UA passes Bike Safety Proposal

Last week, the Undergraduate Assembly passed its Bike Safety Proposal in hopes of establishing a more bike-friendly campus.

This aim, however, reaches beyond just keeping bicyclists and pedestrians safe. The group hopes the initiative will increase the odds that a Philadelphia bike-sharing system comes to University City, a goal many students support - as evidenced by the "Just Ride Me" Facebook group, which had 740 members as of yesterday.

College junior Dan Sanchez, who has worked with the UA on the project, emphasized that the proposal extends beyond biking.

"All of the forms of commuting around here - whether subway, walking [or] biking - are really intertwined and of prime importance," he said.

The UA's proposal cited a study by The Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia that reported a 104-percent increase in bicycle use in the city. The UA emphasized the need to address this growing trend on campus.

Sanchez and others directing the proposal have already met with the Division of Public Safety and plan to meet with other campus authorities.

DPS spokeswoman Stephanie Cella agreed that such measures were now more important than ever, especially "in light of the closure of the South Street Bridge."

Cella cited recent increases in wrong-way bicyclist traffic on the Walnut Street Bridge as a result of the closure.

The proposal expressed an interest in working with DPS in its campaign for bike safety and awareness and suggested better enforcement of double-parked cars or bicyclists riding illegally on sidewalks.

DPS and the UA also hope to clarify signs around campus that relate to bike use. For example, they hope to work with City officials to increase signs listing legal hours to ride on Locust Walk.

"There have been too many close encounters between pedestrians and bicyclists on Locust," Cella said.

Many of the initiatives in the proposal are already in effect and enforced by DPS, Cella explained. However, she said she is happy with the partnership and hopes that it leads to better safety.

"We're looking to work with everyone in the community to promote bicycle riding, safety and security," she said.

The UA will also be involved in DPS's "Share the Road" campaign on Mar. 24. The event will bring together community organizations to promote bike use and demonstrate how to properly ride, lock and secure bikes.

In an official statement, DPS Vice President Maureen Rush also praised the UA's endorsement of DPS on the issue of bike and pedestrian safety.

"The Share the Road campaign is just one more example of [the UA's] positive partnership with DPS," she wrote.

Sanchez, however, emphasized that these goals do not automatically translate into harsher enforcement.

"I don't think that the DPS is interested in writing tickets to people who break the law," he said. "They're much more focused on information than enforcement."

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