On your bike
Amy Isberg and Amber Colhoun, photo by Joanne Saad
In summary:
- UTS staffers and students will join forces this year for Ride to Work Day
- Three Deputy-Vice Chancellors will each lead their own ‘bike bus’ on the day, allowing the UTS community to ride together
Are you a lycra-clad racer with stamina? A fixie-riding hipster with style? Maybe you just enjoy the occasional breeze around on the weekend? Then join the increasing number of those riding to UTS for the annual Ride to Work Day on Wednesday 12 October.
This year’s event has been tagged Ride to UTS Day in order to encourage more staff and students to support bike riding as a fun and increasingly popular mode of transport in the city.
“While it’s not quite as relaxing as a ride through the countryside, cycling to work can help you cut through queues of traffic, stay in shape and give you plenty more energy throughout the day,” says Sustainability Coordinator in the Project Management Office Amber Colhoun.
UTS Union Recreation and Events Manager Amy Isberg is joining forces with Colhoun to ensure Ride to UTS Day is as encouraging as it is enjoyable.
“We’re bringing back well-known Sydney bike fitter Steve Hogg to give an insightful talk on symmetry and understanding how to correctly fit your bike. Steve is a legend both here and overseas, so it’s a real treat having him involved,” says Isberg.
The talk will be held during a healthy and sustainably sourced breakfast at City campus to welcome all riders and allow them to re-fuel for their normal day of work or study.
With plenty to look forward to once the journey is done, what has been organised for the actual ride?
“While cycling in the city is certainly becoming popular, many of us still aren’t confident enough to ride in traffic,” explains Isberg.
“That’s why we’ve organised three Deputy-Vice Chancellors to lead their own ‘bike bus’ for staff and students to join and ride as a group on the day.
“Shirley Alexander, Patrick Woods and Anne Dwyer will be flying the flag for UTS along three different routes.”
Colhoun agrees rider safety is an important issue and points to the shift in support from local councils such as City of Sydney.
“The free ‘cycling in the city’ confidence courses perfectly complement the new green cycle lanes down roads such as Bourke Street. With a little bit of planning and the right skills, it’s a really flexible way to get around,” says Colhoun.
In the lead up to Ride to UTS Day, she’s working with the existing UTS cycling community to run a bike maintenance workshop, showing how to dust off your bike and get it into shape.
Colhoun believes riding is more than a fun, healthy way to get to work.
“More of us on our bikes means less greenhouse gas emissions. While cars, buses and trains rely on fossil fuels, the bicycle really is the most sustainable form of transport.”
So, what are you waiting for? On your bike!
Ride to UTS Day is part of the national Ride to Work Day. Register now at ride2work.com.au
For more information about riding to UTS, visit green.uts.edu.au
Byline:
Xavier Mayes
What do you think?
Your comments1
Rosemary Sharples says:
11 Oct 2011
Three points about this article:
1) Cycling is a more sustainable form of transport than any which rely on fossil fuels, such as train, bus, taxi or car, but all manner of resources are nevertheless consumed in the manufacture and maintenance of cycles. The most sustainable form of transport is not cycling - it's walking - (or riding animals bareback) since there is nothing used in these forms of transport which would not be in use anyway.
2) Secondly, more of us on our bikes does not necessarily mean fewer greenhouse gas emissions - it depends on what our alternative means of transport is. If we go from walking to cycling, as described above, it will make things worse. If we go from buses or trains to cycling, the state of greenhouse gas emissions will depend on how many of us change - they will only reduce if there are enough people changing to justify withdrawing a service. Similarly, it is only if ALL occupants of a car cease to make that car trip that there will be fewer greenhouse gas emissions. See my article in U: magazine from a year ago: http://datasearch2.uts.edu.au/feit/news-events/news-detail.cfm?ItemId=22936.
Note that if a bus service is not withdrawn when everyone transfers from bus to bikes,congestion may also become worse.
3) Finally, anyone who wants some advice on riding in traffic might find the book 'Cyclecraft', by John Franklin, useful. City of Sydney libraries have copies, including the library at Ultimo. It's written for the British situation, but is largely applicable to Australia. You can even order your own copy over the Internet.