Students approve new bike campaign

Students reacted positively Tuesday to the new “We are Considerate. We are USC” campaign, saying issues surrounding bikes need to be directly addressed.

The new campaign “We are Considerate. We are USC” calls for Trojans to generally be more considerate, with a current focus on bike-related problems around campus.

Photo courtesy of Katherine Montgomery

The school introduced the campaign to the USC community through a mass email, a full-page advertisement in the Daily Trojan and a banner in front of Alumni Park. The signs on Trousdale Parkway noting the area where bikes must be walked during peak hours were replaced with larger signs bearing the “We are Considerate” logo and goals.

Some students said they are glad the administration is working to address the issue.

“USC needs to work it out because there is no getting rid of bikes,” said Andrew Chen, a sophomore majoring in business administration. “All in all, I’m glad they’re trying to actually do something about the problem.”

Jasmine Wasserman, a sophomore majoring in communication, said changes in biker behavior have to come from individuals.

“People have to be more careful,” Wasserman said. “Bikers are usually doing four things at once — it’s kind of scary.”

Simon Moshkovich, a sophomore majoring in international relations (global business), said the increased enforcement of walk-your-bike zones will encourage students to follow rules.

“I know I [walk my bike] when I see security around,” Moshkovich said. “The school looks like it’s taking a step in the right direction. It’s all you can hope for.”

Undergraduate Student Government President Monish Tyagi said he was happy with the launch.

“We definitely made a strong presence on campus,” Tyagi said. “I haven’t had enough time to gauge detailed student reaction, but in general, it definitely got people’s attention.”

Tyagi said students he spoke to did not seem to completely understand the purpose of the campaign, but he feels that campaign awareness is the most important thing at this time.

“Some people don’t immediately associate it with the bike and traffic issues on campus,” Tyagi said. “Hopefully it will grab people’s attention so they will understand more about the message behind the campaign and being considerate by biking safely.”

Several students said they encountered many problems related to the large number of bicycles on campus.

Liz Soriano, a sophomore majoring in communication, said bicyclists’ behavior endangers pedestrians.

“There are these small spaces people try to ride their bikes through and I got hit by a passing [bike] the other day,” Soriano said. “It hurt pretty bad and it must have looked bad, because the guy behind him offered to chase the [bicyclist that hit me].”

Students said they also want to see security issues addressed. Neil Tamashiro-Miyamoto, a sophomore majoring in kinesiology, recently had two bikes stolen in less than two weeks.

“Bike theft is just as big a problem as accidents, if not bigger,” Tamashiro-Miyamoto said.

Bari Golin-Blaugrund, a junior majoring in political science who works at the reception desk in Leavey Library, said parking issues should also be addressed.

“We’ve had instances where [the Dept. of Public Safety] has come in to tell us they needed to confiscate bikes that were parked on the handicap rails,” Golin-Blaugrund said. “DPS should have the power to do what they need to because that sort of thing is just wrong.”

Click here to listen to a podcast on the new campaign with Undergraduate Student Government President Monish Tyagi.