Courtesy of my friend and cyclist activist who wished to remain anonymous so we'll call him "Chuck" for the purposes of this post. This how-to post will also be posted to the guide for future handy reference.
Consider this: The City is proposing a new bike lane on a local street near you, but it will require taking away parking on part of the street. You can be sure that local ratepayers and business improvement associations are going to give the local ward councillor an earful about how removing parking will hurt business. But how many cyclists will be there to let the councillor know that they support the bike-friendly proposal? Often the answer is too few.
Building better cycling infrastructure in Toronto requires local ward- by-ward support. A City Councillor has a lot of influence over whether or not a new bike lane or other bike-friendly infrastructure is built in his or her ward. But if councillors don't hear from local cyclists then they have little incentive to stick their necks out and fight for change.
There is an easy way to make sure your councillor knows that voters in his or her ward support cycling - create a ward-based Bicycle User Group BUG.
Usually a Bicycle User Group is formed in a workplace to promote cycling. But you can also form a BUG that represents a neighbourhood (for example, the St. Clair West BUG. By bringing local people together you can create a stronger voice and presence for cycling that is visible to the councillor.
The easiest first step -- and one of the most effective -- is for a ward-based BUG to create an email list and encourage local cyclists to sign up. Leave brochures and posters in local shops to let cyclists know about the lists. Hand out flyers during the morning commute or maybe during Bike Friday. You can also post messages on I Bike TO or other sites. Once the list is set up it is an effective way to keep everyone in the neighbourhood in the loop about what is happening on the cycling front locally and at City Hall. When it comes time to support pro-bike initiatives then everyone is just a click away.
If you want to go beyond the email list the BUG members can also start to develop a good working relationship with the local Councillor. Identify areas in your neighbourhood that need improving for cycling and submit your ideas to your local councillor. Ask him or her to endorse the pro-bike ideas and come talk to your group about how he or she can help make them a reality - make the Councillor an ally and champion for change. The St. Clair BUG in Ward 21 had great success with this approach and Councillor Mihevc helped them champion new bike lanes on Christie Rd. and new bike routes on Vaughan Rd.
Change may be slow, but is possible and it needs local support. It doesn't take long to set up a ward-based BUG, but it can make a world of difference.
