“It was dark out and raining . I pulled out on my bike to cross Friendly, and a woman in a Toyota Sienna hit me from the side,” said senior Johanna Christina, who uses her bike to get around town. “After that, I don’t bike at night anymore.”

For Guilford students who commute by bike, Greensboro’s main roads, like Friendly Avenue, can be mean pieces of asphalt.

“Some roads you just don’t bike on – like Friendly, it’s the best way to get somewhere, but it’s just so dangerous,” said senior Vladimir Sudilovsky. “I’ve had people yell at me, honk, even throw stuff at me.”

Even the 2007 Greensboro Metropolitan Area Bicycle Map lists most of the main roads in Greensboro as ill suited for bikers. To avoid dangerous traffic patterns on roads like Wendover, Spring Garden, or New Garden, cyclists are forced to navigate through a honeycomb of side-streets.

“It’s not as bad as when I lived in Asheville or Charlotte as long as I stick to the smaller neighborhood roads,” said Sudilovsky, “but you have to know where you’re going because you can get lost easy.”

Founded by cyclists looking for a better access to the town, Bicycling in Greensboro (BIG) is a nonprofit group dedicated to making Greensboro a more bicycle-friendly community.

“We’re here to push for better conditions for cycling in the greater Greensboro area,” said Jeff Sovich, vice president of BIG, at a group meeting on Sept. 12 at the Greensboro Public Library.

Established in 2005, the group of volunteers has quickly gained support in Greensboro city planning by helping Greensboro department of transportation (GDOT) plan the bike lanes for Spring Garden, Florida Street, and Hobbs Road.

“Despite the fact that we’ve been a group for only two years, the city has really been willing to work with us” said John Hepburn, a board member of BIG.

The group also works with the Greensboro Police Department to register bicycles in Greensboro. All bikes on Greensboro streets are now required to have licenses with the bicycles’ serial numbers, so that in the event of theft the bikes can be returned. The registration is free.

“We’re trying to make it easier to trace your bike to get it back to you,” said Officer Brad Johnson.

The group also does charity work. Thanks to a new grant from Recreational Equipment Inc., BIG is starting a program to donate bikes, equipment, and maintenance to people in need of transportation.

“Our program is aimed at targeting folks who need alternate transport or don’t have the funds,” said Sovich.

Currently, the group is working with the GDOT to plan the development of more bike lanes under the Bicycle, Pedestrian and Greenways Plan adopted by the city last year.

Unfortunately for Guilford bikers, most development thus far has been focused on the areas of the city closer to downtown. Bike lanes on Spring Garden start three miles away from campus, and students still have to take either Friendly or New Garden to connect to safer roads.

“I really wish they were putting in bike lanes on Friendly instead of that stupid median,” said Sudilovsky. “That would have been really nice.”