One of the more well known, and elevation-challenging local commutes for active transportation users may be from central Provo to Utah Valley University’s main campus in Orem. It’s not unusual for me to hear about students, faculty and even staff living in Provo who make the five-mile commute daily, often in all types of weather. I caught up with Matthew Ward, one such central Provo to UVU Campus commuter, at the Fulton Library on the university’s main campus.
Matthew has been commuting to UVU for over three years with a GT Timberline All Terra mountain bike that he purchased from the Provo Bicycle Collective. He had bought the “used, pieced-together bike” shortly after returning to Provo to resume classes at UVU in July 2021; previously, he had gone back home to Farmington in 2020 “during COVID” to stay with his parents. Matthew wanted this bike “mostly for getting around town,” and he adds, “to cut down on how much I would drive, partially [helping with sustainability of] the environment, too.”
“Using it [his Timberline] the most for a job in Provo,” Matthew rode to work constantly from October 2023 through August 2024, as well as during those winter months, “unless it was treacherous out there, then I would drive. It was a fifteen-minute bike ride that didn’t seem much longer than driving,” he convincingly points out to me.
“The hill” going up University Parkway from 2230 North may be the most challenging part of the journey for active transportation commuters, especially those who aren’t using electric assist bikes, scooters, or skateboards. To easily deal with this encumbrance, Matthew usually takes his Timberline with him on the Utah Valley Express (UVX), a unique bus rapid transit system. The much longer articulated bus, local route 830x, gladly welcomes cyclists on board. There are racks to hang two bikes, or you can sit holding your two-wheeler in a normal upright position.
Matthew is also a runner, he “runs most days” and averages around five miles, often running with the BYU Running Club. He has also experienced some near collisions with cars while running. Once, while he was running with the team a car glided off the road and “hit the light pole” right in front of them. They would have been passing that light pole just seconds later, but Matthew insists it is still “safer running with the team.” He then tells me, “my wife has almost been hit a couple of times going across a crosswalk when cars are at a stop and turning right.”
In the process of completing a Masters Program in Clinical Mental Health Counseling, Matthew will be parking his bike at UVU for some time. “No problem finding bike racks on campus,” he assures me, “there’s much less biking at UVU.” As for biking on our local roads, “I’d like to say it’s fun, but there’s a fear of being hit from behind.” Still, Matthew sees active transportation going forward, “I’d like to incorporate it in my life in the future, because of the parking situation it’s easier to ride than drive.”
