Nearly 40,000 students are enrolled at Michigan State University (MSU), with many using car-free modes of transportation to commute on campus or to nearby places. As a bike-friendly campus, this first-class institution wants its students to worry more about their classes and less about their bikes being stolen — which is why they’ve partnered with Bike Index to reduce the risk of this issue.
Bike theft is one of the biggest problems on college campuses. Over 1.5 million bikes are stolen on university campuses each year, leaving each four-year student with a bicycle a 53% chance of losing their bike to theft. MSU’s partnership with Bike Index will effectively combat this problem by allowing students to register their bikes for free while adding convenient and effective university tools to manage the bicycles on campus.
QR Bike Stickers: Mobile Identification on Campus
University campuses often face the challenge of effectively managing bicycles on campus. When bikes are parked in the wrong zones, recovered by staff, or need to be moved for construction or events, campus staff are left to manage these incidents, often without a way to notify and alert the bike owners.
Upon registration, each student receives a tamper and weather-resistant QR code sticker to identify their bicycle and receive notifications regarding their bike. With Bike Index’s integrated system, campus staff can send alerts and notifications directly to bike owners.
Location-Based Messaging
Now, during construction or events, bicycle owners can be instantly notified if their bike needs to be moved. If a bike is recovered by campus staff or security, the owner can also be notified immediately—providing convenient and timely pickup of collected bikes instead of a buildup of abandoned bikes that are never claimed.
The QR stickers also serve the bike owner after their time at university, serving as a bike theft deterrent and identification tool for the lifetime of the bike, even if it eventually switches ownership.
Learn more about Bike Index tools for University and College Campuses.
Interdepartmental Communication
At a large campus like Michigan State’s, the simple bike registration and management platform by Bike Index provides a communicative and responsive solution between multiple departments. Campus Police, Campus Transportation, Cycling Services, and administration can all access a single database to reference misplaced bikes, issue notices, or send alerts, simplifying bicycle management for all.
The #1 Bike Management Platform for University Campuses
Bike Index is excited to include Michigan State University as one of its 1,500+ community partners and provide its students and staff with bike theft solutions that work.
To learn more about bringing Bike Index campus solutions to your university, gavin@bikeindex.org
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://bikeindex.org/news/michigan-state-university-joins-bike-index-to-protect-students-and-red