Could campus bicycle sharing be next?

Ripon College President David Joyce Biking
Originally uploaded by rllayman

Image: Ripon College President David Joyce biking.

Washcycle also linked to an AP story about how Ripon College has introduced the Velorution program in response to increased demand for parking spaces from the car. See "Wis. College to Give Bikes to Freshmen."

From the press release produced by Ripon College:

Dealing with student vehicles is not just a big-campus problem; the 1,000-student liberal arts college 70 miles northwest of Milwaukee discovered last fall that demand for student parking was about to outstrip its capacity. Proposed solutions focused on where additional lots could go, but President David C. Joyce, an avid cyclist, was dead-set against it.
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This relates to my point that colleges should have to do transportation demand planning, and create transportation demand management plans specifically focused on reducing single occupancy vehicle trips.

For resident-oriented campuses, with dormitories and many on-campus residents, universities could have their own version of bikesharing programs. Or they could participate in city-wide bikesharing programs, but a smartchip in their university-based card could give students and staff additional privileges, and the university could pay for some campus-specific bikesharing locations and inventory.

GWU likely doesn't have a lot of parking for students, so it is a special case, but it's a logical place to have bike sharing. What about University of Maryland?

Velib bikesharing location, Paris. AP photo.