Most colleges have larger campuses that require students to take a mile-long walk or find another form of transportation just to get to class. Luckily, Elizabethtown College is not that large, so the walk from one side of campus to the other will only take a few minutes. Many students only need to make a five or seven minute trip to get to the academic quad or the Baugher Student Center from their dorms. While students living at the Schreiber Quadrangle or Hackman Apartments have a longer distance to travel, it is only going to add another minute or two to their walk. Etown’s campus is a total of 200 acres. The furthest place from the academic quad and the BSC to live is at the Schreiber Quadrangle. Every other building only requires a five to seven minute walk to get to anywhere on campus.
But some students are cutting that walk time in half by riding a bike. So, is a bike really worth it here at Etown? While it is a great form of exercise and makes the trip to class quicker, is it really worth the hassle dodging all the other students walking? Some students think that bikes are useful while others feel they are dangerous to walkers.
Sophomore Rebekah Miller lives in Royer residence hall and believes that having a bike is beneficial. “I know I do not live that far away from things, but I really enjoy riding my bike” Miller said. “It’s a great form of exercise and I love feeling the wind in my face. I also can sleep in a few extra minutes since it takes me less time to get to class.” About avoiding other walkers, she said, “Most people move out of the way, and a few times I have had to stop or swerve into the grass to avoid people. It’s not that bad though.” Miller feels the only real drawback to having a bike is having to chain it up outside. “It’s kind of annoying every time I get to a building I have to chain it up. It takes a couple minutes to do. That’s really the only drawback I have,” Miller said. She believes that because of Etown’s integrity pledge she would be able to leave her bike unlocked outside and no one would touch it, but she does not want to chance it.
On the other hand, sophomore Kathleen Banik strongly disagrees with bikes being ridden on campus. “They’re dangerous,” she said. “Whenever I’m trying to walk to class, they fly by, and I feel like I’m going to get hit. It is also dangerous for them in the grass. I have seen a few people fall off their bikes when they lost control in the wet grass.” She firmly believes that people can get across campus by walking. She stated that “skateboards are okay. Most of them do not go as fast and are pretty controlled. Scooters I would say are the best though.” Banik explained that scooters are easy to control, a good workout for the legs and not as dangerous to either the user or the people walking around campus.
A complaint of bikers and non-bikers is the size of the walkways on campus. Sophomore Emily Martin, agreed that the pathways are too small for both bikers and people. “I feel like they are going to hit me on the walkways.” “They are not big enough for a lot of people walking to class and people trying to ride their bikes,” she said. She suggested if the blacktop pathways to and from places were wider then maybe it would not be as dangerous, but she knows that is not going to happen. “For the time being I will just move out of the way and walk in the grass when bikers come. I do not really mind. Things will be different though when it starts to snow. I am not walking in the snow.”
For now, bikers and walkers will have to work together on the pathways and try to make sure there is enough room for each. Some alternatives to bikes are skateboards and scooters, both cut down on travel time, but are not as big and make people feel a little more comfortable walking to class. “I understand bikes are helpful to people that live in the Quads. I would definitely have a bike if I lived there too. We just have to work to make sure bikers and people can use the pathways safely,” Martin added.
