The Undergraduate Student Government held a public forum Thursday at the Memorial Union where students and faculty expressed concerns of campus traffic in response to the Walk Your Wheels campaign.
About 35 students, faculty and members of Administration gathered to either support the initiative or to discuss alternatives for the future of Walk Your Wheels.
“We’re trying to make biking and riding your wheels on campus a safer thing so Administration doesn’t take more extreme measures, or ban them all together,” Outreach Co-Director for USG Mark Naufel said. “If this campaign doesn’t work at all, they will consider either banning bikes or maybe doing a lane system.”
Students complained about poor navigation by bicyclists on the Tempe campus while others suggested the need for bike and skateboard paths.
USG Vice President of Services Tina Mounlavongsy said pathways were an option when considering alternatives to the Administration’s proposed ban during the summer prior to settling on the present campaign.
“We didn’t want to create a drastic change on campus without giving students the opportunity to show us themselves that they can change their culture,” Mounlavongsy said.
Although the success of the campaign has been hit or miss, she said, student responses have been more positive since the start of the semester, when the majority of emails and concerns were very negative.
Mounlavonsgy said both students and faculty expressed gratitude at the Sept. 28 campaign launch.
“They’re definitely in full support of it and are helping spread the word, so it was nice finally hearing some positive feedback,” she said.
Secondary education freshman Genevia Turnball rides her skateboard through campus everyday. She said it’s important for students to rally around the campaign and follow the signs posted around campus so the Administration doesn’t consider banning bicycles and skateboards again.
“I would definitely take forever to get to class, I’m a very slow walker,” she said.
During the forum USG Vice President of Policy James Baumer stressed the need for upperclassmen to change their behavior and to set an example for incoming students.
USG hopes that incoming freshmen will adapt to the change and over time Walking Your Wheels will be the norm.
“It’s definitely not something that’s going to happen overnight,” Mounlavonsgy said.
As there are less than 5,000 skateboarders and bicyclists on the Tempe campus, students have asked why a USG initiative only targets those riders, Mounlavonsgy said.
“I think people need to take a look as a whole that this isn’t about bicyclists, this isn’t about skateboarders, this isn’t pedestrians,” she said. “This is about the safety of our campus.”
At this time, University Administration is still giving USG the chance to make the initiative work as any policy change would result in more student concerns, Mounlavonsgy said.
“I’m trying to do all that I can in terms of student government and working with my team to hopefully keep on pushing this so they don’t resort to the extreme measures that I know students won’t be OK with,” she said.
Reach the reporter at sraymund@asu.edu
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