UA adds free fix-it stations on campus

November 4, 2011 • Posted by:

The University of Arizona is adding two bicycle self-repair stations on campus as part of a pilot program.

The first station went in this week and is located near the Arizona Health Sciences Center.

Charles Franz, the UA Department of Transportation’s alternate modes program manager, said the two repair stations are part of a pilot program to see how they work.

“If it seems to be a popular program and the tools aren’t going to get stolen off of the bike repair station then we would probably expand that to other locations on campus,” he said.

The stands are made by Dero Bike Racks and cost $1,000 each.

The second station will be located in the campus core, but the final location hasn’t been finalized.

Check out the photos and video below to see what the station looks like. The station includes a bike pump, several Allen wrenches, box wrenches, a tire lever and screw drivers.

 

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Daniel Majewski
Daniel Majewski

I used this today and it worked out really well.  I had a flat tire and since I was on campus I decided to check it out.   All the tools are still there and the stand is in a good visible location.  On the same token, it was initially hard to find and if the university decides to keep them (which they definitely should!) I would encourage them to add some signage to direct people to it.   For $1,000 each, this is a great investment towards encouraging bike use on campus.  Overall, it's a fantastic idea and I can't wait to see more of these installed.  

Frank Tellez
Frank Tellez

Speaking of repair stations, there is a free one at the San Agustin Farmer's Market now. I think it's sponsored by Menlo Bikes. It looks like it's a traveling repair shop so maybe we'll see it other places as well soon. I only glimpsed it briefly between traffic. I had to drive my car there because ironically my bicycle is broken at the moment. :p

Martha Retallick
Martha Retallick

This is a good idea. And let's make it even better. I propose that we, the mechanical geeks of Tucson Velo, volunteer some of our time to be fixit mentors. Could be a lot of fun.