This year, for the first time, Ripon College is providing a bike to any freshman agreeing to sign a pledge stating they will not bring a car to school for the duration of the academic year.

Last fall, when more students at Ripon College requested parking permits than were spots available, the administration decided to remedy the situation by implementing a bike sharing program.

“Initially, this was an idea that a small group of people came up with to alleviate parking congestion,” said Cody Pinkston, director of media and public relations for Ripon. “It’s also now about sustainability and health and wellness.”

Increasingly, more colleges have been developing programs similar to the one at Ripon. According to Pinkston, the University of California-Berkeley and Emory University have purchased fleets of bikes available for student use.

“Universities have a unique opportunity to help society go in a more sustainable direction,” said Julian Dautremont-Smith, associate director for the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. “Higher education institutions can be leaders in influencing society. They are widely respected and a great starting place for new experiments and new technologies.”

According to Pinkston, of the entire freshmen class, about six in 10 students accepted the university’s offer, and Ripon handed out about 170 bikes.

“We didn’t really know what to expect. Optimistically, we were hoping to get maybe 100 to 115 students,” Pinkston said. “[The turnout] exceeded our expectations.”

According to Thomas Lee Eggert, a senior lecturer in the School of Business, an effort to employ a similar program at the University of Wisconsin would have to be initiated by students.

“If we would consider doing something like this, [the foundation] would have to come from the students,” Eggert said. “You guys would have to say, ‘We want to use our money for this [program].’ Otherwise, where would the money come from?”

Eggert cited the Union South student-led initiative as a comparable project.

“Students would have to be committed to assert that this project is embodying the values and principles they believe are important, and they will tax themselves for it,” Eggert said. “We’re probably not going to find an extra million dollars lying around.”

UW students do, however, have options to take part in bike rental programs not provided through the university. Budget Bicycle Center, located on Regent Street, offers the Red Bike Program, where student can rent a bike in return for a $40, , according to Justin Ugoretz, a member of Budget’s sales staff. The money is only withdrawn if the bike is not returned by the end of November. Bike maintenance and tune-ups are also provided free of charge.

Ugoretz stated that several hundred bikes get checked out per year. The program is geared toward anyone in the community, but it is mainly taken advantage of by students.

“There are about 300 bikes in the fleet, and we don’t have any left over,” Ugoretz said. “We’ve actually had to turn people away.”

According to Eggert, the programs have many benefits, including decreasing traffic and pollution, and increasing exercise that fights health problems like obesity.