I am going to say it, I think the Loft 1 would be a poor choice for a first time commuter. However, naming it gives us a price cap of $440. Knowing your price range is very useful.

Reasons I would not suggest a Loft:

• Single speed, commuting is done in all moods, there is no single, ideal gear setting.
• Coaster brake, yes, they were serviceable when we were kids in the 70s'; however, we expect more now
• no fenders or racks (yes, I see there are eyelets)

What I do recommend is contacting th campus bicycle club. First find out if they have any bikes they recommend.
If not ask if they assemble bicycles. If they do then look into bikes direct or performance bikes. Both will give you a better deal. Essentialy that swim bike, with fenders and a rack will run about $300 (if you go with the option sans rack, the price falls to $250).

Windesor Essex Delux

However, I don't recommend that one. I recommend a bike with an IGH for someone who just wants transportation.

Kennisington 8

It is a bit over budget, at $499, which is why I started with the first one. No matter what, I would spend some time looking at the two sites I mentioned. See if your bike club can assemble a bike.

If not it really isn't that hard to do your self. A lot of people here make it hard by over thinking it; it is really a rather simple device and, is easy to assemble one (which, mostly, means putting on the wheels and checking the brakes.).

For people looking for simple transportation I strongly recommend avoiding the smaller boutique brands. Order it and put it together yourself; or go to a bike shop and get a standard, multigear, bike with brakes on both wheels, a set of fenders, a lock, a rack and a couple of bungie cords. Order the lights off of Amazon.