By Pamela King, News Correspondent

This summer, Mayor Thomas M. Menino’s program, Boston Bikes, spearheaded several initiatives to cut down on bike theft and increase safety measures as part of their effort to turn Boston into a premiere biking city. But some student cyclists said these efforts are not enough to keep them safe.
Boston Bikes launched stolenbikesboston.com this summer, which features a website, Facebook page, and Twitter account where people can report bicycle thefts and notify others when they have found a missing bike, said Nicole Freedman, director of the program. At press time, there were more than 350 fans on Facebook and more than 250 Twitter followers.
Freedman said students make up a large part of Boston’s biking population, and said their needs are a top priority for the city.
‘Students are the key demographic that ride bikes, and they are at the forefront of our thinking,’ she said.
But some like Dave Connor, a junior communication studies major, said they had never heard of the program. He didn’t think any of his friends who own bikes had either, he said.
‘[Boston Bikes] should partner with universities because so many students bike,’ he said.
The city has been working to create bike lanes on several streets, including Columbus Avenue and North Harvard Avenue in Allston. The next street slated to receive a bike lane is Beacon Street, Freedman said.
Boston Bikes installed 250 bike racks last year, and they are in the process of installing 250 more this year, she said.
Maggie Sullivan, a junior nursing major and president of the Northeastern University Cycling Club, said she thinks that adding more bike lanes is the most important way to ensure the safety of cyclists.
‘From the moment I get off Huntington Avenue onto Harvard Street [in Brookline] and have a bike lane, my body instantly relaxes,’ she said.
While Sullivan said she and other bikers appreciate the effort to reduce bike theft and plan more biking events, they still often feel unsafe while biking.
‘Although there have been efforts for more places to lock up bikes, traveling is always a near battle,’ she said.
Connor said he agreed with Sullivan, and that the city needs bike lanes on more roads, not just on busy streets, to prevent accidents.
‘People take their bikes across the city to get everywhere,’ he said.
Freedman said that bike lanes are put in according to demand, and that creating more on roads frequented by students is a priority of the city.
Sullivan said that drivers also should be educated about bikers and their demands. Drivers often yell at her to ride on the sidewalk when she is on her bike, but doing so would put pedestrians in danger and is illegal in most places, including certain parts of Boston, she said.
Sullivan said she and several other members of the cycling club are planning to participate in Hub on Wheels, an event part of the mayor’s efforts to promote biking. Hub On Wheels is the largest biking event on the east coast and will take place on Sept. 26 and 27, Freedman said.
On Sept. 26, more than 200 top professional bikers, including Olympic cyclists, will race each other around City Hall Plaza.
On Sept. 27, there will be a citywide ride and festival to raise money for Boston Public School students. All of Storrow Drive will be closed, and bicyclists will be able to ride down it without running into any cars, Freedman said. Attendance is expected to reach nearly 6,000.
Another initiative launched by the city this summer was a bike pool for city employees consisting of 20 bicycles in eight locations. While students cannot use these bikes yet, Freedman said the mayor hopes to extend this model to eventually create a city-wide bike share similar to those in Paris and Montreal. In these cities, bicycles are often free for the first 30 minutes and can be picked up or dropped off every 200 to 300 meters, she said.
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