Anyone who has been at Roger for even a small amount of time will see that students get around campus in many different ways. Most walk, but it is common to see many students riding skateboards, scooters, bikes, and even hoverboards. The outlier there, however, is bikes. All the other modes of transportation are small enough that they are easy to keep and store in one’s room. Bikes, however, are different: they are pretty big, and there are not enough designated places on campus to keep them.

Now, to give some credit, the campus is pretty good with placement of bike racks. There is at least one in front of nearly every academic building on campus, including GHH, MNS, Commons, the Rec Center, and more. The main issue arises when you realize that that does not translate over to the residential buildings. Sure, there are a few, like the one down at Willow and several at New Res, but some buildings (like Stonewall) do not have any bike racks near them at all, and others (like the aforementioned Willow) are forced to collectively share a single rack. With the absence of a designated place to put their bikes, people living in these dorms are forced to lock their cycles against anything they can, be it lampposts, handrails, or even just a metal gate.

The main consequence of not having enough bike racks at Roger is that not as many people bring their bikes onto campus with them. This is unfortunate, as biking is an excellent form of exercise. Doing it regularly can have many benefits including protecting you from diabetes, obesity, arthritis, and even help with depression. It is also low-impact, meaning that it causes less injuries and strain than other forms of exercise, and requires very little inherent skill to participate in. Having a bike on campus can also help any students without cars get off campus and into town much easier, as they do not have to rely on the sometimes inconsistent schedules of the shuttles (something that I found myself doing frequently my freshman year). Bristol is even home to one end of the East Bay Bike Path, a 14.5 mile bike trail that is an excellent place to go if you are looking for a place to just bike. I really believe that having more bike racks on campus would be a great benefit to the student body, and encourage many people to be more active physically, mentally, and socially here at RWU.