Wheeling and Dealing: Issues of mopeds and bikes

As students bike or walk around Furman, they aren't likely too concerned about the possibility of imminent collisions. That doesn't mean the chance isn't there, however. In February 2008 Katie Brasher was rear-ended by an SUV at McAlister Circle while on her bicycle, and was dragged down the street under the car, which then backed up onto her, resulting in two broken feet for Brasher.

"My biggest issue with the whole fiasco was that FUPO didn't take a statement from [the driver]," said Brasher. "Accidents like this happen all the time on campus. If this is such a green campus, why are they not protecting their pedestrians?"

The combination of cars, mopeds, bicycles and pedestrians has been a cause for concern by members of the Furman community.

Much of the discussion revolves around mopeds, whose presence has drastically increased over the past few years, creating concern, complaints and a variety of rumors and misconceptions around their usage, as well as a dedicated effort by Furman staff to integrate the new mode of transportation into campus life.

Legally, mopeds are not considered vehicles, and therefore are not required to have a state tag nor a special license. They must be registered - but for a second form of transportation, which the moped is for almost every student, the fee is only $6.

The distinctions between mopeds and motorcycles concern transmission speed (mopeds have a one-speed transmission in contrast to the gears of a motorcycle) and braking power.

Under state law, drivers licenses are not required to operate a moped. However, Bob Miller, the head of Public Safety said that FUPO will not let an unlicensed student operate one on campus. "What we're looking for is maturity and responsibility," he said.

Enhancing the moped presence on campus for operators and pedestrians alike was a project undertaken by FUPO this past semester. Over the summer, elongated spaces and mulched areas for motorcycle and moped parking were added in front of the PAC and in other areas around campus. At a student's request, a spot was marked off in the Chiles base parking lot.

Once students and their mopeds started arriving back on campus, FUPO began working to educate drivers about the rules surrounding mopeds.

"I'm not a punitive person," said Miller. "That's a last resort. We have to assume that [the drivers of mopeds] don't understand."

Officer placement at one-way streets and stop signs and the signs placed to keep mopeds off sidewalks have worked, said Miller. Like cars, motorcycles and mopeds must follow traffic flow rules

"We've gotten good cooperation," he said. "They're not riding on the sidewalks, they're not running students over, they're parking where we ask them to. I'm pleased so far. It's a lot of credit to the people who are operating the mo-peds."

Speeding is not as much of an issue as some students suppose. "We run radar on them, but they're not going to fast," said Miller. "They're going 25 [mph]. A little thing like that going 25 looks fast, though."

Furman's athletes are the most prevalent users of the mopeds darting across campus, but contrary to popular rumors, they are not required for athletes, nor is a 'transportation stipend' built into scholarship packages. "It is left up to the individual student," said Gary Clark, Furman's Athletic Director.

"The basic reason for the mopeds is time management," said Miller. "[The athletes] aren't lazy." The schedule of a student athlete involves constantly going back and forth between their apartments, individual sessions, and team practices.

"They've got workouts at various times throughout the day," said Clark, explaining that, in addition to normal team practices, athletes have to fit in conditioning, game film meetings, and personal weightlifting time.

Despite the fact that athletes are neither all required to have mopeds nor are the they the sole operators of them on campus, athletics certainly have had a role in their appearance on campus.

From 1999-2004, the Atlanta Falcons football team held their summer training camp at Furman. While the players at first used golf carts to get from the North Village apartments to practice on the field, they very quickly began to use mopeds. Students on campus, whether they were taking summer courses or were part of the FUPO-hired security team, could not help but notice, and the moped movement grew from there.

"It hit about three years ago, all of a sudden," said Clark. "It went from just one or two to the number we have now very quickly."

Despite student tales of near-mishaps, FUPO has not investigated any moped-related accidents. Bicycle incidents are much more common. Amongst those Miller recalled were a bicycle-bicycle collision beside Hipp Hall, an accident in front of Daniel Chapel in which a bicyclist went through the window of a car and a crash in the McAlister circle in which a cyclist riding the wrong way around was thrown across the hood of a car.