Tommie Central will be offering a free bike option to students, faculty and staff during the 2015-2016 school year. The free bike program began a few months after the Nice Ride grant ended, which previously offered St. Thomas students, faculty and staff a limited supply of $10 annual Nice Ride passes.

The free bikes used to be part of a bike-sharing program offered by Bike Enthusiasts at St. Thomas, the O’Shaughnessy-Frey Library and the Wellness Center. Tommie Central coordinated the shift of the bike rental program responsibilities from the library to the Tommie Central desk.

Associate Director of the Anderson Student Center David Lemon said the bike program has experienced great success since it kicked off at the end of the summer.

“Since we started the program, there hasn’t been a day where at the least one of the bikes hasn’t been checked out,” Lemon said.

Lemon said renting out bikes was a logical extension of the outdoor equipment Tommie Central already offers, such as camping necessities and skiing and snowboarding gear. He believes the bikes will fulfill a need on campus for a free transportation alternative.

“Not everyone has the resources to have a Nice Ride bike or is in a position where they can have their bike here on campus, but you can stop by Tommie Central whether it’s for a half hour bike ride on your lunch break or if you need to bike to one of our public libraries or somewhere off campus. This gives a lot of flexibility,” Lemon said.

The bikes needed considerable fixes but with a lot of work and care, they can now be checked out for up to three days at a time. Tommie Central desk worker Karl Solberg played a key role in fixing up and maintaining the bikes.

A main component of the bike rental program is safety. After signing a security waiver, bike renters are equipped with a helmet and bike lock. Solberg said the safety emphasis is necessary to protect the St. Thomas community.

“We want people to ride the bikes safely and remember to obey traffic laws like cars because I think most people forget that,” Solberg said.

The bike program so far has six bikes, with two bike racks located next to O’Shaughnessy Stadium. Lemon said Tommie Central is open to expanding the program as demand increases.

“I am very happy with the success of the program right now,” Lemon said. “Definitely I would like to expand the program to the point where we have the equipment that is demanded by our customers.”

Claire Noack can be reached at noac8702@stthomas.edu.