The Virginia Tech Alternative Transportation Department has served notice that bike impoundment day on campus is Monday, June 22.
Each summer, abandoned bicycles left on campus are removed to keep the university clean and to ensure that bike parking is available for cyclists who need it. This process is also safer than allowing bikes to sit on campus over the summer where they are subject to vandalism and theft.
Move-out is ongoing through today, June 20. The bicycle impoundment process will begin on Monday, June 22, and should be complete by July 3.
This summer, Virginia Tech Alternative Transportation is implementing a new process and has marked bike racks in two different ways:
Bike racks with a white sign will be cleared beginning on June 22. Parking at these racks is discouraged during this time.
Bike racks with a green sign are those in which cyclists are encouraged to park. At least one of these racks is near the main entrance to every campus building. Bikes parked at these racks will be tagged to warn people of the impoundment. Bicycle owners have two weeks to remove the tags from their bikes. After two weeks, any bikes with tags still on them will be impounded.
There is a $30 recovery fee to claim an impounded bike. Impounded bikes are held for 120 days before being sent to surplus for auction.
As a reminder for students, the new summer bike storage option is available for only $20. By implementing both the new bike rack marking process and summer storage option, the alternative transportation department hopes to decrease the number of students’ bikes that are impounded.