First-ever partnership brings free bike share rides to Pitt first-year students

The University of Pittsburgh is partnering with the Healthy Ride bike share program to introduce first-year students to bicycling as a mode of transit around Pitt’s campus and the city of Pittsburgh.

All first-year undergraduate students and resident assistants at Pitt receive unlimited 30-minute rides with Healthy Ride during the academic year 2019–20 Fall and Spring terms. The pilot program, offered through Pitt’s Office of Sustainability, is the first of its kind in Pittsburgh.

“We are excited to be the first university to partner with Healthy Ride to offer this benefit,” said Aurora Sharrard, Pitt's director of sustainability. “Sustainability is an important part of our campus culture and this is an exciting way for our first-year students to begin their own Pitt sustainability journey.”

A recent expansion of bike lanes and bike facilities has made bicycling throughout Oakland and the surrounding neighborhoods safer and more accessible.

“There are a lot of places students can get in 30 minutes, and bikes are a great way to get to know a new city,” said David White, executive director, Pittsburgh Bike Share. “We are eager to see how students make the most of their Healthy Ride memberships and incorporate short bike trips into their transit routine.”

Healthy Ride operates 112 stations and 650 bikes across over 24 neighborhoods in Pittsburgh. It marked record ridership in 2019 and anticipates an additional increase as a result of the pilot program with the University of Pittsburgh.