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Dal cyclists have renewed springs in their sprockets with news that the Dal Bike Centre is opening.

鈥淚鈥檓 spreading the word now and every student I speak to is ecstatic about this. There鈥檚 widespread support from everyone,鈥� says Peter Rogers, a Dalhousie student who commutes to campus.

The Dal Bike Centre officially launches on Thursday, Oct. 8 during the Dalhousie Sustainable Transportation Fair. The centre is located behind the double red doors of the Studley Gymnasium.

A pilot project of Dalhousie鈥檚 Office of Sustainability and Clean Nova Scotia, the Dal Bike Centre will act as a drop-in centre for students, staff and faculty who want to learn how to fix up their bikes. It will offer courses in cycling safety, winter driving and bicycle maintenance.

If you go WHAT: The Dalhousie Sustainable Transportation Fair acts as the launch for the Campus Bike Centre and the Dalhousie pilot for the HRM Guaranteed Ride Home Program. There will also be info on Dalhousie and HRM carpool matching and organization booths by community groups. WHEN: Thursday, Oct. 8, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. WHERE: Studley Gym, 6185 South Street.

Staffed by a Dal student, the centre will be open Mondays and Wednesdays from noon to 2 p.m. and Tuesdays and Thursdays, 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Dalhousie鈥檚 Department of Athletics and Recreational Services wants to partner with the bike centre to enhance its outdoor recreational programming. The department started an 鈥淥utdoor Adventure Crew鈥� this fall, with activities such as day hikes, canoe trips, kayaking and rock climbing. Cycling can definitely be added to the mix, says Shawn Fraser, a senior manager. CAN-BIKE courses and biking groups for day excursions are other possibilities.

鈥淎nything we can do to promote people to be physically active and recreating outside our overcrowded facilities is definitely a good idea,鈥� he says.

Rochelle Owen, director of the Office of Sustainability, hopes the centre is just the beginning. She鈥檇 like to聽see what kind of support there is for a聽bike share program, which would offer free or affordable access to bicycles for use around campus and surrounding neighbourhoods. The concept is taking off in Europe, where there are bike share programs in Lyon, Paris, London, Barcelona, Stockholm and Copenhagen.

Other initiatives to promote cycling to and from campus include installing more bike racks, getting more shower facilities that cyclists can use and pressing for a dedicated bike lane on University Avenue that would connect Studley and Sexton campuses. As well, students from the Faculty of Architecture and Planning have a design for a covered bike rack that they鈥檙e looking for feedback on.

鈥淲e want to be thoughtful about all of this,鈥� says Ms. Owen. 鈥淎nd we鈥檒l have to work at a scale that鈥檚 practical on campus.鈥�