab to sponsor a bike, their donation would be in vain when that bike suddenly disappears.
The original cost to purchase the bikes and get the program on its feet would be a one-time contribution, and therefore there will be no continued funding to replace stolen or broken bikes. For the program to continue operating, ASUU would have to find additional sources of funding or an indefinite number of volunteers and donations. It isn’t hard to imagine the program becoming either a total loss or a burden for future student leaders to fund.
Instead of inventing a program from scratch with one-time funding, the Senior Council should consider using the senior gift money to help fund the U Bicycle Collective. The collective offers to help maintain and refurbish bikes for nominal donations. Although you have to own your own bike to access these benefits, it is more practical than trying to maintain the number and quality of a small fleet of bikes that are lent out for free.
Donating the senior gift money to the Bicycle Collective and working to move the organization to a more central location than its current home near the Utah Museum of Fine Arts would benefit more students in the long run, include less risk and help keep a worthy campus group in business.