The League of American Bicyclists has honored the University of Vermont with a Gold-level Bicycle Friendly University award in recognition of the institution’s achievements in promoting and enabling safe, accessible bicycling on campus.
“Congratulations to the University of Vermont for its inclusion in a select class of 45 new and renewing Bicycle Friendly Universities nationwide,” says League Executive Director Bill Nesper. “The standards for attaining any of the four levels of awards—Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum—are very high and require deliberate, determined efforts to earn them. Universities and colleges are in a unique leadership position to help encourage and enable people of all ages—especially young adults—to adopt healthy, sustainable habits that can benefit them throughout their lives.”
The program, which now includes 193 BFU colleges and universities, is part of the League’s larger program and mission to create a Bicycle Friendly America for everyone.
“More than 3.8 million students now attend Bicycle Friendly Universities in 46 states and Washington, DC,” says BFU Director Amelia Neptune. “From large to small, urban to rural, these educational institutions are creating a powerful community of college campuses that model and support the use of bicycles for improving health, sustainability, and transportation options.”
This year, UVM was promoted from a silver to a gold-level Bicycle Friendly University. “It’s really exciting to see our university be recognized as a gold-level bike friendly campus,” says UVM Bikes President, Connor Smith. “I think it marks a positive trend in bike culture and infrastructure, and hopefully this achievement will inspire UVM to continue to improve biking here on campus.” UVM Bikes is a student led group that runs the Bicycle Education Co-op on campus.
Being bike friendly has made getting around UVM and Burlington easier and more sustainable. In the spring of 2018, UVM played a pivotal role in implementing the Greenride Bikeshare, which services university students, faculty, and staff. The University of Vermont encourages bicycling as an easy option for transportation and provides amenities such as convenient bike parking, an on-campus co-op for bicycle education and repairs, and is working on implementing improved infrastructure such as bike lanes and covered bike parking.
Moving forward, the University of Vermont will have access to a variety of free tools and technical assistance from the League to become even more bicycle friendly. When colleges and universities invest in bicycling, great things happen: reduced carbon emissions, increased health of university affiliates, and a community in which people are more connected to one another and to the place where they live.
To apply or learn more about the free BFU program, visit the League online at www.bikeleague.org/university.
Source: UVM News