Questions on bike lanes linger

Harbord Street with parking on the right side instead of a continuous bike lane into the University of Toronto. (Photo by Tino)

The bright yellow stencil by the Urban Repair Squad resurfaces after being painted over with tar by city workers last fall.

And as for the separated bike lanes downtown, hope springs eternal:

“I think that one of the very encouraging things about the new administration is with councillor Denzil Minnan-Wong coming out and supporting this plan for separated bike lanes,” Andrea Garcia, spokeswoman for the Toronto Cyclists Union, said of the plan to create a grid of barrier-protected bike lanes in the core.

[Minnan-Wong] said city hall is slowly becoming a more bike-friendly place. “I think councillors are becoming a lot more open-minded. I think they have a lot more cyclists in their communities,” he said.

“My bike plan is a recognition of [the fact that] bikes exist. They’re here to stay. There have been too many accidents and we need to do something about that. I don’t believe that bike lanes should go on every single street. But I do believe they deserve a reasonable option.”

Mr. Minnan-Wong said his proposal could come before the committee some time in the next six months. And it’s possible that world events, including the current unrest in the Middle East, could help push the issue to the forefront.

herb : 14 years 2 months ago
Tags: bike infrastructure, bike lane, symbols, urban repair squad

Bikelash: new word definition

Thanks to Tim, via Wordspy:

bikelash
n. A strong, negative reaction towards cyclists, particularly by police officers or drivers. Also: bike-lash.
Example Citations:
Call it a bikelash! The NYPD has been ordered to begin a borough-wide crack-down that will hit renegade riders for often-overlooked "vehicular offenses" like failing to obey traffic signals and signs, breaking the speed limit, tailgating, and even failure to signal before turning.
—Thomas Tracy, "Bikelash! Cops to crack down on two-wheelers," New York Post, January 5, 2011

There's a feeling among many drivers that cyclists, either by their ignorance of the law or by their blatant disregard for it, are asking for trouble. ... In one sense, the so-called bikelash has little to do with transportation modes.
—Tom Vanderbilt, "Rage Against Your Machine," Outside, March 2, 2011

Earliest Citation:
Britain's army of cyclists are facing a bike-lash because of their increasingly illegal and aggressive behaviour, according to new research.
—Emma Wall, "New motorists being driven round the bend," Daily Star, October 19, 2007

herb : 14 years 2 months ago
Tags: bike culture, bike lanes, definition, politics

The yearly ritual of suburban cycling culture that is the Toronto Bike Show.

Every year I go to the Toronto Bike Show and every year I'm disappointed. There are some gems but for the most part it just comes off as a chunk of suburban box store mediocrity plopped down at the waterfront for three days.
Sun, 03/06/2011 - 17:30 - Driving to the bike show ©Driving to the bike show
14 years ago ago by herb i am.
I don't know why I'd expect otherwise, but most people still drive to the Toronto Bike Show. I'm beginning to wonder why they don't just have the show out at the airport. It would be closer for more of them and since few urban folks seem to show up or exhibit it won't be missed.

Sun, 03/06/2011 - 18:44 - Each year the 'Marketplace' gets bigger and the innovative products gets smaller. I won't even get into the almost total lack of bikes for everyday use. ©More and more like a flea market every year
14 years ago ago by herb i am.
The biggest draw of the Toronto Bike Show seems to be its "marketplace" of last and this year's bikes. Since many urban folks seem to have bike shops nearby I've always assumed that the biggest attraction is for suburban folks driving into the city to get some deals.

Sun, 03/06/2011 - 19:41 - Argon fancy road bike ©Argon fancy road bike
14 years ago ago by herb i am.
Nothing against carbon road bikes nor middle-aged men, but it always seems that the bike show is exists to play matchmaker to the two, while their wives stand around looking bored. Sure there are also women buying cruisers, boys buying mountain bikes/BMX, but it strikes me that middle-aged men on carbon road bikes is usually a poor combination.

Sun, 03/06/2011 - 19:45 - Opus city bikes ©Opus city bikes
14 years ago ago by herb i am.
There just aren't a whole lot of city bikes on display, despite that about half the bikes I saw leaving with people were of the sturdy and comfortable category rather than the light and fast.

Sun, 03/06/2011 - 19:52 - Bamboo bike ©Bamboo bike
14 years ago ago by herb i am.
Outside of high end road bikes not a whole lot of innovation was on display, except for "Bamboo Bikes by Pat Menzies" which drew constant interest. True North Cycles has always been one of the few, but even they failed to show this year. Neither did Urbane Cyclist with their latest examples of recumbents.

Sun, 03/06/2011 - 19:56 - Joints wrapped in banana leaf ©Joints wrapped in banana leaf
14 years ago ago by herb i am.
Here Menzies wrapped the joints with "banana leaf", I am told.

Sun, 03/06/2011 - 18:44 - supposedly 5600 square feet, made possible with a partnership from BMW. ©Gears massive booth
14 years ago ago by herb i am.
The winners of the best display of the show, four years in a row, was Gears, a large bike shop in Mississauga. Gears also happened to have the largest booth at 5600 square feet (explained to me by another vendor) and they served tasty scones and coffee.

Sun, 03/06/2011 - 18:44 - BMX at Gears booth. I didn't realize until now one had to sit in the car to see how the bike rack worked. Maybe they should have let her drive the car around the show. ©Let's see how this bike feels on this roof rack
14 years ago ago by herb i am.
Gears also had some sort of partnership with BMW. "Honey, go see how this bike rack feels by sitting in the car."

Sun, 03/06/2011 - 19:30 - Cycle Couture ©Cycle Couture
14 years ago ago by herb i am.
More my kind of swank was this, unfortunately rare, booth offering city bikes imported from Denmark. The Cycle Couture bike shop is opening April 1st at College and Ossington. Almost no urban bike shops were present to showcase new products or innovations. A few were selling old/new stock, but there's nothing exciting about that.

Sun, 03/06/2011 - 19:33 - Recycled bike furniture ©Recycled bike furniture
14 years ago ago by herb i am.
Thankfully The Recycler was there showing off his furniture built from old bicycle parts. I was told he's a farmer from Goderich. My kind of people (the farmer part that is).

For what it is, the Toronto Bike Show is successful. It certainly gets old men to part with hard-earned cash to purchase $1500 carbon road bikes they'll ride 20 times a year. I just see less and less point every year for urban folk to go and see what's up. I live a short walk away but it may as well be Mississauga for all that it caters to my neighbourhood.

[Update: I forgot to add the BMX photos - one of the more exciting parts of the show. You should have seen how this one guy bailed by jettisoning his bike out to the back so he didn't land on it. Smart. (See I'm not all negative.)]
Sun, 03/06/2011 - 20:27 - BMX Half-pipe ©BMX Half-pipe
14 years ago ago by herb i am.

Sun, 03/06/2011 - 20:27 - BMX Half-pipe ©BMX Half-pipe
14 years ago ago by herb i am.

herb : 14 years 2 months ago
Tags: city bikes, selling bikes, toronto bike show