Michael Stanfill assembles a new bicycle on Tuesday, March 15, 2011, for a rental program at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Stanfill, a sophomore mechanical engineering student, is working with the program approved by the UAF Office of Sustainability to offer bikes for both short- and long-term rentals starting in April. (Photo by Sam Harrel/Fairbanks Daily News-Miner)
The University of Alaska Fairbanks Office of Sustainability has approved a new campus bicycle rental program, according to a recent article in the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner.
The bike rental program is funded through a grant of roughly $10,000 from a campus sustainability fee students pay each semester. The bikes will be available for short- and long-term rentals starting in April through the UAF Outdoor Adventures program.
According to the News-Miner, the bike rental program is part of a larger UAF campus drive to reduce vehicle traffic and auto exhaust emissions. The program funds 20 new entry-level Kona mountain bikes, which will be available to students. The campus also has a stockpile of about 100 used bikes that could become available once they are fixed up.
Fairbanks bicycle designer Simon Rakower told the News-Miner that previous attempts to start a campus bike rental program stalled because they relied on donated used bikes, which sometimes required obscure parts or constant repairs. Starting with a fleet of similar-model new bikes will make this effort more successful, he said.
At this time, the plan is for the program to start after spring break-up and continue through the summer and into the fall. But at this time it’s unclear if the bikes will be available for winter riding, even though Fairbanks has a large winter cycling community. Winterizing the bikes costs a lot of money, and riding on the snow and ice is more than most casual cyclists want to attempt.
Alaska Bicycle and Pedestrian Alliance 
This sounds like a good plan. I wonder how it will work.