Happy Friday!  BikingToronto is growing fast… so here’s all the cool stuff that’s been going on this week!

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In The News:

• The Share The Road Coalition says Ontario needs to inject at least $20 million into cycling infrastructure to catch up to other provinces and states.

• The Toronto Cyclists Union has won the 2010 Innovation of the Year Award from the Alliance for Biking and Walking (formerly Thunderhead Alliance) for their new immigrant outreach program they co-ordinated with CultureLink.

• Google launches a “biking” feature on their Google Maps service, showing bikelanes and trails.  It’s only in the U.S. so far.    Hopefully the city can give mapping data to Google to expand it to Toronto.

• The Urban Repair Squad has made Harbord Street action-packed by pointing out pavement hazards.

• Mayoral Candidate George Smitherman (generally assumed to be the frontrunner for the mayor’s job) says he’d “pause” bikelane network implementation.

• The brand new Simcoe Street Bikelanes are unusable, because cabs are using it as a taxi stand.

New on the Main Blog:

• Our First 100 Members!
• Ward 30 Bike Survey
• Cycling Events This Week: Mar. 8 – 14

New on Duncan’s City Ride:

• “If I ride…” People for Bikes.org asks; Why Do You Ride?
• Lower Simcoe Taxi Stand… Wait, That’s A Bike Lane!
• Cruisers, Cargo bikes, Handmades and More – The Toronto International Bicycle Show
• Biomega Commercial By Cycle Chic’s Mikael Colville-Andersen
• Things You Can Do By Bike – Go To IKEA!

New on Joe Bikes:

• My Cyclist Count for Thursday March 11, 2010
• My Cyclist Count for Wednesday March 10, 2010
• Looking Forward to the Commute

New on Fletcher Five (NEW!):

• Is that Karma?
• Repairs and Modifications
• That did not go as planned.
• Highlights from the Bike Show: Pt1
• Day One: 800m

New on Michael Holloway’s Blog (NEW!):

• “Ride the City” Mapper Looks Useful, Easy to use
• Paul said, I need a non-arterial cycling route from Dufferin and Bloor into the Core
• Toronto: Dufferin and Bloor to the Core
• Toronto Bicycle Route Mapping Wiki Project
• RSS Feeds – Stay up to date with the Wiki & this Blog

New on The Hub (Public Members Blog):

• Duncan, Wow, that’s great – good work….
• Hey everyone, I’ve been working on a wa…

New on the Photo of the Day:

• Around A Cab
• Cross-Legged?
• Walk, Bike, Drive, TTC
• Holt Renfrew Bike Race
• Wave Deck Tail Whip
• Bay Bus Terminal

New/Hot on the Forums:

• Anger as cars clog new Simcoe St. bike lane
• Choosing bike components
• So, this is a cycling city?
• Fixer: When is a bike lane not a bike lane?
• Smitherman would pause Toronto’s bike plan
• Trinity Bellwoods Multi-Use Path Plans
• The Action Hazards of Harbord Street
• GoogleMaps likes Bikes!
• Bike lanes an election winner for Rossi
• PST exemption for new gear
• T.O. cyclists ride away U.S. award
• Bike Union getting U.S. Award!
• Millions sought for Ontario cycling
• Bike locks
• Bicycle thief Kenk’s assault charges stayed
• Bryant-cyclist case put over to March 5
• fun/pretty rides in and around Toronto
• holycr@p, they let him out!
• Folks, a rusty steed is a friend indeed – even in winter
• Can this bike lane get more fans than Rocco Rossi?!!
• Ward 29 Bikes 2009 Year (and a bit!) in review

Want to get the Weekly News Wrap-Up in your email every friday?  Easy-Peasy, Lemon Squeezy.  Is that how you spell “Squeezy”?

Happy Friday!  It looks like it’s going to be a great warm (for March) sunny weekend the next couple of days.  Get out there on two wheels and enjoy it!

Here’s your BikingToronto Wrap-Up for this week:

(if you don’t already get this in your email, but would like to – you can sign up here)

New on the Main Blog:

Are Toronto Police Ticketing Cyclists More?

Bad behaviour by some cyclists make us as a whole look bad. I’d rather take a bit longer to get to work by stopping at red lights and not thinking I’m the most important thing on the road, and really don’t understand any cyclist who thinks differently. (read more)

New on the Toronto BikeShop Map

We have three new additions to the BikeShop Map for you! (read more)

Plan Your BikeMonth Events Now!

The great staff at the City of Toronto recently sent out information about submitting events to be included in the official BikeMonth calendar, so I’m sharing it with all you fine people because you may be thinking about planning an event for BikeMonth this year.  The deadline for event submission is Thursday, March 25th. (read more)

New on Duncan’s City Ride:

• Share the Road Coalition Green Paper
• Eyes on the Road, Hands on the Wheel
• Do Pedestrian Crossings Make for Safer City Cycling?
• 416cyclestyle Toronto Cycle Chic Search – Spring Moments
• Marcus Gee is a Winter Cyclist and Darn Proud of it!
• The Least Expensive Winter Cycling Accessory You Need
• Toronto Spring Bicycle Show – No Commuter Cyclist Options?

New on Joe Bikes:

• March Mornings on the Bloor Viaduct

New on the Hub:

• Here’s an example of Wiki Maps
• User Generated Bicycle Route Maps 2
• User Generated Bicycle Route Maps
• Boston’s Future Lies In Moving Away From The Car

New on the Photo of the Day:

• Summer is Coming
• Blue Skies on Spadina
• Red Ball on King Street
• Massey Hall
• Silver Velomobile
• Red Dress
• Winter on the Toronto Islands

New on the Forums:

• Can this bike lane get more fans than Rocco Rossi?!!
• Choosing bike components
• Ward 29 Bikes 2009 Year (and a bit!) in review
• fun/pretty rides in and around Toronto
• Leslie to the Lake corridor
• Complete Streets Forum 2010
• Folks, a rusty steed is a friend indeed – even in winter
• Non-Arterial Bike Lanes – Where would yours go?
• Rebuilding Dukes Is there a ‘culture war’ looming in this mayoral race?
• Bike lanes an election winner for Rossi
  

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Happy snowy Friday to you!

I don’t know about you, but I’m looking forward to bombing around my neighbourhood streets in all this fresh powder.

Here is your weekly wrap-up, run-down and scoop on all the new stuff on BikingToronto.

New on the Main Blog

Toronto’s New Bike Sauce Looking for Bike Donations

BikeSauce is a new DIY bike shop in the east end of Toronto (read more)

New on Duncan’s City Ride

Chicago Winter Cyclists Profiled on PBS

I’m about to head out and ride in some fresh Toronto snow. This video is a great inspiration. (watch video)

New on Thumbshift

Healthy Mind, Healthy Body

Before I introduce myself properly to the Biking Toronto crowd, I just thought I’d toss something together here, based on something that I wrote previously… (read more)

New on Joe Bikes

Rocco Rossi, Obama-Style

I though I’d do up a quick little Obama-style graphic of what a lot of people will be thinking this fall at municipal election time when they think of Rocco… (read more)

New on the Photo of the Day

Tip Top Riding

Never Too Old, Never Too Cold

Batavus and a Wooden Carrier

Sleek Black on Red Retro

Itty Bitty Bike

Patiently Waiting

College Street Snow

Popular on the Forums this week

Bike lanes an election winner for Rossi

Where are the WORST Bikelanes/Paths

Where are the Best Bike Lanes/Paths ?

Non-Arterial Bike Lanes – Where would yours go?

Want to get the Weekly News Wrap-Up in your email every friday?  Boom Shaka-Laka Boom!

Happy seasonably warm Friday to you!  This morning was a great one for riding to work.  Spring is right around the corner!    Here’s all the news from the world of Toronto cycling from the past week, as well as what’s been active in the forums.

Photos and Video from the Ice Bike Races

On Sat. Feb 13, Dufferin Grove Park was the scene for “Icycle 2010″ – the annual Ice Bike Races put on by Derek Chadbourne of the Bike Joint.   We’ve collected a whole bunch of videos and photo collections of the evening for you.  (check them out)

Toronto’s Bike Sharing Bixi Plans are in Trouble (and how you can help)

Our city’s plans to have an extensive network of cheap rentable bikes all over downtown in 2010 is in danger due to start-up costs.  Putting an estimated $15 million into something that most of the electorate (unfortunately) sees as a “fringe” transportation option has politicians and city staff a little apprehensive during this election year.  Here’s a rundown of the situation as well as how you can help.

Blogs: Duncan’s City Ride

• BikeHugger Huggcast 134 from Vancouver 2010 Olympics
• The Bike-Sharing World Map
• Safety Overkill
• Cycling is an Inspiration for Toronto Author
• Angles Morts – Blind Spots
• The solution to winter snow and slush – a “track” bike
• A few pics from Vancouver 2010 Olympic Tweed Ride
• In Vancouver: More Places to Park Your Bicycle
• The Tyee Looks at MakerCulture and BikeCamp
• Globe Live 1 Review by my girlfriend!

Blogs: Photo of the Day

• Sidewalk Parking
• Overnight Parking
• Trolls Under the Bridge
• Winter Riding on the Don River
• Just Chill
• Plaid Tattoos
• Pretty in Pink

New in the Forums:

• Leslie to the Lake corridor
• Safety Versus Comfort
• Is Toronto Bike-Sharing in Trouble?
• Judge Rules Bike Groups Must Get Parade Permits for Critical Mass
• BikeMonth Event Submissions
• Bikeway Network Downtown 2010 Program
• Bay and Front Intersection Suggestions
• Toronto Man Invents Wind-Resistant “Bra” for Bike Handlebars
• Bicycle thief Kenk’s assault charges stayed
• Leslie Street Meeting Notes

A little bit of breaking news for you…there were rumours about this floating around yesterday, but I wanted to make sure things were “concrete”, so to speak, before blogging about it for you.

Toronto’s plans to emulate the great success of bikesharing systems around the world, by using the Public Bike System company (the same people behind Montreal’s Bixi) is in danger of being scrapped (at least for 2010) due to the financing needed to start up the project.

First some background… from Torontoist:

Last year, the City began exploring the possibility of launching Toronto’s own version of Bixi this spring. A staff report from last May [PDF] recommends the 2010 launch, and says that the rollout could be accomplished “at no cost to the City and without additional advertising within the street right-of-way,” because users would subsidize the service directly by paying membership fees to use the bikes.

According to the National Post, the Public Bike System is now asking for start-up costs of $15 million:

“At this point in time we can’t seem to operate a public bike system at no cost to the city, which is contrary to what council proposed,” said Mr. Welsh.

Mr. Welsh said negotiations continue, but the bikes will at the very least be delayed assuming they can reach a deal at all.

“This doesn’t mean the program is being abandoned, we’re still looking at the viability of the program and how we can enable it in the future,” Mr. Welsh said.

Because of this, the necessary discussion of this at the Public Works and Infrastructure Committee and City Council have been postponed, as there are a lot of cost-cutting and budget hand-wringing in the media these days.  The item has been removed from the PWIC meeting of Mar. 2, which means the earliest it will be discussed will be April 20th, after which City Council will still need to discuss it.

Things are looking gloomy as it appears the City won’t spend any money seen as “discretionary” by the general electorate (even if they’re certain to get it back via Bixi user fees) during 2010 because 1) the City is supposed to be broke and 2) it’s an election year.

We can all help push the politicians and city staff to do the right thing though… like contacting them and letting them know that we want Public Bike Sharing in this city!

Send a note to the City Manager, the Mayor, and lots of councillors:

Addresses (copy and paste into your email “to” field:

jpennac@toronto.ca, mayor_miller@toronto.ca, councillor_heaps@toronto.ca, degan@toronto.ca, councillor_giambrone@toronto.ca, councillor_perks@toronto.ca, councillor_pantalone@toronto.ca, councillor_mihevc@toronto.ca, councillor_debaeremaeker@toronto.ca, councillor_mcconnell@toronto.ca

Subject: Please Support BikeSharing in Toronto

Body of Email (suggested, feel free to edit as you like):

Dear Councillors and Mayor Miller,

I’m very concerned that Toronto may be canceling or delaying plans to join the other great cities of the world in implementing a public BikeSharing system due to start up costs (that will eventually be re-couped through user fees).

I’d like to show my support for a BikeSharing System.  It’s essential to ease congestion and pollution in Toronto’s downtown, and helps the city meet our environmental goals.

During just the first 3 months of operation, Montreal’s Bike system accumulated over 8,400 members and over 77,000 users… all of whom paid to use their version of Bixi.  Over 3.6 million kms were travelled on Bixi bikes in just those 3 months, which eliminated 900,000 kg of greenhouse gases.

PLEASE support a Public Bike Sharing system for Toronto.

It will benefit our city, and users will pay for it.

Thank you.

[your name here]

Post photo from The Urban Country.

Happy Friday to you.  Here’s all the news stuff from the last week that you can peruse while you are:

• a) sipping cocoa under blankets
• b) biking happily through the snow
• c) doing both at the same time.

(I wonder if those beer helmet things where the beer cans sit on your head and you drink through a long straw would work with cocoa?)

New on the Main Blog:

Focus on Bikes and Complete Streets, Politicians Told

Are you a politician who wants to be an effective municipal and environmental leader?  Here are six things that you should pay attention to… and yeah, bikes are a huge part!

Job: Evergreen.ca Looking for Bike Educator

Evergreen is re-developing the Don Valley Greenworks into a showcase for environmental technologies and practices… and they are rightly focusing on the wonders of bikes for part of the transportation part of things.  If you know bikes, like people, and have experience providing education programming… this may be right for you!

Event Reminder

Tomorrow Night (Saturday the 13th) at 7pm, the annual Ice Bike Races (or “Icycle”) take place at Dufferin Grove Park.  They go for  a couple hours and are very entertaining to watch.

For more details and photos of past races, visit the Event Listing.

New on Duncan’s City Ride:

The Mysterious Mystery of the Bicycle Pile

A pile of bikeparts locked up together?  Did someone run out of room in their apartment, or is it a Bicycle Transformer?  Cycletron Prime!

Cycling Mascots of Vancouver’s 2010 Olympic Games

What Colour Should Toronto’s Bicycle Sharing Program Use?

Toronto’s very own Bike Sharing system is coming this year (currently scheduled for July).  What colour should the bikes be?

A Google Street View Tour of Bike Lane Parking on College Street

One Bikelane, One Day, One Google Streetview Camera… and countless cars parked in the Bikelane

New on the Photo of the Day:

• Lovely in Red
• Come Ride With Me?
• Olympic Team Huddle
• King & Church
• Bovine Sex Club
• Wet Ride, Shiny Streets
• Night Bike Bokeh

New in the Forums:

Leslie Street Meeting Notes

Leslie Street is being reconstructed between Queen & Lakeshore.  Now is the time to help make the new street safer.

Times Square Then and Now

NYC closed down half of Times Square to traffic.  Merchants, tourists and office workers love it.  LOVE IT.

Ice Bike Races Meet-Up

Going to the Races?  Meet some people who love bikes too!

Toronto Man Invents Wind-Resistant “Bra” for Bike Handlebars

Keep your hands a little warmer.

BIXI: Bike Sharing Across Three Continents

Bixi is expanding… all over the world!

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The Toronto Environmental Alliance, along with various environmental and advocacy organizations, including TCAT and the Bike Union, have released priorities that municipal election candidates should pay attention to if we want, as a city, to be greener, healthier, and more efficient.

“Below are 6 priority actions, in no particular order, that will build on 10 years of environmental success. Investments in each action won’t just improve our environment, they will lead to better health and save us money as we avoid some of the huge financial costs associated with traffic congestion, waste disposal, climate change, and illnesses due to pollution.”

1. Build Transit City & Fund It
2. Achieve 70% Waste Diversion by 2012
3. Buy & Support Locally-Produced Green Products
4. Build Transportation Infrastructure Everyone Can Use
5. Implement the City’s Sustainable Energy Strategy
6. Provide Tools to Prevent Pollution

Cycling and walking are important forms of transportation that contribute to a healthier population and reduce negative impacts on the environment. We need infrastructure built to accommodate bikes and pedestrians as well as transit vehicles and cars. In the U.S. this is happening through “Complete Streets” policies that ensure the planning and redevelopment of streets are done with all users (pedestrians, cyclists and transit riders of all ages and abilities along with cars and trucks) in mind.

While a “Complete Streets” policy is developed, key transportation infrastructure, such as bike lanes, need to be built, the Toronto Walking Strategy can be implemented, and all road users can be educated about road sharing and responsibilities.

To read about each of these in detail, visit the TEA site.

Toronto Star article: Go Green, Mayoral Candidates Told

What do you think of the recommendations?  Leave your comments below, or discuss it in the News Forum.

Hi everyone!

It looks like typical Toronto winter weather has descended upon us finally (for at least a few days), so I hope you’re all staying warm if you are biking around (and it seems more people are biking with this mild January we’ve been having).

Here’s your weekly Wrap-Up:

News:

Putting Priority on Cyclists and Pedestrians

Duncan on his City Ride blog delves a little bit into if Adam Giambrone would be a good “Active Transportation” mayor for Toronto.  Giambrone hasn’t officially announced his candidacy yet (it’s apparently happening on Monday, Feb. 1st), but everyone kind of *knows* already.  Personally, he is by far the best option (if looking just at cycling advocacy) of the candidates who have a shot of winning. (read more)

Interview:

BikingToronto, Interviewed

If you’ve noticed the changes in the BikingToronto website in 2010, you’re not the only one.  Ben Elling of the site Third Rail Repository had questions about the change and asked me a few questions about where the site has been, where it’s going, and what it means for connecting cyclists in Toronto.  (read more)

Events This Weekend:

Friday, Jan. 29 – Critical Mass Toronto

• 6:00 – 8:00 PM
• Meets at corner of Bloor and Spadina at 6 PM.  Group Ride starts at 6:30
• An event that takes place on the last friday of every month in cities all over the world.  Critical Mass is at different times a rally, a protest, a party, and a community that advocates for a bicycle’s right to use public streets.

Saturday, Jan. 30 – CBN Winter Open House and Bicycle Auction

• 12:00 – 6:00 PM
• 761 Queen Street West
• Check out the home of the Community Bicycle Network and participate in an Auction for one of the Yellow Bikes from the BikeShare program

Saturday, Jan. 30 – Coldest Day of the Year Ride

• 12:00 – 2:00 PM
• Starts at the Grenadier Cafe in High Park
• Run by the City of Toronto, the ride will highlight the Martin-Goodman Waterfront Trail. Start Location is the Grenadier Cafe in High Park. We will then ride along the waterfront to Coronation Park, and discuss some of the challenges and successes of winter snow maintenance for cyclists. Hot Chocolate for riders will be served at the Grenadier Cafe.

Hot in the Forum

How to Be Visible on Your Bike

This topic is on fire.  El fuego caliente!    People are discussing everything from what they wear, what kind of lights they use, what lighting is appropriate in different parts of the city and even if going overboard with lights is helpful or harmful in attracting more people to bike commuting and other utility cycling.  (read more)

Want to get the Weekly News Wrap-Up in your email every friday?  Click here to hook yourself up!

How was your week everyone?  With the mild temperatures did you try out some winter biking?  Get it in while you can… there’s a good chance that February isn’t going to be as nice to us as January has been.

It’s friday, so here’s your wrap-up of the past week:

Mayoral candidate Rocco Rossi wants to stop (and tear out) bikelanes

Yeah… this is a little unbelievable.  Rossi, an avid cyclist himself (and former head of the Heart & Stroke foundation, which holds the Ride for Heart every year on Toronto’s highways), thinks that bikelanes have no place on “major arterials” and would not only prevent new bikelanes being installed on major streets but take out ones that already exist.  His compromise is to but bikelanes on quieter sidestreets.  (read more)

Photos of the Mount Pleasant Cemetary Bike Rack Finalists

Mt. Pleasant Cemetary is a big old cemetary in Toronto’s mid-town.  It counts among it’s residents former Canadian Prime Ministers and titans of Toronto industry and business.  It’s also a fantastic place for a leisurely bike ride.  The cemetary recently teamed up with Ryerson’s School of Interior Design to have students compete in designing bike racks for the cemetary’s visitors.  BikingToronto grabbed photos of the finalists’ designs, plus has information on the winning design.  (read more)

City of Toronto Survey shows Cycling is on the Rise!

Did you know that the majority of people in Toronto are cyclists?  A study undertaken in 2009 by the City shows that 54% of Torontonians use bikes.  To qualify as a cyclist for this survey, someone had to either ride for recreation and/or for day-to-day stuff (utility cycling).  Riding to work, going to the store, visiting friends… more and more of it is by bike!  The best news is that the numbers are increasing the most rapidly in the former boroughs of the city… the old suburbs where new bikelanes are being added! (read more)

Recently on the Forums:

• New maps installed on the Railpath
• Freakonomics Tackles Helmet Laws
• Hume: We must find a way to share the road
• Mayoral candidate Rocco Rossi wants to stop (and tear out) bikelanes
• Reelight or other frictionless magnetic induction lights?
• Bike-Friendly Workplaces
• City of Toronto Survey shows Cycling is on the Rise!

Want to get the Weekly News Wrap-Up in your email every friday?  Click here to hook yourself up!

(Cross-posted to the News discussion group)