A voluntary bicycle registration program run by University Police will merge with DOTS’s bicycle initiatives in an effort to increase registration on the campus.
David Allen, director of the Department of Transportation Services, said the department plans to officially assume responsibilities for free, voluntary registration this fall. Registration will serve to notify owners of improperly parked bicycles before impounding them and track bicycle flow so the department can determine the best place to install bike racks, expanding the program’s present purpose of simply identifying stolen bikes, Allen said.
Allen said he also wanted to provide sticker permits to put on registered bikes, trying to emulate the vehicle registration’s formality in the hopes it will catch on and grow into a widely used program.
Capt. John Brandt, commander of the crime prevention unit for University Police, said DOTS has embraced bicycles as an important mode of transportation and will work to integrate them into the department to make the campus a more biker-friendly environment. He said there are more than 1,000 registered bicycles on campus, and he expects the number to reach an all-time high once DOTS expands the program.
“It gives us another tool to help protect you,” Brandt said. “The more bikes that are registered helps you and it helps us. In the end, we’re aiming to improve the lot of bicyclists on campus.”
Allen said DOTS will provide incentives for registering, such as free helmets, water bottles and discount coupons to bicycle stores in College Park. Brandt also said he is working to draft a proposal where bike registration could include a metal U-lock for a small fee.
With DOTS issuing permits, Allen said the department will be equipped to track the flow of bikes on the campus and see which areas are being frequented by bikers more often. Brandt added that tracking will allow bike racks to be built closer to the street in congested areas so they can be monitored more carefully by officers, reducing the number of bikes stolen.
A few bikers expressed doubt that anything would change as DOTS takes over the bicycle-registration process. Junior aerospace engineering major Chris Chang said the initiative “sounds like it’s a scam to get personal information.”
Although some bikers are skeptical, most feel positive about bicycle registration and permits.
“It’s a very good idea,” junior physics major Andrew Grossman said. “My bike was stolen freshman year and there was nothing I could do about it. I just felt helpless and pissed off.”
“It seems like it would be smart to have bikes registered just because if you get your bike stolen you’d have some kind of recourse,” creative writing graduate student Brent McCafferty said.
Along with bicycles, Allen said motorized scoters will also be asked to register.
“There needs to be tighter regulation for scooters,” he said. “They are not being driven well at all.”
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