The survey received 1,433 responses, with most respondents being undergraduates (85%) who live in university housing (94%). Nearly 58% of students travel between the campuses at least 3 days per week, but very few (5%) use a bicycle for most trips. While only 5% currently bike between campuses, over 33% would prefer to bike more than half the time, showing many students are motivated to bike but barriers exist. The biggest barrier cited by 58% is the lack of a convenient, safe route. To increase ridership, students believe a faster route (75%) and separation from auto traffic (72%) would help them bike more. This suggests better infrastructure is needed to promote biking between the
2. Campus to Campus Bikeway Alliance Survey Findings
2
Introduction
The Campus to Campus (C2C) Bikeway Alliance is comprised of graduate students from The University of
Michigan (UM) Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning, The School of Public Health, and
The School of Natural Resources & Environment, who have come together to advocate for a bikeway
connecting UM’s Central and North Campus. In partnership with the Washtenaw Biking and Walking
Coalition, this group aims to provide a safe and convenient bicycle route between Central and North
Campus that would make biking a practical transportation alternative for UM students and the greater
Ann Arbor community.
Summary
A total of 1,433 people responded to this survey, with a response rate of 12%. Most respondents
identify as undergraduates (85%), followed by graduate or Ph.D. students (14%), and then faculty and
staff (1%). A large majority (94%) report living in University Housing, with 59% living on Central Campus
and 41% living on North Campus. Currently, almost 58% of students report traveling between the
campuses at least three days per week, but very few students use a bicycle for most of their commute
trips (just 5%). Although only 5% of students usually rely on a bicycle for their commute, more than six
times the number of students wish to use a bicycle for their commute, which shows that many students
are already motivated to bike. The biggest barrier to biking, according to 58% of students, is the lack of a
convenient, safe route. Students believe that a faster route (75%) and separation from auto traffic (72%)
would help them bike more. This survey demonstrates that, at a minimum, better infrastructure is
needed to promote a more bikeable campus. A safer, more convenient route could lead to more
students commuting by bike and a healthier overall student body.
Survey Rationale
The C2C Bikeway Alliance had many thoughts related to the condition of the bicycle infrastructure
between Central and North campus, the barriers to biking, and how to improve the route, but they knew
their ideas would carry more weight with the support of the student body. The student group believes
that this survey is one way to reach students and document their thoughts and concerns. The graduate
students plan to meet with University Planners and a representative from the City of Ann Arbor in mid
October of 2014 and share the results of this survey. They want to show decision makers what
improvements students want to see, especially among those who travel frequently between these two
campuses.
Methods
This survey heavily targets students living in the dormitories on Central and North Campus. The C2C
Bikeway Alliance decided to focus on these students because they knew that freshmen are required to
live in the dorms, and they often must travel between campuses depending on their class selection.
Because their living situation is out of their control, they thought if these particular students voiced
concerns about the bicycle infrastructure, it might bring more attention to the need to make
improvements. Although the C2C Bikeway Alliance heavily targeted students living in the dorms, they
also sent the survey to some students who attended class on North Campus, specifically in the School of
Theater, Music, and Design and the Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning. They wanted
to target as many people as possible who traveled between the campuses and knew that those who
attend school on North Campus do not necessarily live on North Campus.
3. Campus to Campus Bikeway Alliance Survey Findings
3
In order to send the survey to students living in dormitories, a representative of the C2C Bikeway
Alliance spoke with the Director of Marketing and Communications at the University, Peter Logan, who
was willing to send the survey out to all students living in University Housing. According to Peter Logan,
approximately 11,000 students lived in University Housing during the 2013-2014 school year. In
addition, in order to send the survey to students in the School of Theater, Music, and Design and the
Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning, a student from the C2C Bikeway Alliance sent the
survey to a representative from each school who forwarded the survey to the larger student bodies,
totaling an additional 900 students.
Profile of Respondents
The C2C Bikeway Alliance distributed the survey to approximately 11,900 people in April of 2014. A
total of 1,433 people answered the survey, equaling a 12% response rate. A low response rate was
expected, as April is a busy time for students with final projects and exams, and they may suffer from
survey fatigue at the end of the school year.
Affiliation to the University: As shown below, the majority of respondents were undergraduates. A total
of 1,222 (85%) were undergraduates, 195 (14%) were graduate or Ph.D. students, 3 (less than 1%) were
faculty, 9 (less than 1%) were staff, and 4 (less than 1%) were “other.”
0
20
40
60
80
100
Undergraduate
student
Grad student/
Ph.D
Faculty Staff Other
Percentage
What is your af2iliation with the University of Michigan?
(N=1,433)
4. Campus to Campus Bikeway Alliance Survey Findings
4
Profile of Respondents, Cont.
University Housing Residents: Most people who answered the survey live in University housing. A total
of 1,351 (94%) live in University housing and 79 (6%) do not live in University housing.
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Yes No
Percentage
Do you live in University Housing? (N=1,430)
5. Campus to Campus Bikeway Alliance Survey Findings
5
Profile of Respondents, Cont.
Dormitory Arrangements: As shown below, students living in University Housing reside in various
housing arrangements on Central and North campus. The distribution of responses indicates that about
59% came from students living on Central campus and about 41% came from students living on North
campus.
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14
Alice Lloyd Hall
Baits Houses
Betsy Barbour
Bursley Hall
Couzens Hall
East Quadrangle
Fletcher Hall
Helen Newberry
Henderson House
Martha Cook Building
Mary Markley Hall
Mosher-Jordan Hall
North Quadrangle
Northwood I, II, or III
Northwood IV or V
Oxford Houses
South Quadrangle
Stockwell Hall
West Quadrangle & Cambridge House
Percentage
What dorm do you live in? (N=1,336)
6. Campus to Campus Bikeway Alliance Survey Findings
6
Main Findings
Frequency of Travel Between Central and North Campus: In this closed-ended question, students were
asked to select from one of five answers to demonstrate how often they travel between Central and
North Campus. As shown below, almost half of respondents travel between Central and North Campus
every day. Almost 58% of students travel between the campuses at least three days per week.
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
Never 1-2 days per
MONTH
1-2 days per
week
3-4 days per
week
5-7 days per
week
Percentage
How often do you travel between Central and North Campus?
(N=1,419)
7. Campus to Campus Bikeway Alliance Survey Findings
7
Main Findings, cont.
Frequency of Bike Travel: Students were asked to indicate how frequently they travel between Central
and North Campus using predetermined answers. They could choose one of the following: Never, 1-25%
of the time, 26-50% of the time, 51-75% of the time, or 76-100% of the time. To display the data, the
answers were combined into three categories (i.e. Never, Less than half, More than half) to convey the
main idea in a simpler graph.
As shown below, more than 70% of students never bike between Central and North Campus. About 23%
of students bike less than half the time between Central and North Campus, and just 5% of students bike
more than half the time.
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
Never Less than half More than half
Percentage
How frequently do you bike between Central and North
campus? (N=955)
8. Campus to Campus Bikeway Alliance Survey Findings
8
Main Findings, cont.
Desired Frequency of Bike Travel: Students were asked to indicate how frequently they would MOST
prefer to bike between Central and North Campus using predetermined answers. They could choose one
of the following: Never, 1-25% of the time, 26-50% of the time, 51-75% of the time, or 76-100% of the
time. To display the data, the answers were combined into three categories (i.e. Never, Less than half,
More than half) to convey the main idea in a simpler graph.
As shown below, students prefer to bike more often than they currently do. In fact, 33%, of students
prefer to bike more than half the time, as compared to the 5% who currently do, showing a six-fold
increase.
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Never less than half more than half
Percentage
How often would you prefer to bike between the
campuses? (N=1,001)
9. Campus to Campus Bikeway Alliance Survey Findings
9
Main Findings, cont.
Barriers to Biking: As a small percentage of students regularly bike between the campuses, this question
explores various barriers to biking. This closed-ended question asked students to select up to three
answers. The figure below displays the results in order of largest to smallest barrier. Students could
write in their own answer in the “Other” category. The most common answers written in were 1)
weather and 2) hills.
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
Don't know convenient/safe route
Don't have bike
Poor upkeep of roads, bike paths,and sidewalks
My destination is too far
Not enough bike parking
Not enough lighting
Don't know rules of road for bicyclists
Other (please specify)
Not conbident in bicycling abilities
Don't want to bike
Percentage
What barriers prevent you from biking more? (N=816)
10. Campus to Campus Bikeway Alliance Survey Findings
10
Main Findings, cont.
Ways to Increase Ridership: This question explores ways to increase bike ridership. This closed-ended
question asked students to select up to three answers. The figure below displays the results in order of
most to least popular. Students could write in their own answer for the “Other” category. The most
common answers written in, again, were 1) weather and 2) hills.
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
Faster route
Separation from auto trafbic
Better road, bike path, and sidewalk
Better access to bike
More bike parking
Better lighting
Clearer rules for bicyclists
More waybinding / signage
Other (please specify)
Percentage
What would most help you bike more often between Central and
North Campus? (N=1,108)
11. Campus to Campus Bikeway Alliance Survey Findings
11
Main Findings, cont.
Other Thoughts on Improving Bikeway: Students were asked an open-ended question to see if they had
any further thoughts on improving the bikeway. A total of 391 students answered this question. The
answers were coded to pull out common themes, and sometimes an answer was coded under several
categories if it fit into more than one category. The most common themes are shown below.
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
Separate bike paths (from road and peds)
Fast, short, direct route
Great overall support for c2c bike connection
Clearly marked, debined route (e.g. signs)
Safe route (e.g. lighting, avoid intersections,
maintenance, no potholes)
Total Number
Any other thoughts on improving bikeway? (N=391)
12. Campus to Campus Bikeway Alliance Survey Findings
12
Limitations
Several limitations exist in analyzing these data. First, because the sample was limited to students living
in University Housing, students in the Taubman School of Architecture and Urban Planning, and The
School of Theater, Dance, and Music, findings cannot necessarily be generalized to all UM Students. It
should also be noted that a convenience sample was used for surveying those students who attend class
on North Campus, as a representative in the C2C Bikeway Alliance had access to those list serves. Finally,
for the questions about the frequency of travel between Central and North Campus, it would have been
more accurate to ask how many trips students make on their bike each week. Knowing the percentage
of the time they bike is helpful, but knowing the exact number of trips would have given a more specific
answer. If we knew how many trips were made by bike each week, we may be able to quantify the
impact better bike infrastructure could have on alleviating demand for the UM buses.
Conclusion
Despite the limitations, a large number of students still demand better bicycle infrastructure on the UM
campus. Due to the main barriers to biking including the lack of a clear, marked route, poorly
maintained facilities, and lack of separation from the road and from pedestrians, more could be done to
make biking easier for students. It is interesting to note that wayfinding and signage did not appear
higher on the list for ways to increase ridership, especially given that the biggest barrier to biking was a
lack of knowledge of a convenient or safe route. This suggests either a possible disconnect for students
or that simple wayfinding and signage placed outside are not enough. Perhaps good infrastructure
should also be paired with activities around education and encouragement. This survey demonstrates
that, at a minimum, better infrastructure is needed to promote a more bikeable campus. A safer, more
convenient route could lead to more students commuting by bike and a healthier overall student body.
