Bike to Work Week (B2WW) is fast approaching and UBC Transportation Planning encourages all UBC faculty, staff, students and residents to get involved.

There is a skills training workshop, activities across Vancouver, and a commuter station at UBC where you can get a free bike tune-up, snacks, and enter to win great prizes, including a new bike!

An annual event created by HUB, B2WW is a great opportunity for you to commute to and from work with other cyclists, get fit and contribute to UBC’s sustainability goals by tracking your commuting kilometers in a friendly competition with other workplaces across Metro Vancouver.

Getting Involved

Participating in Bike to Work Week is free and only takes a few minutes to sign up:

1. Register with HUB at www.biketoworkmetrovan.ca.
2. Choose your workplace – “University of British Columbia” – then join a team or create your own.
3. Map your route to work.
4. Log your route each day you ride – this will track your kms, GHGs, calories and help HUB encourage cycling safety and infrastructure in the region.

The kilometers you log with HUB will be added to the UBC total. UBC has won the most kilometers cycled for the 1000+ employee category for the past 3 years (Spring & Fall) – so please sign-up and log your commutes so we can keep the streak alive!

UBC Cycling Skills Training

• Wednesday, May 22^nd
• ANGU 335: 12 – 1pm
• A fun & interactive free workshop covering everything you need to know about biking to work: safety scenarios, taking bikes on transit, route planning, what to wear & more!

UBC Commuter Station

• Wednesday, May 29^th
• 4 – 6 pm
• Agronomy Road and Wesbrook Mall – Pharmaceutical Sciences Building
• Free refreshments, giveaways and mechanic services by the UBC Bike Kitchen
• Enter to win prizes – including an Opus bike provided by Urban Racks!

This year we have some incredible prizes including a brand new bike from Opus Bikes, an Urban CycleLift which is the ultimate bike rack for your home or apartment, passes to an upcoming Vancouver Whitecaps game, a helmet cover from RockiNoggins and more! Prizes for this year’s event have been provided by Urban Racks who provide bicycle parking solutions on the UBC Campus. www.urbanracks.com

For more information and to sign-up for Bike to Work Week visit http://www.biketoworkmetrovan.ca/.

For information on cycling, public transit and other sustainable transportation options at UBC visitwww.transportation.ubc.ca

The first campus skatepark in North America is now open at UBC! The park provides students and youth with a fun and safe recreational space, close to campus neighbourhoods, where they can use skateboards, BMX bikes and in-line skates.

UBC has opened a brand new skatepark on campus, the first of its kind in North America. The skatepark is a fun and safe recreational space for on campus children, youth, teens as well as the community to skateboard, BMX and in-line skate.

Photos by Jamil Rhajiak, UBC

It will serve the needs of UTown@UBC residents and members of the local campus community, as well as the general public. The creation of the new on campus park, dedicated to action sports, is a pro-active effort to accommodate the growing demand for this type of recreational facility.

The UBC Skatepark is a joint project that was completed in partnership with the University Neighbourhoods Association (UNA), who co-funded the park. The skatepark was approved through a comprehensive planning process that included numerous public consultations.

The park is located at the intersection of Thunderbird Boulevard and Health Sciences Mall, and is open from dawn to dusk.

Process and Timeline

Step One: Conducting a Community Needs Assessment

A public open house was held on Tuesday, January 31, 2012 so that we could better understand the specific needs of our campus community with respect to the proposed skateboard park. This session was also designed to help the consultant team, Newline Skateparks and van der Zalm + Associates, identify the desired mix of activities that could be accommodated at the proposed park.

Step Two: Design Development

We presented design concepts for the proposed skateboard park, including its possible location on campus. Feedback on the different designs was collected from the community to help inform development of the final concept.

Download the presentation boards see preliminary sketches and possible design directions or the Consultation Summary Report.

Step Three: Presenting the Final Design

The final design concept was unveiled at an open house on August 29th, 2012. There was opportunity to provide feedback on the proposal and specific and detailed comments on elements of the park were taken into consideration.

Step Four: Final Design and Construction

A decision was reached by UBC and the UNA to advance construction of the multi-use skatepark. UBC re-engaged a consulting team to finalize a design based on input from the public consultation process and comments from staff at UBC.

Skatepark Cautions

It’s important to exercise caution when using an action sports facility like the skatepark. Here are some guidelines to be aware of:

Be responsible. This is an unsupervised facility.

Use at your own risk and communicate with fellow users.

This facility is designed for the use of skateboards, in-line skates and BMX bicycles only. Motorized vehicles are prohibited.

Home made platforms, jumps or other obstacles will be removed without notice.

Commercial Use of the Park for private lessons is prohibited.

For your safety and enjoyment please respect the following:

• Wear the gear! Protective helmets, elbow and knee pads are recommended.
• BMX riders – to avoid damaging the concrete and coping, park pegs are required.
• Graffiti is prohibited, just as it is at your house!
• Please help keep the park clean.
• The park is open from Dawn to Dusk.
• Please call 604-822-2222 to report damage or vandalism.

IN CASE OF EMERGENCY CALL 911

UBC and the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure, in collaboration with the University Neighbourhoods Association (UNA) are working together on a series of safety improvements to West 16th Avenue between SW Marine Drive and Wesbrook Mall.

For the full details of this project, please the 16th Avenue Improvements page in our Current Projects section.

New Prices:  On November 13, TransLink announced fare increases that will affect the cost of retail bus passes and the discounted Employer Pass Program.  EPP members still save approximately 15% off the cost of a retail pass.  The new prices come into effect January 1, 2013 and are available on TransLink’s website, and in the EPP section of this website.  As deductions are taken one month in advance, participating employees should see an increase to their EPP deductions in December 2012.

New Passes:  Your membership in the EPP program does not expire at the end of the year.  TransLink automatically sends replacement passes for all members.  Your current EPP pass is set to expire on December 31, 2012, the 2013 passes will be available from the Carding Office in the UBC Bookstore from 3:00pm on December 20, 2012.

Terminating from the program:  The Employer Pass Program is an auto-renewing subscription.  Current members will automatically continue into 2013 and beyond until we’ve received the required termination form.  Employees wishing to terminate from the program for November 30th must have their forms in to the Carding Office at the UBC Bookstore by 12:00noon on November 27.  Employees wishing to terminate effective December 30th must have their forms into the Carding Office by 12:00noon on December 3rd.

Proposed Changes to the Campus Shuttle Routes

UBC Parking and Access Control Services has a new process for for Traffic Notices that may impact you.

• Individuals with an email on file with Parking will be sent an email reminder the day after a traffic notice is issued.
• Statements of account will be mailed to vehicle owners where the number of traffic notices exceeds 4 unpaid.
• Students with 2 or more unpaid notices may have a hold placed on their student account – an email reminder will be sent prior to the hold being placed.
• Vehicles with 4 or more unpaid notices may be impounded and will be released when all notices and towing fees are paid.

Between August 26^th and 28^th, there will be minor service impacts and changes to the trolley bus stop locations. The current bays by War Memorial Gym will now be located on the south side of University Boulevard stretching from Wesbrook Mall to East Mall. Signs will be clearly posted directing you to the temporary stop locations and trolley bus route service is expected to run without disruption.

To ensure safety, the new bus loop features clearly marked paths for cyclists and pedestrians. Cyclists entering campus via 10^th Ave. should use the north side of University Boulevard. Eastbound cyclists should exit on the south side of University Boulevard, guided by ‘sharrows’ (shared-lane markings). Pedestrians should use the sidewalks at all times and cross University Boulevard only at designated cross walks when safe.

The completion of University Boulevard brings improvements in sustainable transportation including bicycle lockers at the D.H. Copp building, bus stops located closer to the heart of campus and the future Student Union Building (currently under construction), and beautiful new bus shelters (to be completed in March). The three new bus bays will serve the #4 Powell, #14 Hastings, # 9 Boundary (peak hours only) and the N17 Downtown NightBus.

Students, faculty, staff and residents will notice that improvements in the area include new lighting, paving, street trees, bicycle parking and landscaping, which are part of UBC’s work to update and improve the campus’s network of outdoor public spaces.

To read the TransLink notice about the loop click here.

In the coming weeks and months, UBC will be working closely with the City of Vancouver to explore how we might participate in this exciting initiative. Check back for updates and information or join our e-newsletter list to receive notification about the development of a UBC public bicycle system, as well as other Campus + Community Planning events.

Route #41

Effective Monday April 23, the 41 Joyce Station/Crown/UBC will be re-routed permanently to serve Wesbrook Mall in the UBC South Campus area. New 41 stops will be in place on the south end of Wesbrook Mall. The 41 will no longer serve stops on W 16th Avenue or the portion of SW Marine Drive northwest of Wesbrook.

Community Shuttles:

April 23 to September 2 only, board the C19, C20 and C22 at Bay 14 near University Boulevard at War Memorial Gym. Service will return to Bay 15 on September 3.

Transportation Planning has added 54 additional bicycle locker spaces to the campus. Lockers are available to UBC faculty, staff and student for a fee of $10 / month, plus a damage deposit. For more information on bicycle lockers visit the AMS Bike Kitchen in the Student Union Building or view our Bicycle Locker page.