Bike at Illinois organizes Bike to Work Day
A student bikes to Quad Day on Aug 22. Bike to Work Day encourages biking to places instead of driving to them.
September 13, 2021
On Tuesday, Bike to Work Day and Light the Night events will happen throughout Champaign-Urbana and on campus. It is a national day-long event to promote people to cycle to their everyday places in lieu of driving.
Due to the pandemic, this year’s Bike to Work Day event was moved from May to September, allowing students and faculty to participate in it as well.
Bike to Work Day will be taking place from 7-10 a.m. There will be a total of 17 welcoming stations throughout Champaign County where 9 of them will be on campus. Students interested in registering for the event, can fill out their registration form.
There will be food, Bike at Illinois merchandise and a free t-shirt along the 17 different welcoming stations according to Gabriel Lewis, the transportation planner for the Champaign County Regional Planning Commission.
“Bike to Work Day is an opportunity to encourage people to ride their bike to their everyday destination whether that be class, work or school,” Lewis said. “It’s a day where we have our community encouraging that, along with rewards for doing that. Our goal with Champaign County bike month is to ultimately get more people to ride their bikes.”
Get The Daily Illini in your inbox!
Transportation is only second to agriculture in terms of carbon emissions but is also one of the most manageable ones to reduce, according to Sartahk Prasad, who manages the Bike at Illinois program.
“Bicycling is one the most sustainable forms of transportation. We’re continually improving our infrastructure on campus and in Champaign-Urbana so that more and more people can enjoy biking. Not only is it a healthy and fun mode of transportation but slowly incorporating it can make a difference,” Prasad said.
In addition to Bike to Work Day, the Light the Night event will be giving away over 800 free lights to anyone who shows up with a bicycle. There are three locations which include the Alma Mater Plaza, Hallene Gateway and the Campus Bike Center. Anyone wishing to volunteer may fill out the form.
These two events together will encourage more people to bike to everyday locations alongside reminding people about what it means to be a safe cyclist.
