New Bike Infrastructure Lately

I think we can safely say, Toronto is in the midst of a new era for bike improvements.  Wait, wait, before you start crying foul (yes, yes, we have a LONG way to go), let's stop and think about all the good that has come over the last few months.  Bloor, Simcoe, Bayview, and the Viaduct.  In the midst of being frustrated about the slow pace of change in Toronto, take a moment to think about some recent successes.

Bloor
The new pilot project protected bike lanes along Bloor sure did cause quite the media hoopla in August. Never has road works been so heavily reported!




















September there was the Bells on Bloor victory celebration lap, and Ward 30 Bikes co-hosted with Scarborough Cycles a feeder ride from Logan / Danforth to meet up with the main ride - great turnout in the east end:

Danforth & Logan feeder ride

Bells turnout was huge!

Councillor Layton speaks at Bells on Bloor, photo: Cycle Toronto

Bells on Bloor Photo: Toronto Observer

And then in early October we learned that a new Forum poll shows that 70% of respondents approve of bike lanes in Toronto!


But since then, quite a few other improvements have been installed to much quieter media reaction. Here's a rundown of what's happened lately:

Simcoe upgrade
Last year Councillor Cressy put forward a motion to separate the rest of Simcoe Street bike lane.  For those familiar, what was there before was mostly separated lane (with planters!) from Richmond St to Wellington.

The better parts of Simcoe

After that... the bike lane down to the waterfront trail was left to your faith in the magic repellent powers of painted lines.

Before: Simcoe Bike lanes - the painted lines, they do nothing!

Well, in October, we got better separation:  bollards.  Not the best, but better than before (note: can't find a good after photo)

Upgrade in process.  After the buffer, bollards were installed

And on a personal note, I biked my son to the 2nd last Jays game of the post season and was super thankful that coming up from the waterfront trail I had those plastic sticks to keep vehicles (mostly) in check, what a difference it made for that section leading up to major family destinations.  It's actually kind of shocking that major destination like Rogers Centre, Steamwhistle Brewery and Train Museum, Ripleys Aquarium and the CN Tower didn't have a safe way to get there by bike.  From now on, Waterfront Trail to Simcoe Bollards and I'm there!


Bayview near Brickworks

The media picked up on this one, and called it a game changer.  Given that the connection is only from Pottery Road to Rosedale Valley Road, and doesn't go all the way south to the Corktown Common trails down there, or north towards Moore and the paths in the Mt Pleasant Cemetery, i'm going to say calling it a game changer is bold. Or it's just click bait.  Also... a metal guard rail?  That a'int no game changer.  Ya! Way to reinforce that feeling of riding beside a highway!

I will concede however, it's a game changer specifically for getting to the Evergreen Brickworks. Because if you've ever done it from Ward 30 with kids in the past.... your heart palpitations may still not have stopped.  Ride down Pottery, then a poorly paved Shoulder-Of-Death and a blind corner right before the Brickworks.... ya...   So then you probably did what we did, crossed the viaduct went on an extended detour through Rosedale and picked up the Milkman's path.  Which is fine and dandy until you need to get out of the valley and your kids can't push their bikes up the rough wooded trail let alone bike it (and your dutch cargo bike can't make it out either - to much pretty nature!)  So you try one more time by going deeper through Rosedale, find the switchback ramp over the tracks at Summerhill and make your way up to Moore and try to get to Brickworks from the north via the Beltline trail.  Only to find not only do you have the same rough wooded trail problem on your way home, but by now your young kids have biked 5km out of their way just to find a safe way into Brickworks.

So, yes... for us folks in Ward 30 trying to safely get to Brickworks, this is indeed a game changer.  The most direct route now has significant safety improvements.

October view of Bayview bike paths across from Brickworks, note the bike traffic signals too! Photo: @Sean_YYZ Twitter

And the new pottery road multi use bridge is a HUGE improvement as well.

But I need to have another go at the guard rail protection of Bayview bike paths:

Not good enough! I feel that living in Toronto I am condition to cheer for whatever we can get.  Our love affair with plastic flexi-post bollards are not going to win any best practice awards in Denmark or the Netherlands.  So a metal guard rail is better, yes... but, we can do so much better!!

Grass buffers perhaps?  This is the Don Valley, there is space.

Netherlands - family friendly bike heaven

The Viaduct
Well this was a surprise to I think almost everyone.  Protection for the viaduct was approved YEARS ago, but we've been forever told that the membrane of the Viaduct cannot be drilled into, so protection couldn't happen.  And then city staff quietly went x-rayed the bridge and figured it out. Install happened over one weekend, with a giant crew of TWO workers and ONE hand drill.  And ta-da, protected-ish.

My safety assessment:  I won't let my 6 year old ride on this, but when I ride I have less fear of orphaning my 2 kids.   Let us know in the comments how you feel about the width of the bike lane for passing etc.,


Still under construction and finishing asap:  upgrades to Gerrard bike lane between Sherbourne and Ryerson (spoiler... protection with trees!) and Peter Street.  Stay tuned, we'll report back soon.

Woodbine Bike Lanes Approved - First Ever Protected Bike Lane for East End!

City Council met last week and we're thrilled to report that the Woodbine Bike lanes were unanimously approved! Not much in Toronto's cycling world happens unanimously, so this is special!

It's also the result of some serious outreach efforts from our friends at Ward 31 and Ward 32 advocacy groups, the efforts of the local councillors who really pushed hard for this, and city staff who organized a massive public outreach.

And it's not just a painted line!  Buffers and flexi posts!   Is this the best that cycling infrastructure can be?  No, not at all.  It's unlikely Scandinavian traffic engineers are going to get any best practice tips from this. BUT its moving in the right direction.  Buffers are better than single painted lanes.  And buffers turn into flexi posts, flexi posts turn into curbs or planters.   Curbs and planters turn into full fledged separated from vehicles paths like the waterfront trail.

You can read more here

Stay tuned for the installation!

Bikes Mean Business!!

Last week our event Bikes Mean Business was a huge success!

Left to Right:  Brandon (Ward 30 Bikes), Jared (Cycle Toronto), Billy (Chair of Danforth Mosaic BIA and owner Red Rocket Coffee, Councillor Fletcher, Sylvia (Ward 30 Bikes), John (owner of Allens' and Dora's)
- photo credit: Councillor Fletcher's office

This event was a collaboration between all the east end Ward groups within the #DanforthLovesBikes working group and Cycle Toronto. We pulled people from across the community and wider city to discuss and celebrate the amazing economic benefits of bike-friendly streets!

Yvonne Bambrick, author of The Urban Cycling Survival Guide and Executive Director of the Forest Hill Village BIA kindly MC'd our event.

Yvonne Bambrick introduces Billy Dertilis Chair of Danforth Mosaic BIA and owner of Red Rocket Coffee

The turnout was great - we had Dora's packed!

Councillor Janet Davis (Ward 31) and Councillor Paula Fletcher (Ward 30) front and center

First to speak was Councillor Paula Fletcher who gave her full support for studying bike lanes on Danforth. She talked about the collaborative work going on to improve bike parking (Danforth BIA + Ward 30 and Ward 29 bikes + her office), and she talked Bike Share.  It's coming to the east side - scheduled for this year! And she reassured the audience that protection the viaduct lanes is something she is still pushing for.

And then we went right into the research and the facts.  Matthew Lynch from the World Council of City Data and from Toronto Cycling Think and Do Tank spoke to the pure statistics that have shown that bikes are in fact really good for business (full presentation in this link).

Nancy Smith from the Toronto Centre for Active Transportation who also spoke to the research and facts. (A Danforth research study can be found here)

Councillor Mary Margaret McMahon (Ward 32) followed up as did Councillor Janet Davis (Ward 32) who both gave enthusiastic words of support for a bike friendly Danforth that includes bike lanes!

Jacquelyn Hayward Gulati Manager of Cycling Infrastructure Programs from the City of Toronto staff kindly came out and spoke to the packed room about the 10 year bike plan and the process for consultation and collaboration. We were so fortunate to have city staff join us!

And then our host for the night spoke.  John Maxwell owners of both Dora Keogh's and Allens:

John Maxwell business owner speaks to the crowd

A strong supporter for a bike friendly Danforth his words were particularly moving.  He agreed with all the research that was presented, but added... there is more to life than business, right?  He ended his speech with very thoughtful words about life just being better with people friendly streets.

Billy Dertilis owner of Red Rocket Coffee and Chair of the Danforth Mosaic BIA added with more words about businesses that do want to see a bike friendly Danforth. It was really fantastic to have local businesses sharing their support.

Jared Kolb from Cycle Toronto wrapped up the night speaking touching on the concepts of working through change.

What a night!

After all the speakers everyone had a chance to enjoy drinks and to chat.  It was so good to see local Danforth BIA Executive Director Susan Puff in attendance, as well as owners of the Second Cup on Danforth and Dough Bakeshop.  Riverdale Cleaners was there too.  I saw some members of the Playter Estates Residents Association taking it all in, and a few from DECA. I'm sure there were many many more  there too.   The crowd was really diverse.

So behalf on all of us who planned this event, thank you to everyone who joined us that night!


- Ward 30 bikes




Presentation Resources:
Toronto Cycling Think and Do Tank: Cycling Economies

TCAT Bike Lane Economic Impact Study for Bloor Street Toronto 

TCAT BIKE LANES, ON-STREET PARKING AND BUSINESS: A STUDY OF DANFORTH AVENUE IN TORONTO’S DANFORTH NEIGHBOURHOOD

NYC Statistics and Facts from Bike Lanes and Street Redesign
 

Advocacy in Action: Ramp to Lower Don Trail

It's coming! Success!

Remember our ongoing work on the Lower Don Trail? This struggle to access the Lower Don Trail will soon be a thing of the past!

First Attempt

In 2012-2013, when the City of Toronto commissioned a Master Plan for the lower Don Trail, public consultations were held. At that time we advocated for accessible ramps to the trail.  But when the final plan was released we were all disappointed to see that more staircases were proposed to access the Lower Don Trail at Gerrard Street East and Dundas Street East, but without including ramps to provide universal access.

Second Attempt

Not satisfied with the result, advocates from across the community came together. With Ward 30 Bike's Michael Halloway taking the lead.  We did some scouting, mesasuring, calculating, and sketching, and came to the conclusion that a ramp option is absolutely viable. Ward 30 Bikes authored the April 2014 report “Creating Accessible Connections: Ramps to the Lower Don Trail at Dundas and Gerrard,” which was endorsed by Walk Toronto, Cycle Toronto Trails Working Group, Ward 28 Cycling Advocacy Group and Ward 29 Bikes. The Lower Don Trail project team reviewed the proposal and other community comments received. The project team unfortunately concluded that ramps could not be included in the project.

Third Times' the Charm

Still not satisfied, we took our concerns to our local councillor Paula Fletcher who in turn organized a site visit and then put in a formal request to the Parks and Environment Committee to reassess the accessibility issues.  Walk Toronto also submitted its own “Lower Don Trail Accessibility” report in August 2014. 

Success!

Paula Fletcher shares the good news at Bells on Danforth

And then we heard the good news.  In March 2015, the city confirmed that a budget had been allocated to make the pedestrian bridge at Riverdale Park fully accessible with a ramp! Paula officially made the public announcement in June at the Bells on Danforth ride, and the design consultation process is underway (yes, we are part of the design process!). If all goes to plan, we could have the bridge done by next year! Stay tuned for results of the design process and celebrations when it opens.

Thank you to all the advocates involved!  Ward 28 and Ward 29 bike advocacy groups, Cycle Toronto's Trails Working Group, Walk Toronto, South Riverdale Community Health Centre, the Riverside BIA and everyone in the community who voiced their support for accessible ramps.  

Get involved

Want to be part of projects like this?  Join us! Help bring positive change to the community, and positive improvements to our neighbourhood!   We meet the first Tuesday of every month at the Ralph Thornton Centre.



** note, this is a post I thought we'd published back in July, turns out it was still sitting in draft!  Oops... it's old news now, but it's still exciting news to share! **

Better Placed 'Bike Rooms' needed in StudioCentre proposal on Eastern

 - to reduce the rate of increase in neighbourhood motor vehicle volumes 

Ward 30 Bikes' "Eastern Avenue Working Group" is making steady progress on our submission to City Planning about the proposed StudioCentre development on the south side of Eastern Ave between Pape and Larchmount.

From our still-in-draft report, this is a snippet about the Bike Rooms indicated on the drawings near loading docks in 5 buildings:

Bike (parking) Rooms in drawings submitted by StudioCentre are located right next to loading docks. This is the worst place to put them.

Best Practice says they should be view-able from the street like an apartments' front entrance door --- and especially not in a narrow service alley shared with loading docks and a parking garage ramp connected to the street grid via a rear roadway intended mainly for solid waste and delivery trucks.  

As an example of this (and other*) best practice - translated into a retail/office box development context, I sketched a better placed StudioCentre Bike Room on their most recently submitted ground elevation drawings (June 2015).

Full Size: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO9kG9_asR6DbV-fYcGxpU-I__sYvjh64_haEcZIgwyACuZioZnLAsMn6nu5C_CCpGhhNLzmEuG2Lg6hSItHgkzONZfD49pjclVTqKz43vdq24sI6wnd-uJnePJijcpd9mxZLe9hZZW3oH/s1600/Bike+Room+Placement+-+W30B+mark-up+on+developer+changes+presentation+June+2015+public+meeting.jpg

As an example, I moved the Bike Room in Building 03 (southwest corner of Eastern and new lower Caroline) such that it now it has:

• Two sets of double wide doors right beside the main entrance to the buildings' Foyer (perhaps grocery store style sensor-opening sliding doors?);
• Two doorways to the Foyer, one that leads directly to the elevator banks, and one that leads to the stairs (totally integrated);
• Propose a glass street-front wall, and a glass divider wall between the Bike Room and the Foyer (this keeps 'eyes' on the Bike Room and advertises the developer's sustainable transportation amenity - which helps to create buy-in by tenants and employees);
• Propose a washroom in each Bike Room - which should include a shower and lockers (might consider a cost effective, unisex facility: common counter and sinks; locking, single toilet rooms; locking shower room; a wall of half-high lockers).

* (and other best practice about bike parking) - separate motor vehicle spaces and bike spaces wherever possible; locate bike parking as close to the main entrance as possible; create a safe, accessible, well lit, calm egress to the amenity; create a warm, bright, visible, welcoming bike parking space - via:

City of Toronto May 2008 | "Guidelines for the Design and Management of Bicycle Parking Facilities" - ideas sprinkled through-out the report, specifically see Part 2.4.4 - Indoor Bicycle Parking (Bike Room) - p. 10 | http://www1.toronto.ca/city_of_toronto/city_planning/transportation_planning/files/pdf/bicycle_parking_guidelines_final_may08.pdf


References:

Image source: 629 Eastern Developer Changes (presentation at a June 25, 2015 public meeting at Revivals' newly renovated digital arts studio space off lower Winnifred) | http://www.studiocentre.com/images/Concept%20Plans/1120-Eastern_Av-Concept_Plan-23062015.pdf



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