Bird Bikes are Coming to Campus!

Bird Bikes are on the way! These electric bikes are expected to arrive on campus and in the City of Lexington any day. At a time when demand for e-bikes has never been higher, these will be the first shared electric bikes in Lexington.

 

Bird Bikes are electric bikes with batteries, making commuting on and off campus even easier. While they look and handle much like regular bicycles, their electric motors assist riders with pedaling, making obstacles like hills or headwinds more manageable. The bikes also come equipped with storage baskets and bright head and tail lights.

 

Bird is the University’s preferred vendor for e-scooters, which are now familiar to students and employees. E-scooters will remain on campus; the company is simply augmenting its e-scooter fleet with e-bikes.

 

Austin Marshburn, Head of City and University Partnerships at Bird, said: “The University of Kentucky and City of Lexington have been excellent partners, remaining focused on the benefits of micromobility for students and community members. We applaud them for their commitment to expanding the convenient, environmentally friendly and reliable transportation options available to the community.”

 

The cost to ride a Bird Bike or Bird e-scooter is the same. However, Bird is currently running a special promotion to encourage people to give the new bikes a try. Riders can receive 50 percent off their next ride by using the code LEXBIKE. This code applies to the first 30 minutes of riding and expires three months after loading. (This promotional code can also be used for Bird e-scooters.)

 

Riders should adhere to the same guidelines for e-bikes that they do for regular bicycles:

• When ending a ride on campus, the e-bike must be parked upright at a bike rack or in a shared mobility area. Bike racks are located at nearly every building on campus and a map of all locations can be found here. Shared mobility areas are identified by the following signage:

• Bird Bikes should not hamper access to buildings or sidewalks and shouldn’t be left in parking lots where they can interfere with motor vehicle traffic. 

Please see this map to locate bike and e-scooter parking nearest to your location. If you notice a need for more parking in a particular area, submit a request via our Bike Rack Request Form.

 

In addition to proper parking, please keep the following e-bike usage tips in mind: 

• Always yield to pedestrians. Slow down and move over to pass someone on foot and give audible warning. Dismount to pass when sidewalks are crowded or narrow.
• Don’t ride against the direction of traffic and obey all traffic signs and signals.
• E-bikes are prohibited on elevated pedestrian walkways and in buildings. 

Please see this page for more information about the University’s Motorized Personal Mobility Vehicle Use Policy.



Enjoy the ride!