Hey guys,
So I am going to be a freshmen next year and I am wondering if it would be better to bike around campus or bring a car. I know that the parking at VT could be tricky…so what is the best recommendation.
Parking for students who live on campus is generally far from the dorms. During week days before 5PM, you can’t park your car in any areas near academic buildings, dining halls, etc. So in that sense, a bike is better… but campus is kind of hilly, so many people not used to biking or who don’t have the right types of bikes end up not using it. You also sometimes will have to end up going the longer way to bike, because direct paths cutting across the residential side of campus have stairs and lots of pedestrians so it’s not always bike friendly.
The farthest most people walk regularly (and this is rare) would be from Litton Reeves/McComas to the new Engineering building, which is walkable in 15 minutes at a fast pace, 20-25 minutes at a leisurely pace. There’s also a bus called the Hokie Express that goes from one corner of campus and circles around the drillfield.
Lots of people get away freshman year without a car or bike. It’s a big campus, but the places you’ll be walking to regularly aren’t in the extreme ends of campus, so it’s not as huge as it may seem.