Thousands of Bike Riders Rush to Register or Possibly Get Impounded at UC Santa Barbara
John Palminteri
UC SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) – There aren’t many places where having an authorized registration for your bike is mandatory, but that’s the rule at UC Santa Barbara if you want to protect your bike. With school starting this week, the rush is on to get those registrations done.
Data shows an estimated 14,000 people commute to UCSB daily on a bicycle. There are seven miles of bike path routes on the campus.
Associated Student Bike Shop Director Adam Jahnke said, “there’s a lot of people on the bike paths on campus. I mean thousands of people, they materialized over night seemingly in Isla Vista.”
The use of a bike works well at UCSB. It is a mainly flat campus and there has been a bike culture for years ,with many students arriving without a car.
To register a bike at UCSB, there is an online process and a $10 fee. It’s good for four years.
The school says operating a bicycle on the UCSB campus requires registration by California law.
This will aid the students and the law enforcement in case a bike has been stolen.
The University Police say bicycles which present hazards to pedestrians, other bicyclists, or vehicles will be impounded.
Bike riders are advised to not park against trees, ramps, walls, on lawns, in planters, or building entrances. Any bicycle parked in a spot other than a bicycle rack is considered parked illegally and may be impounded.
The most common infractions that SSPs provide verbal warnings for are:
Riding on the sidewalk
This is especially dangerous during daylight hours when students are traveling between classes.
Riding double
Hazards of blind spots and poor braking response due to the extra weight and lack of balance, make this a dangerous way to ride.
Riding with no hands
This is a notoriously dangerous way to ride, especially with excessive speed.
Skateboarding, rollerblading or walking on the bike path
Due to the swift nature of UCSB’s bike paths, this hazard puts a large number of people at risk of serious injury.
The impound release fee is $24.00 dollars. Impounded bicycles must be registered prior to release. The registration is good for four years.
Lukas Gucci is a UCSB student who is on two wheels instead of a car. “I had to relearn biking completely,” he said. Security is also a main issue and learning how to lock up your bike appropriately. “I see many students just locking their front wheel then someone will take the frame without it. They take the entire bike, the front wheel is cheap anyway right?”
Many bikes are used or were a low cost purchased.
Danica Zamora is a UCSB student who wasn’t going to over spend on her bike. “I just got it off facebook marketplace because I didn’t want to buy a new bike because i knew it would get stolen.” She is trying to keep that from being a reality and has a very strong U-lock bicycle lock.
UCSB Police are urging bike owners to get their bike registered and have a number engraved by campus police. Jahnke said, “if your bike is ever stolen and you need to get it back and the UC police recovers it, the registration sticker is the only proof of evidence of ownership that will allow you to get your back.”
Going through a nearby bike rack we found nearly all the bikes with sturdy locks. There was, however, an older bike without any lock and something a thief might go after.
Instagram messages from the school help students understand the safe way to get around what can be a complicated maze of campus routes.
Cristina Perez is a student who says, “getting around I am finding my ways but now I need to find a bike rack (that’s nearby.)”
Gucci says on the bike path, “the right lane is forward and the left lane is going opposite direction then you just realize you can get the hang of it pretty quickly.”
At the bike shop you can fix your bike your self with student assistants as part of a “do it yourself” process or they can do the repairs.
Having a safe bike is vital on and off campus with all the vehicles in motion sometimes in a rush hour style crush.
Jahnke said, “when we are looking at their bikes the basics like air, the brakes are working good and they can shift appropriately but mainly they can stop and they can roll”
When it comes to real dangers, Perez said, “you can actually get really hurt, it’s essentially the same thing as a car crash.”
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