Category Archives: Sustainable travel

Ride a bike and win!

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Cycling can make you happier, healthier and wealthier – plus, it’s better for the environment and helps reduce pollution and congestion. To enable more students and staff to discover how easy and enjoying cycling can be, the University is taking part in a fun, free competition with eight other universities to see which can get the most students and staff riding a bike. The UniCycle challenge is running from the 1-21 March and any cycling counts – anytime, anywhere whether it’s for fun, fitness or transport!

Great prizes to be won
There are some fantastic prizes on offer – simply for riding a bike or encouraging others to ride a bike! Each ride logged on the website during this challenge will earn an entry into the prize draw – with prizes on offer including 2 x £500 European city break vouchers; 4x £100 vouchers for a local bike shop, restaurant or charity donation; and 3x £100 Pizza Express vouchers. The first fifty new riders to log a ride will receive an organic, Fairtrade t-shirt – as will the person they cite as their encourager.

How to sign up
Signing up is easy – simply register here. Then, to take part, you simply need to ride a bike for fun, fitness for transport, and record it on the challenge website either manually or by linking a physical activity tracker.

Support on offer
As part of the UniCycle challenge, we will be offering a range of free initiatives for students and staff during March and in the coming months – including group bike rides, bike taster sessions, cycle confidence training, bike safety checks and bike repair sessions. For those who don’t have a bike in Exeter and would love to give it a go…we’re even giving away vouchers for three hours cycle hire down at Saddles and Paddles on the quay. What better way to discover the joys of cycling in Exeter than a gentle pedal along the river?

The easiest way to access any of this support is through our events (see below) but we don’t want anyone to miss out so to be kept up to date on all these initiatives and events simply email:  or send any specific questions to: 

Events at Streatham and St Lukes
We’re running a number of events during the challenge period – where you’ll be able to take advantage of some of the support on offer. The first of these events are detailed below and at each of these we’ll have free Co-bikes trials, cycle hire vouchers, bike safety checks, cycle confidence training sign-ups and much more!

We have a range of fun activities on offer as part of these broader sustainability-themed events and we would love to see you there! We’ll also be running various events in the week commencing 12-16 March as part of the Students’ Guild’s Go Green Week – which we’ll also post details of here – so keep an eye out for updates.

Tell me more!
The UniCycle Challenge is part of a pilot project between eight universities funded by the Department for Transport and in partnership with NUS. It’s a great opportunity to get more people on bikes at the University and help make Exeter a cleaner, greener, safer and more liveable place for everyone. We would love you to join in so to find out more and register visit lovetoride.net/unicycle 

Have you heard about our Car Sharing Scheme?

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Here at The University of Exeter, a car sharing scheme is offered to all employees. If you are a student entitled to a Standard Parking Permit you can also sign up to the scheme.

Car sharing is great for the environment as it reduces carbon emissions, city pollution, and congestion. Sharing your journey is not only better for the environment, it also has a number of benefits yourself and for the community.

liftshare.com

Probably the most appealing of these benefits is cost. When more people travel in the same car you all benefit from a cheaper journey, with reduced fuel and vehicle running costs.

On top of this, the University offers extra incentives. Car sharing teams are given a free car parking permit and have access to extra car parking spaces on campus, making your journey even easier. In emergencies, when your lift fails the Emergency Travel Home Scheme will help to fund your journey home.

Many people also enjoy the added social aspect of commuting with friends and colleagues rather than by themselves or on crowded public transport. To find out if anyone is travelling the same journey as you, you can use the search facility on our Car Sharing page . The system will find everyone who’s journeys match yours, but this doesn’t mean you have to share with them. We recommend meeting up for a coffee first to check whether your routines match, and importantly, whether you get along.

To sign up to the car sharing group, visit the University of Exeter Liftshare website. With cheaper, more pleasant journeys which also help the planet, you might be glad you did.

Upcoming sustainability events on campus

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Events in March

Come down to the Forum from 10am-3pm on Tuesday 6 March or outside X-Keys (St Luke’s Campus) from 10am-3pm on Wednesday 7 March for our next sustainability events.

These events will provide opportunities to find out about a range of projects, initiatives and support services linked to environmental sustainability at the University. It will aim to educate and empower you to make positive changes to your lifestyle that will also help our climate and environment.

There will be services to support and encourage sustainable travel including: free 15-minute bike safety checks provided by Saddles and Paddles; free sign-ups to one-to-one two hour cycle confidence sessions; subsidised locks, lights and other cycle equipment; and access to a range of resources and information. Come along and chat to us to ask questions, share your ideas or to get involved.

For information on all of our events visit here.