A-State Welcomes New Bike Share Partner to Campus
JONESBORO – Arkansas State University welcomes a new bike share partner to its Jonesboro campus with an agreement with VeoRide.
“Last year, bike share was a huge hit with our students, faculty and staff, and I believe they will appreciate the upgrades we are making with our new partner,” Chancellor Kelly Damphousse said.
VeoRide will launch Wednesday, Aug. 22, with a small fleet of 25 bikes in their corporate teal, but by the end of September the campus will see another 180 custom-branded Scarlet and Black bicycles with university logos.
“We know Arkansas State will be a great partner, and we look forward to helping the university expand transportation options to the community through our bike share,” said Candice Xie, CEO of VeoRide.
“We are excited about the chance to have new options and new bicycles,” Student Government Association President Jon Mark Horton said. “The VeoRide app also opens up new ways to use the bikes.”
The VeoRide dockless bike share works the same as previous systems, but with some important upgrades for end users. Riders download the VeoRide mobile app and use it to scan and unlock a bicycle to ride, but there are also ways to use the VeoRide bikes that do not require a debit or credit card.
Through the app, riders can reserve a bike for up to 10 minutes before starting a ride. Just select the bike you want, place a hold, and it will be waiting for you to ride.
Another significant change is parking, which will be limited to the A-State campus and immediate surrounding area. To complete a ride and park, bicycles must be returned to the campus area.
Cost to use the bicycles is 50 cents per 15 minutes, and VeoRide offers discounted rates for daily, monthly or annual passes.
“Having a system of subscriptions will be a great benefit for on-campus students in particular,” Bill Smith, associate vice chancellor for marketing and co-chair of the campus bicycle task force. “An incoming first-year student could add a year-long subscription and know they had a reliable way to get around campus from residence halls to class.”
The VeoRide team will also work to promote usage from the commuter and athletic parking lots.
“Rather than circling the high-traffic parking lots near the campus core and hoping for someone to leave, a commuter student could get to any building faster by parking in a perimeter lot such as First National Bank Arena and hopping on a VeoRide and riding right to their classes,” Director of Parking Services Dave McKinney said.
After hosting one of the first campus-based dockless bike share in the Mid-South, Arkansas State joins the VeoRide system that focuses on universities and university towns such as the University of Kansas, Pittsburg State University, University of Illinois, Texas State University, University of Arkansas and Northern Illinois University.
“We are looking forward to increasing bicycle ridership on campus and enhancing our campus life through events with our new bike share partners,” Smith said. “There are additional products that we look forward to hosting at A-State with VeoRide such as cargo bikes for departmental usage, fat-tire bicycles for trails, and handcycles for those with mobility difficulties.”
On Aug. 22, VeoRide will be on campus from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Organization Fair to welcome students, demonstrate how the bikes work and sign people up for memberships. The first 1,000 students and faculty to sign up for a VeoRide membership will receive a 10 percent discount off their first two weeks. To learn more or to download the mobile apps, go to AState.edu/Bike.
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