Cycling in Toronto - Cyclometer newsletter, July 2004

1) Public Consultation - Proposed Bicycle Lanes on Cosburn Avenue - July 27, 6 pm - 8:30 pm.

You are invited to the first of two new public meetings on the proposed bicycle lanes on Cosburn Avenue from Broadview to Oak Park Avenue. The first meeting, hosted by Toronto Transportation Services Division and Councillor Janet Davis, Ward 31, Beaches-East York, will focus on the section of Cosburn Avenue from Coxwell Avenue to Oak Park Avenue within Ward 31. A separate meeting will be held in Councillor Case Ootes Toronto-Danforth Ward 29 to consider the section between Broadview Avenue and Coxwell Avenue. Cycling News! will notify you when details of that meeting are available.

2) Community Bike Festival - Colonel Sam Smith Park, Sat. July 17th, 10 am - 2 pm.

Join us in a celebration of cycling and Toronto?s bike culture at a Community Bicycle Festival. Find out what the Toronto Bike Plan proposes for your neighbourhood. Talk with staff implementing the Bike Plan. Enjoy activities for children and families, refreshments, music, and free bike inspections. Pick up a free 2004 Toronto Cycling Map. Take the opportunity to learn about Toronto?s cycling initiatives and give staff valuable feedback about the Bike Plan. Colonel Sam Smith Park is located at Kipling Avenue and Lakeshore Avenue West. See you there.

New Cycling Committee members are just getting to know one another at the June meeting. First on the agenda was to elect a Chair and Co-chairs for the Committee. Congratulations to Councillor Adam Giambrone, Ward 18 Davenport, who will Chair the Committee and to citizen Co-chairs Daya Lye and Ian Thomson. Exciting times are ahead as the Committee sets priorities and action items. Infrastructure improvements, bikes and transit, advocacy, safety and promotion topped the list. We invite you to come out and get involved.

4) Bike Theft Stories from the Streets of Toronto - Kensington Market, at the Embassy, 223 Augusta Avenue.

You break my lock, you break my heart...
Bike Theft Stories from the Streets of Toronto

Behind every bike theft, is a story. The City of Toronto's Cycling Ambassadors have been gathering bike theft stories from the public, and discussing strategies to prevent bike theft. Please share your bike theft story with us. (Send them to ratsa@toronto.ca). On Thursday, July 15th, we will launch the display of hundreds of bike theft stories, each written on a bicycle-shaped card. The assortment of bike theft stories will hang from strings, and provide for an interesting collection of bicycle theft anecdotes, as well as provide a strong visual representation of bike theft in the City. The stories will be on display for two weeks, in Kensington Market, at the Embassy, 223 Augusta Avenue.

With an average of 7,000 bicycles reported stolen every year in the city, the Ambassadors want to raise awareness around bike theft, and give people an opportunity to grieve the loss of their bicycle, while sharing their stories with others. A bicycle is more than a belonging to many people - it is a personalized form of transportation, perhaps their only way of getting around the city quickly. The event highlights that the experience of a stolen bike is a shared experience. Considering the social and financial impacts bicycle theft has on many people, it is clear why breaking bicycle locks, is breaking cyclists' hearts.
Information on bike theft and preventative measures will be demonstrated. Toronto Police bike registration forms will be available, as well as brochures and the 2004 Toronto bike map.

Launch Date: Thursday, July 15
Time: 10 a.m.to noon
Speakers: 11 a.m. - Councillor and Toronto Cycling Committee Chair Adam Giambrone (Ward 18 - Davenport) and Councillor Olivia Chow (Ward 20 - Trinity-Spadina).
Location: Kensington Market, at the Embassy, 223 Augusta Ave.

5) Police Cycle Right Campaign Results Discussed at Toronto Cycling Committee meeting.

Traffic Sgt. Devin Kealy and P.C. Stephen Burns came out to discuss the results of the 2004 Cycle Right Campaign held this June 7 - 20th. Here?s an overview of the campaign results:

Total tickets - cyclists = 3,597
Total cautions - cyclists = 2,046
Parking in Bicycle Lane Tickets = 315
Total tickets - motorists = 4,385

Highest number of tickets for cyclists went in the following categories: for failing to stop at a red light and stop sign; sidewalk cycling; no bell/horn; permit person under 16 not wearing a helmet (ticket to parent/guardian).

The Police also conducted 31 Bike Rodeos for children. More on the Cycling Committee recommendations in the next issue of Cyclometer.

The City of Toronto continues its commitment to a sustainable future by partnering with a group of Kensington's merchants and residents to experiment with pedestrian zones by organizing a series of street closures on Sundays between Noon and 6 p.m. in Kensington Market. PS (Pedestrian Sundays, get it?) Kensington launched on Sunday July 4th and the crowds came in droves. Kensington was transformed into an open air market/entertainment venue as artists, merchants and restauranteurs took to the sidewalks, streets and (in one spectacular show) the roofs to enjoy the newly created public space.

PS Kensington continues each Sunday until August 8th. You can find out more by visiting www.pskensington.ca. Please remember that bicycles are vehicles too. So, you'll have to walk your bike through the closed streets or lock them up at one of several conveniently located bike racks.

The Bicycle Friendly Business Awards (BFBAs) need your nominations. Take the time to fill out a nomination form and send it in. Do you have space inside your workplace for bicycle parking? Consider how you could use bicycles to deliver packages or goods from your business, either with a bicycle courier company or by employees. The deadline to submit a nomination is: Friday, September 3, 2004 at 5 p.m. For more ideas...http://www.toronto.ca/cycling/bfba/index.htm

8) Pro Walk/Pro Bike Conference "Creating Active Communities", Victoria, BC, Sept 7 - 10, 2004.

Pro Walk/Pro Bike will bring 700 delegates to Victoria, BC from Sept 7 - 10. This year?s conference "Creating Active Communities" is one you don?t want to miss. Engineers and planners will present on best practices in community design, health care specialists will talk promotion of active lifestyles, and advocates will share strategies on advancing common agendas.

The conference will be a unique opportunity to network with Canadian, American and international delegates who are re-inventing their own communities. Delegates will return home with fresh perspectives and wealth of information on designing bike lanes, improving pedestrian environments, promoting participation, or influencing decision makers.

Local hosts, the Capital Bike and Walk Society (CBWS) is organizing additional opportunities around the conference:

Victoria?s Bike to Work Week, North America?s most successful promotion, holds a one-day workshop. (Sept 7).
Velo Quebec presents its workshop on bikeway design to Victoria (Sept 7) and Vancouver (Sept 13).
A "Canadian Caucus" during the conference will bring Canadians together to discuss challenges and opportunities.(Sept 8).
The Vancouver Island Cycle Tourism Alliance presents cycling tourism opportunities for business and communities. (Sept 10).
On Saturday (Sept 11), a tour of the capital?s Galloping Goose regional trail will take participants 45 km to Sooke for a salmon BBQ.

More info through: www.capitalbikeandwalk.org
Or contact: John Luton (250-592-4753 or johnluton@shaw.ca)

10) Ahead in the Bike Lane.
Communications and Promotions Subcommittee - JULY MEETING CANCELLED
Education and Safety Subcommittee - JULY MEETING CANCELLED
Road and Trails Subcommittee - JULY MEETING CANCELLED

Community Bike Festival - Colonel Sam Smith Park, Sat. July 17th, 10 am - 2 pm. Kipling and Lakeshore W.

Proposed Bicycle Lanes on Cosburn Avenue - July 27, 6 pm - 8:30 pm, Stan Wadlow Clubhouse, 373 Cedarvale Avenue.

Call 416-338-0000 to register for CAN-BIKE!

Kids CAN-BIKE (ages 9-13) $50/1 day:
Saturday July 17, 9am-3pm(#896816) Cummer Park CC, 6000 Leslie St.

Kids CAN-BIKE (ages 9-13) FREE/1 day
Saturday July 17, 9am-3pm(#896816) Flemingdon RC, 29 St. Dennis Dr.

CAN-BIKE 1 (ages 14+) $50/2weeks each Sunday
Starts July 18, 9am-12noon(#896884) or 1pm-4pm(#896885) Cummer Park CC, 6000 Leslie St.

CAN-BIKE Adult Learn to Ride 1 (ages 14+) $50/1 day:
Sunday July 18, 1-4pm(#884637) Earl Bales CC, 4169 Bathurst St.

CAN-BIKE Cycling Freedom for Women (ages 14+) $75/3weeks each Sunday
Starts on July 18, 1-5pm(#884641) Earl Bales CC, 4169 Bathurst St.

CAN-BIKE Adult Learn to Ride 1 (ages 14+) $50/1 day:
Sunday July 18, 9am-12noon(#884271) Centennial RC East, 1967 Ellesmere Rd.

CAN-BIKE Adult Learn to Ride 1 (ages 14+) $50/1 day:
Saturday July 24, 9am-12noon(#864725) or 1-4pm(#864724) Centennial RC East, 1967 Ellesmere Rd.

CAN-BIKE Adult Learn to Ride 1 (ages 14+)$50/1 day:
Saturday July 24, 1-4pm(#885713) Birchmount CC. 93 Birchmount Rd.

CAN-BIKE Adult Learn to Ride 2 (ages 14+)$50/1 day:
Saturday July 24, 9am-12noon(#885711) Birchmount CC. 93 Birchmount Rd.

CAN-BIKE Adult Learn to Ride 2 (ages 14+) $50/1 day:
Saturday July 24, 9am-12noon(#884640) Earl Bales CC, 4169 Bathurst St.

CAN-BIKE Adult Learn to Ride 1 (ages 14+) $50/1 day:
Saturday July 31, 9am-12(#840416) noon or 1-4pm(#840415) Oriole CC, 2975 Don Mills Rd.

The City has a vision for cycling in Toronto and wants you involved in making it happen. Cyclometer is a subscription service of the City of Toronto.

The first issue of Cyclometer went out on November 24, 1989. Now, as then, we hope that, like its namesake, Cyclometer will show you how far we've come, how fast we're going, and maybe how much pedalling we have yet to do. So get on board and get involved. Your support is important.

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