Carleton has introduced the bike-share program Right Bike on campus as part of the Sustainability at Carleton initiative.
The program is open for both students and visitors, and the cost to rent one bike is $5. The bikes are equipped with a basket, a lock, three-speed internal gear, and an adjustable seat, according to Carleton’s website. For $60, the bike can be rented annually.
Samuel Benoit, the operational manager for Right Bike, said Carleton is a major centre of the city and the program aims to connect the campus with the community.
“As a Carleton alumni myself, I’m especially glad to be playing a part in bringing a new sustainable transportation option to my alma mater,” Benoit said.
In order to bring their program to Carleton, Benoit said the Right Bike team began discussions with Carleton’s Healthy Workplace initiative last fall.
He added the program was brought in collaboration with Carleton’s sustainability team at facilities management and planning and conference services.
Students can rent the bikes using the Residence Commons reception desk, where anyone interested can purchase passes and obtain keys.
Benoit said the bike share program also allows renters to use different bikes to get to and from destination points. Returning the original bike back to the hub it was taken from is not required.
First-year student Haley Inkpen said she thinks the new bike-share program will be good for students.
“I’ve seen the bikes outside Residence Commons,” Inkpen said. “It’s a cool idea.”
According to Darryl Boyce, vice-president (facilities and management planning) at Carleton, not only students and visitors benefit from this program, but the environment as well as it offers an environmentally-friendly alternative to the usual methods of transportation.
“Instead of a bus or taxi, the option is there to take a bike, even if they don’t have their own,” Boyce said.
Boyce added that Right Bike offers a sustainable transport program that is readily accessible to students on campus and visitors.
The university paid a small fee to build the infrastructure, however there is no ongoing cost to keep the program running at the school, according to Boyce.
Benoit said the program will be shut down at the end of October, as use tends to die down, according to . . .
