UNL ranks 12th nationally in bicyclists riding to work challenge

UNL Campus Recreation encourages bicycling as an easy option for transportation
UNL Campus Recreation encourages bicycling as an easy option for transportation

UNL is ranked 12th nationally for the number of bicyclists who ride to work and the number of miles logged in the recent “Get Up & Ride” national bike challenge. Nearly 50,000 miles were logged by 114 riders during the four-month period of the challenge. The University also came in first among Nebraska workplaces and second nationally for large universities. The “Get Up and Ride” national challenge sought to get 50,000 people to record over 10 million miles of bicycling from May 1 through Aug. 31.

UNL Campus Recreation encourages bicycling as an easy option for transportation and provides amenities such as an on-campus bike shop at the Campus Rec Center, rental bicycles for students and community and social activities like “Burrito Bike Rides,” as well as single- and multi-day cycling adventure trips. Additionally, Campus Rec is a leader in the Bike UNL task force, which works to provide education and improve safety regarding cycling on the UNL campus. The League of American Bicyclists recently named UNL Campus Recreation a Silver Level Bicycle-Friendly Business.

Locally, the UNL community, BicycLincoln, WasteCap Nebraska and other local organizations asked Lincoln residents and the UNL community to take the “Lincoln Commuter Challenge” and participate in national challenge as well. The City of Lincoln received the fourth-place position for bike riding out of more than 650 communities from across the country that participated. With more than 896 riders, 99 teams, and 273 workplaces logging more than 400,000 miles, Lincoln ended the challenge ahead of nationally recognized bicycle communities such as Madison, Wis.; Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.; Portland, Ore.; and Boulder, Colo. Lincoln trails only Appleton, Wis., in first place, Oshkosh-Neenah, Wis., in second place and Burlington, Vt., in third place.

Sponsored by the League of American Bicyclists, Kimberly Clark Corp., Trek Bicycle Company, and Bikes Belong, the “Get Up & Ride” challenge logged more than 12 million miles by more than 30,000 riders.

More details at: http://go.unl.edu/57h