Bikers will have to pay to park on campus under a new plan by UK Parking and Transportation Services.
Under the program beginning in July, bikers will be required to have a permit to park at the bike racks on campus. Although the passes will cost $15 for lifetime registration, from July until March 2010, the fee will be waived.
UK Parking and Transportation Services decided to create a bike plan because no single department is in charge of biking, said Stuart Kearns, the department’s associate director for transportation. The fee will allow Parking and Transportation Services to take charge of efforts such as installing more bicycle racks.
Parking and Transportation Services plans on using part of the money to add to the 2,700 spaces for bikes on campus with new bicycle racks. It will also replace the older-style bicycle racks with newer models. Kearns said the racks now can be “wheel benders,†when many bikes are on the same rack and pressure can cause the front wheel to bend.
The new racks will cater to an increasing presence of bicycling on campus, Kearns said. According to a September survey, Parking and Transportation Services counted about 4,900 bicycles entering and exiting campus in a 12-hour period — a 37 percent increase from a decade earlier.
“I think we’re coming into a time when alternative transportation is becoming more and more popular,†Kearns said.
Kearns said Parking and Transportation Services is now in the planning stages for an educational program to encourage biking and to teach bikers basic procedures.
UK’s bicycle permits, like motorcycle permits, will be a sticker affixed to vehicles. For bicycles, the waterproof permit will be placed on the seat tube between the seat and the pedal.
As with vehicles, Parking and Transportation Services will be in charge of violations such as illegal parking and can scan the permit’s barcode. No additional hiring of enforcement officers is planned now, although the department will assess whether more officers are needed later, said Chrissie Balding Tune, the Parking and Transportation Services spokeswoman.
Tune said bicycle registration would allow officers to use discretion when they impound bicycles.
Right now, UK does not have a method for citing bicycles. The university instead impounds all illegally parked bicycles. In 2008, 237 bicycles were impounded on campus, according to a Parking and Transportation Services news release.
For more information on UK’s bicycle policy, visit www.uky.edu/Parking/transportation-bicycle-info.html.
More information on the bicycle permits should be online this week at Parking and Transportation Services Web site, (www.uky.edu/Parking/).
Image of bicycle permit courtesy of Parking and Transportation Services
This is insane. What’s next, charging us for a permit to use the bathroom? Lifetime Pee Pass, only 20$!
I ride my bike almost every day and have never encountered a bike rack issue. There are always plenty of spots for my bike, and the issue of the “wheel bending” racks is absurd. Don’t be fooled, this is nothing but a pathetic ploy for them to get even more money out of us.
This is insane. What’s next, charging us for a permit to use the bathroom? Lifetime Pee Pass, only 20$!
I ride my bike almost every day and have never encountered a bike rack issue. There are always plenty of spots for my bike, and the issue of the “wheel bending” racks is absurd. Don’t be fooled, this is nothing but a pathetic ploy for them to get even more money out of us. If they really cared about “sustainability” then this wouldn’t even be an issue. You can’t encourage people to ride bikes then fuck them in the ass when they do.
This sounds like a great way to decrease environmentally friendly travel and add more automobile traffic to campus. Thanks UK Parking and Transportation Services!
Anything for a buck right?
Holy UK!! I didn’t see this one coming but not surprised in the least bit. We have to pay Calipari’s ridiculous salary somehow. President Todd should be proud of finding another way to price gouge the students of the university.
First, let me say Calipari’s salary is not entirely paid by the university. Majority of his salary comes from media events and revenue generated from games. With that being said, UK’s decision to start charging students for riding their bikes to campus is asinine. Riding bikes on campus has been done for countless years and to profit from this is crazy. The university already rapes students of money ( although Kentucky has one of the lowest in state and out of state tuitions- see Ohio if you dont believe me). Maybe a little better money management is order for UK. What I received from UK for the money I gave them was not worth it and this just adds to it. If we could go back in time i would have spent my time and money at another university.
Instead of charging all cyclists who park on campus, why not just those who park illegally (not on a bicycle rack, but, for example, on an ADA-compliant hand railing)? UK PTS already charges $25 for someone to claim a bike out of impound for such an offense. Where is this money going?
Also, what about Wildcat Wheels? Will all those bikes be tagged? If their organization has to spend its already limited funds to register those bicycles, it would be crippling.
And for economic decisions like this, PTS should really consult our Econ department! Why on earth would you levy a “tax” on a product (bicycle parking) that helps reduce the number of cars in our crowded parking lots? The only purpose can be to generate revenue, perhaps by discouraging people from riding bikes and encouraging more people to drive cars! Is that in our Sustainability Plan?
WHAT?!?! How will this help anyone? I understand making us pay for parking, there are parking lots, garages and patrol that had to paid for. Making us pay to ride a bike is just ignorant. Are we going to start having walkways with tolls? An entrance fee everytime we set foot on the campus? Plus, they might even have to hire more people to help patrol the bikes! Sure, let’s hire more people to do an unnecessary job – sounds economically efficient to me. I am going to petition our student government – let’s see if they really our my voice to the University.
This is one of the many reason I HATE being a UK student. UK doesn’t care about their student, only the money they can make from them. I will NOT be sending my children here when it’s time for them to pick a college.
I’m in no means a fan of UK parking, but…
“And for economic decisions like this, PTS should really consult our Econ department! Why on earth would you levy a “tax†on a product (bicycle parking) that helps reduce the number of cars in our crowded parking lots? The only purpose can be to generate revenue, perhaps by discouraging people from riding bikes and encouraging more people to drive cars! Is that in our Sustainability Plan?”
Let’s think for a moment — do bike racks cost money? Undoubtably yes. What is it that econ folks love to say? “There’s no such thing as a free lunch.” Same with parking your bike — someone has to pay for those bike racks and to come around and make sure bikes aren’t illegally chained up to other objects on campus. So it makes sense then that people who bike pay these costs. And yes, we do already pay for using bathrooms on campus, walking around on campus, and any other campus-related expense — it’s called tuition. Facilities on campus aren’t funded by some magical dragon who spews out money in all directions.
Let’s think some more. Would this really encourage more cars on campus? Do you really think that a $15 lifetime pass would be considered a larger expense than a car, car insurance, and a parking pass for that car (the pass alone being an annual fee of $200+)? If anything, this new expense would encourage people to walk to campus more or catch rides with friends.
UK Parking and Transportation Services is the Enemy!
I don’t think this is necessarily a bad or greedy idea, so long as the money is used wisely and in ways that benefit those who commute by bicycle to campus. Fifteen dollars over the course of a year or two is pretty negligble if you ride your bike to campus 3-5 times a week.
What I’m curious about is how persons who own more than one bicycle to commute will be accomodated. I have an older bike I ride in wet or snowy weather and a newer bike I ride on dry days. I know several other people who do this also. The article says the permit is non-transferable, which makes me believe that I would need to purchase two permits, even though both bikes will never be on campus at the same time. If they can fix this issue (if it is even an issue), I don’t see any problems in making people pay a very minimal fee for services they use.
This new policy is just sad and I’m even more embarassed by recent decisions made at this University. Why don’t you just add $15 to each parking violation and earmark that money for new bike racks?
I don’t see a problem with this at all. There are other universities that require students to register their bikes. Equipment necessary to facilitate the parking of bicycles needs to be maintained, so it doesn’t seem unreasonable that those who use the equipment would be asked to contribute. At other universities, these types of policies are also used to help control bike theft.
The use of these funds to provide bike education would also be hugely beneficial. I’ve been at UK for 4 years now, and in that entire time I’ve only seen a handful of people actually obey proper bicycle rules. Very few riders appear to remember the appropriate hand signals. Many ride on the wrong side of the road or do not stop at traffic signs or signals. This is DANGEROUS. If UK is going to have more bikers, then those people need basic education about obeying the rules of the road.
We’re already in an economy that has forced us into an academic hiring freeze and a 5% tuition increase, and now UK wants to charge us for the only method of transportation that has always been free? There’s a way to help us pull through a recession.
Well everyone was wanting “Change” and you are getting it! lol
Lee and the gang are just following city,state & federal lawmakers motions. Gimme,gimme, gimme. When will you all learn that is just about taking your money to satisfy their incompetence at money management? Keep being sheep, people…….all the way to the slaughterhouse.
My personal feelings aside, you all need to take a step back and realize that, so long as you do it in the next 12 months, YOU WON’T HAVE TO PAY. This will only affect those new students entering in the summer or fall of 2010 and anyone who purchases a new bike after that time. To answer Mark’s question, one should be able to get as many permits as needed for free before the date that changes, so as to accommodate their bike fleet (yeah, I’ve got one, too).
Like Mr. Darby said, something (or someone) has to pay for bicycling facilities on this campus, and given the otherwise tight budget around here, it’s not an easy sell to get the university to pay for new bike lanes unless the people using them are the ones paying. Same goes for bike parking. $20 is minimal, especially compared to the costs of maintaining an automobile; perhaps even more so when you consider 90% of the bikes on this campus probably cost no more than $10.
Take a step back and realize while it may not be the absolute most preferable situation, it’s one that’s going to be beneficial for all bicyclists on this campus in the long run.
Not to mention the fact that as cyclists we do not pay Kentucky’s Motor Fuels tax to help fund the maintenance of existing roads . . .
UK is taking a step in the wrong direction. If all they wanted is a way to cite and fine bike owners if parked illegally, they could make these registrations available for free. I have been riding my bike pretty much every day since starting to work at UK, and it gets me nothing but smirks and smart allick comments. My husband and I could each be driving a car to campus and take up two spots every day, even though we only live 1.5 miles from campus. We ride bikes because it saves money, but also to reduce our “carbon footprint”, but the latter gets you nowhere at UK.
This is absurd and a slap in the face to everyone of us that chooses to save time, money and avoid heart disease by using a bike get to and from campus.
Bike “education” is not UK’s role just as driver’s education is not UK’s role.
The impoundment system that P&T uses currently works fine and amounts to about a day’s job in the middle of the summer.
P&T, take care of the parking business and leave it at that! Oh, and so no increase in our parking permit fee? Now I see how you are going to make up for that!
UK=fail.
I don’t see a problem with this. The university provides bike racks. Bike racks cost money. A fee of $15 for a LIFETIME pass is completely reasonable. I occasionally ride my bike instead of walking. I have the option. I understand how this can be frustrating to someone who has to ride their bike everyday, but in the end, it is essentially a one-time fee of $15. I think that is doable by everyone and still much cheaper than a parking pass.
This is hardly asinine, this is a serious attempt to bring bicycles on par cars as serious modes of transportation. BICYCLES ARE NO LONGER TOYS, BUT TOOLS.
I’ve biked on/around campus for 6 years now, and it’s a relief to see cyclists are finally getting equal treatment with cars.
It’s $15 FOR LIFE and FREE UNTIL MARCH 2010! If you don’t wish to pay it, drive a car and spend $200+ a year to park half a mile away from campus.
If you’ve ever had a bike stolen, you’ll be thankful that this $15 sticker will get it back to you if it’s ever found.
Do yourself a favor and take a peek in the parking garage next to the downtown library and see what happens to UNREGISTERED bicycyles that are impounded, 90% of those bikes probably have owners that think their bike was stolen when in reality, the impounders have no way of tracking it back to the owner. The image of some fat cat laughing on his pile of impounded bikes is completely a myth, in fact it most likely COSTS money to have those bikes sit there for months on end.
Take a deep breath and read more than the headline. Nothing in life is free and college is the time when one should start to realize that fact. I’m sure it’s hard to see something positive when rules are placed on the freewheeling lifestyle a bicycle provides, but the benefits are there. Better racks, MORE racks, bike lanes, bicycle education, all of this and more is now feasible with some kind of income tied directly to cycling. Thank you UK!
I also seriously doubt UK has the time/resources to haul off 50 bikes at a time without registration tags. Someone turn off the PANIC alarm.
Another bad idea from the UK parking office. The University should be encouraging biking not discouraging it by instituting another asinine user fee. Students should PROTEST THIS IDEA NOW!
UK is VERY willing to impound multiple bikes at the same time. I’ve seen 3 tow trucks in the R lot next to Haggin Hall the day after move-ins, before classes even started. There is no doubt someone working for the university will pull up a truck and load bikes into it.
HOW STUPID!!!!!! charging students who are being economically friendly!!!!
I think the make enough money off parking tickets to install new UNNECESSARY bike racks!!!
Can you get any more GREEDY toward starving college students, you should be disgusted with yourself!
This is absolutely ridiculous!
Everyone here that is complaining is ridiculous. $15 is NOTHING. Buy one book off of amazon instead of at kennedys or drink natty instead of bud for a couple weeks and you’ve got your $15. As someone who’s had 2 bikes taken from campus, it will be nice to have some sort of registration on them.
And not to mention the fact that people who are environmentally friendly generally voted for our current President, and if a $15 ‘tax’ to ride your bike for up to 4 years scares you, then what were you thinking this past November?
And if this means more/better bike racks, that’s fine. Remember that a K lot pass is like $250 not to mention getting there every day (gas, wear and tear, etc) so this $15 really is nothing.
This is absurd. You can’t make this up, especially considering Kentucky ranks 3rd in the nation among adults who report no physical activity in the past month. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 2001)
Where can I sign up for a walking pass? How much will that cost? Do I need to pay a desk fee on top of tuition? Way to discourage environmentally friendly transportation! Add this to the list of absurd practices at UK.
How much did UK pay for the new signs on campus? Around $250,000…..and now they want to charge to park a bike………
This shows that UK Parking just doesn’t get it. Shouldn’t our flagship university be supporting bicycle riding instead of penalizing it?
I already buy a parking permit but I think UK should increase the cost of using a car on campus. Let the less desirable mode of transportation pay for more bike racks, paths, and pedestrian friendly accommodations.
Make it easier to walk or ride a bike, or take a shuttle. More bikes on campus mean less traffic and congestion. More open parking spaces. Healthier people.
Parking at UK for one year already costs students and employees hundreds of thousands of dollars to support the vast UK parking empire. UK campus is in the grip of a parking administration that is more car centric than pedestrian focused.
Let’s hope that UK will choose to lead and create a healthier, more environmentally and energy aware campus and not institute this fee.
Im not so worried about the free pass or the fact that future students/faculty/public will pay $15. I am more offended at the fact that I have to adhere a parking sticker to my bicycle. For some that may not matter but for myself, well thats just another thing that I did not choose to have on there except by necessity. I already refuse to sticker my motorcycle and take the chance of a ticket. Now I seem to have the choice; sticker or suck
Also if I park rouge now I have to worry about someone scratching the paint on my bike or tearing the handlebar tape. Its not as if the patrol person is gonna know how to treat a bike is it.
Lastly I expect that very little of the revenues from this program will go back into caring for cyclist commuters. Just raise the tuition again, and again.
I should probably get a sticker for my Nike’s huh. You know to beat the 2015 shoe pass rush! (snicker snicker)
After a little time to cool off and do some research, I want to share my thoughts again. Of course, UK has not gone blindly into the bike permit idea. They likely looked at our benchmark institutions before launching this program. Here’s an example at UNC: http://www.dps.unc.edu/Police/communityassistance/services/bikeregistrationandpolicy.cfm
Although paying for a permit sounded absurd at first, I do like the legitimacy that this gives to a bicycle as a form of transportation. Thanks to James G. for pointing this out. Sometimes the line between “right” and “privilege” becomes blurred.
UK has made great strides in promoting bicycle usage over the past 5 years. I used to be confused by all the anti-bike signage on sidewalks, but many of those have now been properly designated as shared paths (as they were designated on the Campus Bicycle Map: http://maps.uky.edu/printablemaps/bicycle_24X36.pdf). I also appreciate the hard work by Shane Tedder to secure the resources for improving the Wildcat Wheels program.
When the dust settles, I hope the result is one fewer awkward stare from a motorist to a cyclist. When I ride up to a stoplight next to a car, we can both point to our parking permits and know we paid for the privilege to park on UK’s campus.
this is insane. I ride my bike all the time and never have a problem with the racks. this is just another way to try to squeeze as much money out of us as possible. It’s probably mainly about control, no smoking, no bikes, what’s next? will we have to pay for special headsets to hear our teacher speak. they’re just trying to see how far they can push us. If this happens i’m not buying a permit, i’m parking my car in front of whitehall and any other building I have class in.
now we can pay our new basketball coach the 6 MILLION we promised him! o joy.
Nick, many other universities do NOT see parking on their campus-you know, the one which you paid thousands of dollars to attend,-as a “privilege.” Campus parking is a right, not a privilege. The inflated tuition costs should cover all parking expenses. Also, we need to drop the bullshit here: UK is not, nor will it ever be, UNC Chapel Hill. God forbid UK does a fucking service to their students and let them park on campus at will. Even a first-come first-serve basis would be fine with me.
Tyson- to really quickly address your final point, you are mistaken. 100% of the revenue from the permits themselves will be reinvested in bicycling facility improvements on campus. It’s likely that money coming from fines (that will not be divvied out for just not having a permit – another offense would be necessary for that to happen) would also go into bicycling improvements rather than into general university or PTS funds.
also, try lightening up a bit if you’re that concerned about the aesthetics of your bike(s) that you refuse to license them properly or adhere to university or local bicycle regulations. Only caring about your bar tape (and probably your matching deep V’s) does nothing to legitimate bicycling as a viable alternative form of transportation on this campus.
$15,000-$20,000 is not going to pay for anything. Maybe a couple signs. Painting lines is much more expensive.
What happened to the money from the student fees that is supposed to cover environmental issues?
Areas that need bike lanes are also in dire need of overall infrastructure improvements, which would be provided by grants and other means.
Why would I want my $400 bike damaged with a sticker?
Take responsibility – WRITE DOWN YOUR BIKE’S ID NUMBER!!! Store it in a safe place.
Bike registration is a gimmick. The site the university uses sells your information.
Why was this put through without student input?
Lee Todd promised that parking fees will not increase this coming year. Promise broken.
Offering to grandfather bikes up until March is a scheme to prevent student anger.
Future students will have no say, because current students will have been “payed off.”
How will visitors and local Lexington people be integrated into this system? The campus is expansive and part of the city.
I already pay a parking fee for my car, which is needed.
Email and call to voice these and other concerns to Todd, Kearns, your college and department heads, your advisors, city council members, and Mayor Newberry. Do we want to continue for Lexington and the university to remain unfriendly to responsible living? Lexington has a bronze rating for bicycling and is trying hard for a silver rating or higher. These kinds of policies are counter-productive to the work being done.
Well UK. You nickle and dimed me for the last time. Farewell. I’m accepting elsewhere for grad school. Just not worth it. I own 3 bikes and regularly ride all of them. That adds up not to mention I refuse to put anything on them that would mar the aesthetics. Say what you will (and this is specificially directed at Taylor) but some of us do put alot of clout behind the aesthetics of the bike (v necks aside… though i’m sure a flannel and hiking boots are ok right?). And I’m sure as hell not gonna pay the ridiculous amount of money for a commuter pass for my car.
In the future UK, if you plan on becoming a top 20 university, invest in your students once in a while. It may actually pay off.
Not gonna do it. I’ll see hell freeze over first. Horrible idea
How can we as students stop this? This is horrible, even the United States government doesn’t charge a tax on bikes.
UK Parking is nothing but greedy and they don’t even pay for over half of the bike racks on campus. How about the ones outside dorms installed when the dorm was built and not paid for by UK parking. They are nothing but greedy people wasting paychecks that could be spent toward other things. (despite if they make more money in tickets a day than they are paid) It is in my opinion a waste of resources for progressing this university towards top 20. And there is no way they will not lose money monitoring bikes.
This really is ridiculous. Not only is tuition increased 9% last year and this year, but not we have to pay to ride our bikes to school. I really do not think you( University of Kentucky Transportation) have weighed the consequences if this was to be implemented. And Yet this is supposed to be a Green School, right. Why don’t you use a little chuck of that money from these new and lavish buildings around campus to support your cause, instead of making the college students pay a fee for riding their bikes during this recession.
How much is it going to cost to pay more Meter Maids to walk around for hours upon hours writing tickets/impounding bikes? If people are worried about bikes being stolen, the registration could be free (or they could go online and register with the local police department but lord knows that’s too complicated), but I know several people who have very expensive bikes and race for UK who would really prefer not to ruin the paint job.
IT’S FREE UNTIL MARCH 2010
I would also like to point out that with the passing of the stimulus bill in 2008 (remember the one with the $700 billion price tag?) YOU as a commuter are eligible for a tax break of up to $20 a month to pay for repairs/equipment/maintenance on a bicycle used for transportation to work. To those of you that actually read more than your own comment, here’s the link that shows that the GOVERNMENT will actually pay for your pass:
http://www.bicycleretailer.com/news/newsDetail/1878.html
http://www.commuteconnection.com/assets/pdf/Bicycle%20Commuter%20Federal%20Benefit.pdf
PLEASE do not delete this post as spam for the links, these two links alone should silence anyone who both goes to school and works. Everyone else will most likely have their parents pay for their bike parking pass along with everything else.
Lee Todd, Jr. 859 257-1701 ltodd@email.uky.edu
Stuart Kearns 859 257-6362 gskear2@email.uky.edu
Mayor Newberry 859 425-2255 mayor@lfucg.com
First of all, I’m getting so tired of people blaming Calipari’s salary on everything. UK does not direclty pay his salary! Boosters and donors pay for it so it has NOTHING to do with this fee! Nor does it have anything to do with any of the tuition increases or budget decreases. Stop complaining!!!
That being said, I do think the fee is asinine!! No, $15 is not a lot of money but it makes no sense! Why would we need new bike racks? This seems another way to generate more money from students and staff. I pay for a parking permit to park my car in the over crowded garages on campus but when it is nice, I like to ride my bike as often as possible. I love to ride and be outdoors and get the exercise. So now you want me to pay for both? This does seem to discourage bike riding rather then encourage it. I wish more people would ride a bike. And I don’t believe for a minute the reasons UK Transportation gave for the new fee. And yes, this is not until March 2010 but as someone said, this gives the new incoming students and staff no say so. Why were we not given the chance to voice our opinions before this was set? Why doesn’t UK care more about their students and staff? It is all about the money! Thanks L. T.!!!
Only in Kentucky would they tax you for exercising. Seems to fit well with Kentucky’s penchant for lack of sidewalks and pedestrians NOT having the right of way.