ASU police will begin impounding bikes parked on wheelchair ramps next week, and students could face fines up to $60.
Disabled students have had difficulty and at times been unable to enter or exit buildings on the Tempe campus because wheelchair ramps are obstructed by bicycles.
Blocking a fire exit or disability accommodation is a level three violation under the Tempe Campus Transportation Code and calls for a fine up to $60.
Police will cut the locks off of bikes locked to wheelchair ramps, and students will have to claim their bikes from the ASU police station during office hours.
ASU Assistant Police Chief Jay Spradling said the station would begin enforcing the policy because of numerous complaints at the Memorial Union, the largest problem area on campus.
Eliza Robinson, a marketing specialist for the Memorial Union, said MU management has received eight complaints since October from both disabled and nondisabled visitors saying that access is restricted due to locked bikes.
The MU placed written warnings on the ramps to tell students they are not allowed to lock their bikes there, she said.
Spradling said students have continued to park, ignoring the signs for more than six weeks.
More recently, the MU has placed a student worker near the problem area on the north side of the building to stop bikers from parking, but the problem persists, Robinson said.
Spradling said he met with MU staff, and the next step is to enforce the transportation code by removing illegally parked bikes.
“I have never been to the MU and not seen bikes [locked to the ramps],” Spradling said.
The police station held an internal meeting to determine the logistics of removing the bikes Wednesday and will begin next week.
“There are always other areas to park,” Spradling said. “They just aren’t as convenient.”
Bioengineering freshman Nicole Smith said she has no choice but to lock her bike to the wheelchair ramp, especially around lunchtime.
“Sometimes there’s not even enough room on the ramp,” she said. “And the only bike racks around are always full.”
Smith said she has never noticed the signs and thinks other students have no idea they aren’t allowed to park on the ramps or that they may be preventing disabled persons from entering.
“There used to be more racks here, but a bunch of them are gone,” she said.
Several bike racks were removed from the north side of the building during the MU restoration and placed on the east side of Hayden Library, still close enough to be used, Robinson said.
Reach the reporter at tessa.muggeridge@asu.edu.
