By snoadmin
The League of American Bicyclists will honor Cal State Long Beach with an award for receiving the silver ranking as a bicycle friendly university on April 7.
According to Sustainable Transportation Program Coordinator Elissa Thomas, the application was very extensive and takes into account everything from how much bike parking there is on campus to the types of programs implemented for bicycle education.
Carly Sieff, program assistant for Bicycle Friendly America, said CSULB met many of those requirements.
“Cal State [Long Beach] had a very strong application,” Sieff said. “Some highlights include plentiful bike parking, education for incoming students, cash incentives for faculty and staff to bike to work, and positive enforcement ticketing.”
According to csulb.edu, employees get $1 a day cash value for riding a bike to work.
Sieff said the selections are not based on specific criteria, like how many miles of bike lanes a school has. Instead, the size and location of the institution are taken into account, along with the five Es — engineering, education, encouragement, enforcement, and evaluation and planning.
Thomas found out about the program through some instructors of Traffic Skills 101, many of who are members of the League of American Bicyclists.
Traffic Skills 101 is a class designed to help people become more comfortable with riding bikes in Long Beach. The class is taught on campus and is free to students and faculty.
Thomas also said that being a bicycle-friendly university is helpful to the surrounding city.
“In Long Beach in particular, air quality issues are huge since we are in close proximity to two of the largest ports,” Thomas said. “Anything we can do to mitigate air pollution is important.”
Sophomore political science major Allan Nguyen agreed that CSULB is a bicycle-friendly campus, taking note of various bike racks, pathways and trails on campus.
In addition, Thomas wrote a survey and submitted it to Associated Students Inc. to find out how students would feel about bike stations, or indoor parking for bikes.
Bike stations are modular, solar powered and provide a secure place for students and staff to lock up their bikes. Thomas said there would be a membership fee, but she would plan on offering a reduced fee for students. The stations take up about the same amount of space as one parked car and would provide parking for up to 30 bikes. The stations would also have tools such as air pumps for students to use.
A ceremony for the presentation of the award will take place on April 7 in the Pyramid Annex on campus. Contact Elissa Thomas at 562-985-4091 for more information.
Disclaimer: The Daily 49er is not responsible for Postings made on www.daily49er.wpengine.com. Persons commenting are solely responsible for Postings made on this website. Persons commenting agree to the Terms of Use of the website. If Postings do not abide by the Rules of Conduct or Posting Regulations as listed in the Postings Policy, the Daily 49er has all rights to delete Postings as it deems necessary. The Daily 49er strongly advises individuals to not abuse their First Amendment rights, and to avoid language suggestive of hate speech. This site also encourages users to make Postings relevant to the article or other Postings.
