Media Credit: Tina Hogue Martin Thomen, Parking and Transportation Services employee, discusses what resources are available to bikers through PTS with third-year philosophy student Tom Wald.

A nondescript white trailer on Speedway Plaza operated by Parking and Transportation Services now serves as a convenient store for student bicyclists.

The Kickstand, UT's new bike hub, was created in November to provide student bicyclists on campus with several services including free on-site registration, free weekly bike lock rentals, air pumps and bike supplies, said Parking Service Supervisor Blanca Juarez. As long as students' bicycles are registered, they can use these services.

The bike hub is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. On average, 15 to 30 students visit the hub per day, and more than 200 students' bikes are registered, Juarez said.

"We are located in a very public place," she said. "It is really easy for students to see, and it is very visible."

Registration for students' bikes is free and lasts four years, she said. The students must provide their bicycles' serial number, make and model to register.

"Even with students who live way out of campus, they will be able to contact us," Juarez said. "If your bicycle was left unattended or was stolen, we will hopefully be able to locate it and return it back to the biker."

Pre-nursing sophomore Lan-Anh Nguyen, who registered her bike for the first time Tuesday, said she felt more secure registering in person.

"This is a new bike, and I am afraid it will be screaming 'Steal me,'" Nguyen said. "I received an e-mail and decided to register it. And today, luckily, I was registered because I was able to use the screwdriver for my bike, and usually I do not bring my own tools, so it was really helpful."

If a student leaves his or her bicycle lock at home, he or she can rent a lock for a week at no charge, Juarez said, adding that the hub also provides bike accessories to students at competitive prices.

"We try to stay very competitive so that we are ensuring students get the best deal and provide them with the best materials they can get," Juarez said.

Bicycle coordinator Sam Cortez said the Texas Department of Transportation funded the hub through a grant.

"The project had been in the works and there was not really anyone on campus that provides these services to students," Cortez said.

All of the money that is collected from the hub goes straight into the bicycle fund, Juarez said. Parking and Transportation Services is always trying to find a way to support the bicycle community.

"I think we are trying to provide a good service to the students both on and off campus," Juarez said. "I hope this project also encourages bicycling on campus."

Going in person is not the only way to register, students can fill out the form and mail it, fax it or go online to www.utexas.edu/parking and click on "My Parking Profile."

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