Thanks to a donation from the Bike House D.C., a Dero Fixit bike repair facility will be installed next to the Red Square bike racks by the beginning of March. The bikeshare program, on the other hand, will likely not occur this semester as originally planned because of the loss of bicycles scheduled for the program.
The Georgetown University Student Association Fund is providing $400 to pay for the repair stand installation. Bicyclists will be able to inflate and change tires and adjust seats, brakes, and handlebars at the self-service stand.
“Unless you wanted to go to one of the bike shops on M Street, which can be expensive, there wasn’t a good option to keep your bike maintained,” said Greg Miller (SFS ’14), a research fellow at the Office of Sustainability.
The bikeshare program was first announced in August, but it’s facing difficulties launching this semester because of a limited bike supply. Organizers originally intended to use abandoned bikes recovered by the Department of Public Safety. According to Chief of Police Jay Gruber, because of a lack of response from students organizing the bikeshare, however, the bikes were instead donated to charity groups over winter break.
The bikeshare organizer at the time, Gabe Pincus (SFS ‘14), did not respond to requests for comment by press time.
Miller also said he is running into problems bringing in students to help run the bikeshare, stating he is “really the only person who’s working on it” but is “trying to recruit some underclassmen who are interested.”
