Lawyer, and former Toronto Police Services Board chair, Alan Heisey, is being supported by bike union members in calling for a crackdown on bike lane blockers. Currently the city is putting in bike lanes but enforcement is lax, effectively negating their usefulness.
A former Toronto [...]
Utility cut on Bloor: That's Bells on Bloor ride on opposite side.
Riding on our utility cuts reminds my GF of rodeo kids riding sheep.
If you've ridden on streets like Dundas West between Spadina and Ossington, you'll have experienced "mutton'" [...]
(Photo: jonnyhunter)
The Walrus' Emily Testa investigates Toronto's plan to implement a public bikesharing system, trying to see if bikesharing will help calm the "war on cars".
Walk a block in Toronto’s downtown core on any weekday [...]
More buildings in Toronto are being built with less car parking, and most are finding that they just don't need it. The mainstream media highlighted a new condo no car parking on the site of the Royal Canadian Military Institute. The developer needed to get a special exemption from' [...]
Photos by Hamish Wilson. I think they speak for themselves. Personally I ride daily along Bloor and it scares me.
[...]
Some Canadian bike shops and distributors are angry, claiming Mountain Equipment Co-op is using its unfair competitive advantage to push its own bike line. Read on.
Its foray this month into bike selling has been criticized by rival specialty retailers for everything from unfair competition because of its tax-exempt [...]
(Photo titled: "bike lane?" by mdintoronto)
In terms of bike lanes, sharrows, lights or any bike infrastructure at all other than post and rings, the Bloor Corridor Visioning Study is a bit of a let down. But there will be a public [...]
The following email comes from Patrick Brown, a cyclist-supporting lawyer here in Toronto. Could cyclists be getting screwed over with insurance settlements in the future? Read on.
This morning I attended a stakeholders meeting with the Ministry of Finance regarding the new changes to auto insurance. It is now on [...]
Catherine Porter of the Star has a bunch of the "Thank You" cards for drivers, a campaign by the Toronto Cyclists Union, but she's having a hard time giving them out. It seems like she's more determined that I. I will, however, wave when a driver allows me to [...]
(Photo: rezavaziri)
The IMBA (International Mountain Biking Association) Ontario rep says Toronto is getting closer to adding a mountain biking park, as the City's strategic planners have update the BMX Go Forward Strategy to also include [...]
In the lefty news site Straight Goods, our favourite cycling lawyer, Albert Koehl, weighs in on the lethal cost of automobiles. You may also know Koehl from helping to push the cycling agenda with the province, perhaps one reason why the provincial Environmental Commissioner mentioned Toronto's slow pace of [...]
I found the above illustration on the GOOD website.
According to the City of Toronto (Census) riding to work was up 32,6% between 2001 and 2006 from 1,3 to 1,7. Not bad but too slow for my likes. Wonder what the current stats might [...]
We've got gridlock. What are we going to do about it? Too many motorists and politicians end up being merely reactive, fighting any attempt to take away road space for other uses, or putting more funds into transit and cycling. Coming next month' [...]
According to this Toronto Police news release, two cyclists collided on the trail near Bayview Ave. and Pottery Road, resulting in the death of an 84 year old man.
Police request assistance with bicycle−on−bicycle collision
Broadcast time: 17:35
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Traffic Services
416−808−1900
On [...]
The bike union launched a campaign this week to help smooth over the anger between drivers and motorists. Cyclists are extending the olive branch in the form of thousands of "Thank You" cards to be given out to drivers when they doing [...]
A fellow fllmaker Clarence Eckerson, Jr. from NYC send this film with this note:
"Just sending out this quickie new Streetfilm on NYC Bike Lanes:
http://www.streetfilms.org/archives/bike-lanes-in-the-big-apple/
A good video to use if:
Your city needs bike infrastructure Your city needs more or innovative bike facilities and they are not doing experimentation" [...]The Toronto Cyclists Union Bike Camp was a great success (see video)! Thanks to all the people who contributed their great ideas.
The day was packed with two time periods of 9 sessions from which we could choose. We were encouraged to move around and find the best fit. The sessions [...]
Toban Black, sent us these photos he took of the Community Bicycle Network space. It just so happens I'm on the board there. I encourage everyone to give it a try: let the mechanics fix your bike, or learn to fix your own.
BikeCamp. The name sounds a bit like Boy/Girl Scouts, but there's a history to the ____ Camp concept. It started out in the programmer community with nerdy Foo Camp for hackers - described as the "wiki of conferences" for those who don't need to look [...]
On October 28, the Toronto Cyclists Union is hosting a cocktail and masquerade fund raiser at the Steamwhistle Roundhouse.
Here's the verbatim invitation. I hope to see you there!
If there was ever a time to get behind our city's most dedicated, and high profile cycling advocates, [...]
TOBMA (Toronto Bike Messengers Association) has been in the news a lot recently. Most recently they've held a press conference and a fundraiser after the death of Darcy Sheppard. Ryerson Free Press shows a new angle of TOBMA as the voice and union for messengers who currently' [...]
The Bike Pirates are profiled - "has grown into Toronto's biggest bike repair collective" (and dare I say, the only?). Torontist, Oct. 7, 2009
Bike Pirates began as a loosely organized tool-sharing program, where members could dip into a centralized pool of equipment for bicycle repairs. Today, their storefront [...]
Ontario's Environmental Commissioner Gord Miller has criticized Toronto and Ontario for failing cyclists and pedestrians. Notch it up to another report (the first being the 1998 Coroner's report) that activists can wave in front of politicians as they waffle and drag their feet:
Toronto's cycling enthusiasts celebrated a' [...]
(Photo: Dundas West BIA)
Dundas West merchants really want their rush-hour parking, even as the new businesses readily admit they don't really need it. Their "NOPE" posters villifying Councillor Giambrone are still hanging in the windows of shops along Dundas West. Their campaign "Our Neighbourhoods'" [...]
Just when I was beginning to despair that the City has done all it can for downtown cyclists, that it has built all the bike lanes it has planned in the bike plan, chriskayTO snapped a photo of sharrows being installed on Bloor Street. Some [...]
CTV reports on a fight between a bike courier and a BMW driver.
Driver pleads innocence. No one interviews the courier. Driver has a name: Azid Hamid. The courier has none.
Azid Hamid was driving his silver BMW on Queen near Church Street when a bicycle courier began yelling at him [...]
The Bike to Work Book is a colourful guide for wannabe bike commuters, produced by Carlton Reid and Tim Grahl and is available in print or downloadable in pdf. I had this link sitting around for awhile and decided to finally see if you find it interesting.
The two guys [...]
Just missed crashing from a pothole? Then you're probably like a lot of cyclists in Toronto. But now you can help make a bit of difference by calling 311! The city has launched the 311 service to better help residents access City services. If you're like [...]
Tess Kalinowski of The Toronto Star claims that providing bike infrastructure through transit is expensive. GO Transit is putting in secured and sheltered parking throughout the system. The TTC is putting in bus bike racks on its entire fleet. The price comes out in the range of a couple [...]
A proposed downtown condo will have absolutely no parking for private motor vehicles, if City Council approves it. Instead it will only have spots for car-sharing vehicles and 315 bike parking spots. The innovative project, which will be built on University Avenue at the site of the Royal Canadian [...]
Bob Mionske, a cycling lawyer, author of Bicycling & the Law, and contributor to Bicycling magazine, weighs in on the incident of road rage and death involving Michael Bryant, former Ontario Attorney General, and Darcy Sheppard, now deceased bike courier. Despite the work of [...]
(Photo: sniderscion)
Councillor Bill Saundercook will be proposing to the City of Toronto's Pedestrian Committee a 10 km/h reduction in the speed limit across Toronto. His call is taking place just as Councillor Walker is pushing his [...]
Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose. There are many now who like to moralize almost as much as this doctor, when writing to the medical journal, The Lancet, in 1896 claimed that cyclists were a danger to others and themselves. The doctor was clearly [...]
The Toronto Bike Messenger Association has established a memorial fund for funeral arrangements and to give support to his children.
Donations are being accepted at TOBMA via Paypal and in person at any TD Canada Trust location. Please reference Darcy Alllan Sheppard and/or account number 06906676860 to donate in person.
Update:
[...]
I find it rather interesting that after a summer of fuel provided by our media of the "war on the car" that it took so long for yet another case of Road Rage involving a motorist and a cyclist to occur. After all, this city is known for its Bike [...]
Councillor Michael Walker is trying hard to appear to be the reasonable voice for citizens of Toronto plagued by cyclists. The solution is to make it harder to be a cyclist. The City's public works and infrastructure meeting will be discussing mandatory helmets and mandatory licensing for cyclists.
"We can't'" [...]
From Christie Blatchford in the Globe and Mail on the cyclist death on behalf of the former Attorney General, a mainstream view that is surprising in its understanding of the power that motorists wield:
As city planners ensure that roads get narrower for cars (half-assed bike lanes, which give a [...]
Photo: danielle_scott
Tom Vanderbilt, author of Traffic, writes that bike parking revolutionize cities. Toronto has been on the vanguard of providing good bike parking in its ubiquitous post and rings. With a draft zoning by-law in the works, we can [...]
(Photo: votreceinture)
Ever considered visiting Toronto streets simply to experience the adrenaline rush of cycling its streets? Few would. Don Irvine, the exception, likes to get his fix whenever he visits from tame Victoria with its immaculate bike paths and pothole-less roads.
That's why [...]
Photo: rezavaziri
Bespoke (the blog for the bike importer On the Fourth Distribution) makes a cogent argument that North American bike makers have had a difficult time dealing with urban dwellers but have instead latched onto the [...]
Here's a short (sales) video of a collapsible bike trailer. I think this is a good idea.
I've often wished for a smaller trailer that wouldn't get in the way when empty. What do you think?
Extra points to those who can tell where it's filmed!
[...]Youtube user JHGRedekop has posted videos of their GPS tracings from 2004 to 2009, covering a large part of the city.
A time-lapse animation of my recumbent cycling in Toronto, spanning 2004 to 2009. In all, about 650 hours of cycling totalling almost 8100km.
This is the total record of all [...]
(Photo: purple_shutter)
The Bunch Family (a company, actually) of Toronto borrowed a purple bike from Yahoo! called Purple Shutters. The special thing about these bikes is that they take automatic photos and track the [...]
If you haven't been through the railway underpass next to the Dundas St. West and Dupont St. intersection in West Toronto recently, you have been missing out on some incredible changes! The streetscape has evolved tremendously in the past couple of months: The West Toronto' [...]
I happen to like maps. If you don't share this trait, then I suggest you move on. You could watch the MC SpandX video "Performance" instead (thanks to BikeSnobNYC). As for the rest of you, look at this image of the OpenCycleMap layer of OpenStreetMap, a' [...]
From the Bike Train website:
We are excited to announce a new pilot project that introduces twice daily Bike Train service between Montreal and Toronto offering bike racks onboard. The pilot will run from August 24 to October 8 allowing cyclists to take the train with their bikes - no [...]
The sixth anniversary of the blackout was celebrated August 14 with a Block Party and announcement of the "Portugal Square" on Ossington Avenue and Dundas West. I was at a different block party so I'll post Tino's take:
The street was filled with happiness and live' [...]
David Chant, owner of Resist Gallery in Toronto, had enough of the cheap but disfunctional department store bikes. He decided to do something about it by "curating" a bike for the masses: the Beater Bike. Dave endeavoured to create an inexpensive bike that was [...]
Leanne Eisen, Toronto artist, was given a bicycle ticket. But not for what you think: someone gave a citation for having a "badass" and "unique" Dutch bike (given to her by her Oma). I'm willing to believe that the Urban Repair Squad has something to do with' [...]
Goofy as Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde characters, Mr. Walker and Mr. Wheeler. As revealing of motorist behaviour and temperament now as in 1950. Admit it: even us cyclists get a bit rabid when behind a car wheel!
[...]Last evening I decided to finally document the bicycle mural at Dupont and Dundas West. Fine work indeed. Noticed several cyclist taking a walk along the mural just to admire it. Sweet.
Editor's Note: We will have a full-feature article about these new' [...]
(Photo: ardenstreet
The Star last week counted cyclists at stop signs and found: " We watched 159 cyclists approach a busy intersection. Only 21 came to a full stop." Despite making motorists crazy and being illegal some make a counter-argument for the rolling stop, also called the Idaho [...]
(Photo: torontobikechic)
Xander N' Dante, which I assume are two people, are "velographers" at 416cyclestyle. They are creating a Toronto flavour of the blog phenom of bicycle chic that started in Copenhagen. Their mission:
From the multicultural flavored streets of the 416 in TORONTO, we span the neighborhoods' [...]
Photo: Vic Gedris: More on Vic's site: vic.gedris.org/pics
When one is obsessed with cycling one tends to bring the bike everywhere. The GF and I brought our bikes to a wedding in Ancaster this last long weekend. The GO bus and its bike rack took [...]
Toronto is getting a new window to the waterfront as Simcoe Street is extended with an underpass under the rail lines to provide downtown with more connections to the waterfront and new condos. It is also likely the first new underpass that was originally designed [...]
Benny Zenga has been hard at work this year as always on the Bicycle Film Festivals in Montreal and Toronto this month. I can especially recommend checking out his film about the Tour d'Afrique which he rode in part on a tall bike. Amazing!
BFF09 Toronto happens on August 19-22.' [...]
Blogger Daniel Harren provides us with a nice overview of Bixi use over a typical work day.
Have you ever been unable to find a bixi? Or unable to find a parking spot?
I’ve downloaded a map of the Bixi system every 5 minutes for the last couple weeks, and [...]
(Photo: van8)
A summer bike lane trial has begun for the Burrard bridge in Vancouver. Back in 1996 was the last time Vancouver City Council attempted a trial to close a car lane on the bridge and they got cold [...]
The Star's opinion section blasts cyclists for not coming to full stops at stop signs. No mention is made of how many motorists didn't come to a full stop at the same stop sign. As well no differentiation is made between cyclists that don't come to a full stop [...]
(Photo: mattblackett)
This Guardian journalist, Euan Ferguson, has some nice things to say about Danish bike culture and feels out of place with their overabundance of beautiful people, most of whom happen to be on bikes.
Copenhagen is the future: Copenhagen is Cycle City. [...]
By local band Rural Alberta Advantage, video directed by Kristofer Delaney. Perfect song for riding yer bike this summer.
Btw, they play at the Horseshoe on July 30th.
Peter Milczyn, City Councillor for Etobicoke - Lakeshore has results for an unscientific survey of ward citizens and their cycling habits and views. We don't know how many people responded to the survey, and those who did respond are pre-selected to want to respond' [...]
San Francisco is looking at how Toronto cyclists deal with streetcar tracks. The answer: not very easily. Toronto streetcar tracks have been the bane of many cyclists, both experienced and green. Being one of just a handful of North American cities with streetcars, Toronto could provide valuable information.
What can [...]
I'll admit I'm a bit jealous. I can't ride "no hands" for more than a few feet. It's my bikes, they're unbalanced, or maybe it's my inner ear, or the type of shoes I'm wearing. Regardless, there are better cyclists out there than I and to prove it here's a [...]
If the strike doesn't delay things the City will be entering into negotiations with Bixi this fall for Toronto's new bike sharing system. Only two companies responded to the City's Request for Proposal of Interest this last spring. Only one of them qualified on technical grounds. Bixi was
(Photo: sniderscion
An article on shift gears effectively was forwarded to us recently by an anonymous I Bike TOer. We agreed this might be useful for our readers (and if they still can't get the hang of it they can stick to' [...]
Paul Larsen of Toronto makes some interesting cargo bikes in his spare time. While Larsen's Toronto-based business, Invodane, focuses on creative engineering solutions for large-scale industrial projects, he's also been dabbling with making the cargo bikes that he grew up with in Denmark. Since [...]
(Photo: ericparker)
Igor Kenk, major Toronto bike thief and drug dealer, will be the subject of a graphic novel and a documentary by Richard Poplak:
Kenk, owner of the shop Bicycle Clinic, was [...]
(Photo: Jay the Commie)
A bike rental store owner is upset with Bixi in Montreal, claiming that Bixi, the public bike sharing service, is killing his business.
Does he have a case? Or is he full of it?
He warned the city in April 2008 that [...]
Sometimes the police will take bike theft seriously. Eventually. Spacing reports an interesting story of Heather's stolen bike, how her friend found her stolen bike on Kijiji, and how their persistance got the police to eventually arrest and return her bike. With the cops initially being uninterested in helping [...]
With a push to promote cycle tourism in North Bay, you can now take the Bike Train there with a pilot starting August 7-10. It could be that the area is actually quite nice for some cycle touring, I don't know. The best person to ask is Justin Lafontaine' [...]
(Photo: torontobikechic)
Two blogs have come out with lists on avoiding or defusing anti-cyclist road rage. Treehugger has a 6 point list and Planet Green has four. Please share your own! I find their tips a bit underwhelming:
Obey all traffic laws. (Drivers hate [...]Did you know that we should take into account the embodied energy when we compare the consequences of our energy use and transportation? WattzOn provides tools for us to track our energy consumption and compare it to a recommended 2000 Watt lifestyle (as a sustainable lifestyle). Eightlines on [...]
(Photo: flickr user martinreis)
Lawyer Albert Koehl makes a good argument, Bells on Bloor activist, in today's Globe and Mail for why the province should put the heat under the cities feet to get more bike lanes before all our glaciers melt:
Ontario [...]
(Photo: flickr user seattledredge)
[Editors: The Bike Biz directory is now accessible. We forgot to make it public when announcing this.]
Everybody knows that bikes are good for business. But do you also know that business can be good for bikes? Well to show [...]
(Photo: flickr user picturenarrative)
Never easy for new cyclists or tourists to Toronto. With a bit of practice you can master them by following these steps:
Always cross the tracks close to 90 degrees so you don't get your front wheel sucked in. Always,' [...]
The bike lanes on Annette and Dupont are almost complete and Jerrold of BlogTO has gave his impression of the "narrowing" of Dupont and Annette from a recent drive along Dupont.
But as someone who both cycles and drives on Dupont and Annette (often enough to [...]
At the launch of this year's "Safe Cycling - Share the Responsibility" campaign aka the "bike blitz", the cops promised to focus on aggressive cyclists and car drivers endangering cyclists. How effective have they been in targeting the worst offenders? Or have they once again mostly set up sting operations' [...]
The Toronto Star provided a handy field guide for citizens who are more interested in tracking Toronto cyclists than elusive birds.
[...]
Cops on bikes with Pride. If only they looked like this everyday. (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tingchaleun)
Last weekend culminated Pride Week in the annual parade. Some photos of the intersection of queers and bikes.
Have you received a traffic ticket from Toronto Police's bike blitz this week? The ARCwiki has a great resource on fighting traffic tickets or our copy in the guide.
Tickets may be issued for moving violations (such as failing to stop), or for inadequate bike equipment (lights, for example). [...]
Hal tells us how to properly lock our bikes. Is bike theft so bad in NYC that even the crappiest bikes have to have chains locking their seats? This is getting out of hand.
[...]Intrepid blogger (and community organizer) Mez was the only media at the press conference for the Toronto Police's "Share the Road" bike safety campaign launch on Monday. Being the only one meant he had plenty of time to try to convince the police present to do a better of job' [...]
Love 'em or hate 'em, e-bikes have been a hot topic for discussion here.
The province has opened up the discussion of e-bikes, and where they fit into the regulatory framework in Ontario. This follows up on the Stakeholder meeting hosted by MTO on June 16th, [...]
Have your say on Toronto's draft zoning by-law. You can comment on it online or in person at one of the open houses. Why is this important for cyclists? Most of us pay property taxes and buy/rent homes that incorporate the expenses of building parking spots for cars. [...]
After at least eight years of dreaming the West Toronto Railpath is officially open! This last weekend an opening party was held. Twitter user, skubie, provided the photo of the path from the south end of the trail where it meets Dundas, just north of College.
It's' [...]
Yikes, Ward 29 Bikes Tom Flaherty's first Powerpoint presentation!
"...We want you to give us the answers." And with that Val Dodge of Ward 29 Bikes got last Wednesday's East End/Danforth Cyclists' Confab underway.
Hosted by Ward 29' [...]
"Will You Be My Bicycle?" HotShot Gallery | Group Show
June 19 - July 3 | Opening June 20 | 7-9 PM
HotShot Gallery | 181 Augusta Avenue (in Kensington Market)
Photographs from a 'Public History of Cycling' [...]
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The West Toronto Railpath will have its official launch on June 20, 2009, 2pm with a Party Parade! It starts on Wallace Ave., west of Perth (at the pedestrian rail overpass). Bring your bike, blades, strollers and kids to a party for the railpath.
Brought to [...]
Last year the Toronto Cyclists Union was brought to life with a film screening of Pee-wee's Big Adventure, supported by a live cast featuring members of the Hidden Cameras, Broken Social Scene, Apostle of Hustle, Kids on TV, Republic of Safety, the Phonemes and others. Recently "pigeonhat" aka Mez posted [...]
A new campaign by the bike union in partnership with Culturelink is working on getting newcomers on bikes again.
Toronto's cycling community would like to see more immigrants like Li get out of their cars and return to their old modus operandi as part of a city-wide "From Back Home" [...]
