Ring and Post December 2008

Photo: Yvonne Bambrick

Uncertain about what to buy your cyclist friends and loved ones this Holiday season? Consider a gift that keeps on giving — a Toronto Cyclists Union membership! By supporting the bike union, you're investing in a valuable, unified voice for Toronto cyclists, and are helping to create safer streets and a healthier city.

Your membership will help to propel many of the important campaigns currently on the Toronto Cyclists Union's agenda. These include:

Jarvis Street: The bike union is working to make cycling a priority in the Jarvis Streetscape Redesign. We are preparing a report to be sent to city staff and councilors that outlines a strong case for putting bike lanes on Jarvis street.
Toronto Bike Plan: We are working on getting bicycle infrastructure all over the city, from downtown to the outer reaches. This week, City Council approved the installation of 16.1 km of bike lanes on Lawrence Ave. E., from Victoria Park Ave. to Rouge Hills Drive on the eastern border. This is one of the longest, and most ambitious continuous stretches ever attempted by the city, and brings the total length of bike lanes approved in 2008 to over 50 km.
Road Safety: Engaging in dialogue with Toronto Police, taxi industry reps, and City staff and politicians about how cars and bikes can better share the road.

These are just a few of the ways that the bike union is working for members, advocating for a fundamental change in the way the City of Toronto perceives and acts to accommodate self-propelled transportation. Memberships start at only $2 a month, and if you join with a membership of $60 or more between now and December 31st, you'll receive a free cycling calendar in the mail.

In this issue of the Ring and Post Newsletter, we highlight the important battle that the bike union helped win on Annette St., provide a glimpse of the bike union's first strategic planning day, talk about the active advocacy happening in Ward 6, and credit a hard-working and inspiring board member.

Table Of Contents

Message from the Board
Toronto City Council votes for a bike lane
What's happening in Ward 6?
The survey says…
Featured Volunteer: Nancy Smith Lea
Events and Gift-giving

The Bike Union's strategic planning team.
Photo: Yvonne Bambrick

Message from the Board

Karey Iron, the Chair of our Board of Directors, provides a download from the Toronto Cyclist Union's first strategic planning day:

On November 2, 2008, the bike union Board of Directors, Executive Team, key partners and implementation committee members sat down together at the Centre for Social Innovation for an important day-long discussion. Our goal was to map out a strategic path for the bike union's transition into the second half of our first year of operation. With the stellar facilitation of Lawrence Stevenson (Torchia Communications), we began the day examining the themes within our mission statement: safety, legitimacy, accessibility. We identified a few main priority areas to discuss in detail — governance and accountability, communication, advocacy, membership and funding — and developed concrete and SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, time-based) objectives to take forward and develop into a concrete plan for the next year.

On December 4, the Board and all who were involved in this planning day will meet to solidify the plan and to organize the actions required to move the plan forward. The first Toronto Cyclist Union Strategic Plan will be developed and posted on our website in January 2009. We will use your comments from the survey that was completed in the fall to add breadth to our plan and we will invite your further thoughts, ideas, comments and suggestions. It is through this type of collaboration that we will help realize Toronto's potential to become a world class cycling city.

Happy Holidays and safe cycling.

Annette Collaborators.
Photo: John Leeson

Toronto City Council votes for a bike lane

It was only a few city blocks, a mere 700 metres, but getting approval for a bike lane there required unprecedented cooperation between local residents, city staff, politicians, and cycling advocates.

This small stretch of Annette Street (a necessary link for commuting cyclists), is largely residential, with a handful of stores and on-street parking. The city transportation department had recommended bike lanes, and provided a study that showed the lanes would have minimal impact on parking. Public meetings showed strong local support, and an extraordinary 130 letters were sent to council, all in favour of bike lanes.

The local councillor, Bill Saundercook, feeling pressure from some businesses on the route around parking and delivery issues, sought to find a compromise solution. He asked that "sharrows" be placed on the road instead of the recommended bike lanes. He was able to convince some fellow councillors to support him at a Public Works and Infrastructure Committee meeting, and it was this compromise that was sent to City Council for approval.

Area residents and cyclists were angered by this, perceiving it to be little more than the status quo. A local community group, World 19, took a lead role in mobilising the residents of the ward. With help from the Toronto Cyclists Union and other interested groups, the media was contacted, flyers were handed out, and letters of support were gathered in support of the bike lane.

Finally, late in the evening of October 30, Toronto City Council voted 20 to 11 in favour of the original proposal for complete bike lanes on Annette Street. This hard-fought victory highlights the importance of community involvement, local activism and open communication when working with the city to implement city-wide cycling infrastructure.

Image: City of Toronto

What's happening in Ward 6?

Anthony Humphreys and David Juliusson, our Co-Captains for Ward 6, describe the challenges they are working to overcome in their ward:

Ward 6 is situated in South-West Toronto and is bounded by Etobicoke Creek to the West, the Gardiner Expressway to the North, and Lake Ontario to the South. It is a unique area of Toronto: Much of the ward was once cottage country and in some ways still feels like that. There are five business and residential associations within the ward, and the Lakeshore is the only East West connection from the ward to the rest of Toronto.

The survey says…

Heather McDonald, one of our Assistant Coordinators, is working on our Survey of Toronto Cyclists:

When Ward Coordinator Steve Brearton, Board Member Nancy Smith Lea and myself set out to create a survey for cyclists we had no idea that we would obtain over 1050 responses! We are pleased that so many of you took the time to participate. It is our goal to use the data to inform future decision making and to prioritize campaigns. We hope to be able to see if there are any particular concerns by geography, gender or age group. As more details become available they will be posted on bikeunion.to

Here are some highlights:

42% of respondents stated that they were not comfortable cycling on major roads without bike lanes.

The most common concerns about cycling in Toronto include: 1) lack of bike lanes, 84%, 2) careless driving, 83%, 3) vehicle doors opening, 79%.

77% of respondents indicated that more bike lanes on the street would improve conditions a great deal.

If you have a particular interest in statistics and would be willing to help with further data analysis and survey development, please contact heather@bikeunion.to.

Photo: Yvonne Bambrick

Featured Volunteer: Nancy Smith Lea

Alison Palmer, our Newsletter Coordinator, tracked down Nancy Smith Lea, this month's featured volunteer:

Nancy Smith Lea is on the Board of Directors of the Toronto Cyclists Union. She has been involved with the bike union since before it existed in the fall of 2007, when Founder David Meslin presented his vision to a group of cycling advocates and organizers. She thought it was a great idea then and her enthusiasm is still strong now:

"Toronto has thousands of active, intelligent and dedicated cyclists and there's every reason to believe that given time, the Toronto Cyclists Union will be just as strong and successful as some of our favourite role models -- the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, Transportation Alternatives, the Active Transportation Alliance (formerly Chicagoland Bicycle Federation) and perhaps even the unparalleled Velo Quebec !" Nancy says.

As a board member, Nancy is responsible for ensuring that the bike union's mission and vision is fulfilled through strategic planning and accountable use of resources. She's one of the co-signers on the bike union's bank account, so she reviews all expenses. Nancy also helped draft the bike union's first by-laws and organize the strategic planning process that is still underway.

Nancy currently works at Toronto Coalition for Active Transportation (TCAT), where she coordinates programs, events and active transportation research. TCAT is a coalition of over 50 groups who are all committed to achieving a better cycling and pedestrian environment in Toronto (the Toronto Cyclists Union is a member, of course). TCAT provides policy and research information to enable the informed participation of all of supporters.

Since 1993, Nancy has worked to promote cycling and improve cycling conditions in Toronto. She is a co-founder of Advocacy for Respect for Cyclists and served a 3-year term as board director for the Community Bicycle Network. She joined the first steering committee of TCAT and helped to craft its platform that raised the profile of active transportation in the 2006 municipal election. She was also a member of the committee formed by the Regional Coroner of Toronto to prepare recommendations for reducing cycling injuries and death, and is the TCAT representative on the UBC/UofT "Bicyclists Injuries and the Cycling Environment" research team.

Her favourite bike ride in Toronto is the Leslie Street Spit.

Events and Gift-giving

Alison Palmer, our Newsletter Coordinator, assembled these cycling-themed Holiday ideas and upcoming events:

Buy-a-bike gift program

A busy day at CBN.
Photo: Herb van den Dool

The Community Bicycle Network (CBN) has been operating since 1993 with a mission to make cycling accessible to everyone at all levels of society. In the past year, it has returned to its original programming, which involves making re-used, recycled bicycles available, alongside bicycle repair training, and an attention to mechanical standards.

CBN has embraced, as one of its important mandates, a commitment to give away bicycles to people who otherwise cannot afford to own a bike. This affords mobility to financially-challenged individuals in the city, which in turn can help to make way for increased work options and better living conditions.

Your gift of $100 ensures that one more individual in Toronto can receive a free bike. In addition, CBN will send you a charitable tax receipt (if requested), and will send a gift card recognizing your gift to the individual of your choice.

Visit www.communitybicyclenetwork.org for more information about this great program.
Bike-inspired Holiday gifts

Photo: Janet Bike Girl

Bicycle stencil artist Janet Bike Girl will open her charming studio to the public as part of the 401 Richmond Holiday Marketplace. The show and sale begins on Thursday, December 11th and runs until Sunday December 14th.

Janet Bike Girl will sell an assortment of bicycle-themed organic cotton baby clothing and t-shirts for the whole family, as well as bicycle-themed gift cards and framed bicycle art prints. Everything is an original art piece, so she suggests early shopping for the best selection. A sampling of show items is available here.

What: Janet Bike Girl Show and Sale, 401 Richmond Holiday Marketplace

When: Thursday, December 11, 2008 to Sunday, December 14, 2008.

Hours: Thursday - Friday: 11am to 8pm, Saturday - Sunday: 11am to 5pm
Celebrate winter cycling

Photo: City of Toronto
It's not too early to start planning your new year cycling activities. In January the City of Toronto hosts Bike Winter, a celebration of winter cycling that includes:
- The Coldest Day of the Year Ride: Come out on Toronto's statistically coldest winter day, and join the "Coldest Day of the Year Ride" on January 30, 2009. Because riding your bike, especially for shorter distances in urban centres, is not only possible but practical here in Toronto.
- 2nd Annual Bike Art show - Call for submissions: Now in it's second year, the Metro Hall Bike Winter Art Show will take place January 12-19. Please submit your photos or graphics-based artworks and spread the word to all bicycle artists you know! Deadline to submit is Thursday, January 8, 2009.
- Toronto Bike Awards - featuring the Bicycle Friendly Business Awards & the Golden Spokes: On January 20, 2009 the Toronto Cyclists Union will host the inaugural Toronto Bike Awards and introduce the Golden Spokes! The City of Toronto will present their annual Bicycle Friendly Business Awards in recognition of businesses who are working to promote cycling in Toronto (the CSI/Robertson Building where we have our office won last year). To find out who the winners are, head to the Awards ceremony at the Gladstone Hotel on January 20, doors open at 7pm and more details will be available on bikeunion.to by the end of December!
For more information about these and other Bike Winter events, click here. And if you're considering cycling through this coming winter, the resources you'll need can be found here.

	Photo: Yvonne Bambrick
	Uncertain about what to buy your cyclist friends and loved ones this Holiday season? Consider a gift that keeps on giving — a Toronto Cyclists Union membership! By supporting the bike union, you're investing in a valuable, unified voice for Toronto cyclists, and are helping to create safer streets and a healthier city. Your membership will help to propel many of the important campaigns currently on the Toronto Cyclists Union's agenda. These include: Jarvis Street: The bike union is working to make cycling a priority in the Jarvis Streetscape Redesign. We are preparing a report to be sent to city staff and councilors that outlines a strong case for putting bike lanes on Jarvis street. Toronto Bike Plan: We are working on getting bicycle infrastructure all over the city, from downtown to the outer reaches. This week, City Council approved the installation of 16.1 km of bike lanes on Lawrence Ave. E., from Victoria Park Ave. to Rouge Hills Drive on the eastern border. This is one of the longest, and most ambitious continuous stretches ever attempted by the city, and brings the total length of bike lanes approved in 2008 to over 50 km. Road Safety: Engaging in dialogue with Toronto Police, taxi industry reps, and City staff and politicians about how cars and bikes can better share the road. These are just a few of the ways that the bike union is working for members, advocating for a fundamental change in the way the City of Toronto perceives and acts to accommodate self-propelled transportation. Memberships start at only $2 a month, and if you join with a membership of $60 or more between now and December 31st, you'll receive a free cycling calendar in the mail. In this issue of the Ring and Post Newsletter, we highlight the important battle that the bike union helped win on Annette St., provide a glimpse of the bike union's first strategic planning day, talk about the active advocacy happening in Ward 6, and credit a hard-working and inspiring board member. Table Of Contents Message from the Board Toronto City Council votes for a bike lane What's happening in Ward 6? The survey says… Featured Volunteer: Nancy Smith Lea Events and Gift-giving
	The Bike Union's strategic planning team. Photo: Yvonne Bambrick Message from the Board Karey Iron, the Chair of our Board of Directors, provides a download from the Toronto Cyclist Union's first strategic planning day: On November 2, 2008, the bike union Board of Directors, Executive Team, key partners and implementation committee members sat down together at the Centre for Social Innovation for an important day-long discussion. Our goal was to map out a strategic path for the bike union's transition into the second half of our first year of operation. With the stellar facilitation of Lawrence Stevenson (Torchia Communications), we began the day examining the themes within our mission statement: safety, legitimacy, accessibility. We identified a few main priority areas to discuss in detail — governance and accountability, communication, advocacy, membership and funding — and developed concrete and SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, time-based) objectives to take forward and develop into a concrete plan for the next year. On December 4, the Board and all who were involved in this planning day will meet to solidify the plan and to organize the actions required to move the plan forward. The first Toronto Cyclist Union Strategic Plan will be developed and posted on our website in January 2009. We will use your comments from the survey that was completed in the fall to add breadth to our plan and we will invite your further thoughts, ideas, comments and suggestions. It is through this type of collaboration that we will help realize Toronto's potential to become a world class cycling city. Happy Holidays and safe cycling.

	Annette Collaborators. Photo: John Leeson Toronto City Council votes for a bike lane It was only a few city blocks, a mere 700 metres, but getting approval for a bike lane there required unprecedented cooperation between local residents, city staff, politicians, and cycling advocates. This small stretch of Annette Street (a necessary link for commuting cyclists), is largely residential, with a handful of stores and on-street parking. The city transportation department had recommended bike lanes, and provided a study that showed the lanes would have minimal impact on parking. Public meetings showed strong local support, and an extraordinary 130 letters were sent to council, all in favour of bike lanes. The local councillor, Bill Saundercook, feeling pressure from some businesses on the route around parking and delivery issues, sought to find a compromise solution. He asked that "sharrows" be placed on the road instead of the recommended bike lanes. He was able to convince some fellow councillors to support him at a Public Works and Infrastructure Committee meeting, and it was this compromise that was sent to City Council for approval. Area residents and cyclists were angered by this, perceiving it to be little more than the status quo. A local community group, World 19, took a lead role in mobilising the residents of the ward. With help from the Toronto Cyclists Union and other interested groups, the media was contacted, flyers were handed out, and letters of support were gathered in support of the bike lane. Finally, late in the evening of October 30, Toronto City Council voted 20 to 11 in favour of the original proposal for complete bike lanes on Annette Street. This hard-fought victory highlights the importance of community involvement, local activism and open communication when working with the city to implement city-wide cycling infrastructure.
	Image: City of Toronto What's happening in Ward 6? Anthony Humphreys and David Juliusson, our Co-Captains for Ward 6, describe the challenges they are working to overcome in their ward: Ward 6 is situated in South-West Toronto and is bounded by Etobicoke Creek to the West, the Gardiner Expressway to the North, and Lake Ontario to the South. It is a unique area of Toronto: Much of the ward was once cottage country and in some ways still feels like that. There are five business and residential associations within the ward, and the Lakeshore is the only East West connection from the ward to the rest of Toronto. Read More . . .
	Image: Heather McDonald The survey says… Heather McDonald, one of our Assistant Coordinators, is working on our Survey of Toronto Cyclists: When Ward Coordinator Steve Brearton, Board Member Nancy Smith Lea and myself set out to create a survey for cyclists we had no idea that we would obtain over 1050 responses! We are pleased that so many of you took the time to participate. It is our goal to use the data to inform future decision making and to prioritize campaigns. We hope to be able to see if there are any particular concerns by geography, gender or age group. As more details become available they will be posted on bikeunion.to Here are some highlights: 42% of respondents stated that they were not comfortable cycling on major roads without bike lanes. The most common concerns about cycling in Toronto include: 1) lack of bike lanes, 84%, 2) careless driving, 83%, 3) vehicle doors opening, 79%. 77% of respondents indicated that more bike lanes on the street would improve conditions a great deal. If you have a particular interest in statistics and would be willing to help with further data analysis and survey development, please contact heather@bikeunion.to.
	Photo: Yvonne Bambrick Featured Volunteer: Nancy Smith Lea Alison Palmer, our Newsletter Coordinator, tracked down Nancy Smith Lea, this month's featured volunteer: Nancy Smith Lea is on the Board of Directors of the Toronto Cyclists Union. She has been involved with the bike union since before it existed in the fall of 2007, when Founder David Meslin presented his vision to a group of cycling advocates and organizers. She thought it was a great idea then and her enthusiasm is still strong now: "Toronto has thousands of active, intelligent and dedicated cyclists and there's every reason to believe that given time, the Toronto Cyclists Union will be just as strong and successful as some of our favourite role models -- the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, Transportation Alternatives, the Active Transportation Alliance (formerly Chicagoland Bicycle Federation) and perhaps even the unparalleled Velo Quebec !" Nancy says. As a board member, Nancy is responsible for ensuring that the bike union's mission and vision is fulfilled through strategic planning and accountable use of resources. She's one of the co-signers on the bike union's bank account, so she reviews all expenses. Nancy also helped draft the bike union's first by-laws and organize the strategic planning process that is still underway. Nancy currently works at Toronto Coalition for Active Transportation (TCAT), where she coordinates programs, events and active transportation research. TCAT is a coalition of over 50 groups who are all committed to achieving a better cycling and pedestrian environment in Toronto (the Toronto Cyclists Union is a member, of course). TCAT provides policy and research information to enable the informed participation of all of supporters. Since 1993, Nancy has worked to promote cycling and improve cycling conditions in Toronto. She is a co-founder of Advocacy for Respect for Cyclists and served a 3-year term as board director for the Community Bicycle Network. She joined the first steering committee of TCAT and helped to craft its platform that raised the profile of active transportation in the 2006 municipal election. She was also a member of the committee formed by the Regional Coroner of Toronto to prepare recommendations for reducing cycling injuries and death, and is the TCAT representative on the UBC/UofT "Bicyclists Injuries and the Cycling Environment" research team. Her favourite bike ride in Toronto is the Leslie Street Spit.
	Events and Gift-giving Alison Palmer, our Newsletter Coordinator, assembled these cycling-themed Holiday ideas and upcoming events:
	Buy-a-bike gift program A busy day at CBN. Photo: Herb van den Dool The Community Bicycle Network (CBN) has been operating since 1993 with a mission to make cycling accessible to everyone at all levels of society. In the past year, it has returned to its original programming, which involves making re-used, recycled bicycles available, alongside bicycle repair training, and an attention to mechanical standards. CBN has embraced, as one of its important mandates, a commitment to give away bicycles to people who otherwise cannot afford to own a bike. This affords mobility to financially-challenged individuals in the city, which in turn can help to make way for increased work options and better living conditions. Your gift of $100 ensures that one more individual in Toronto can receive a free bike. In addition, CBN will send you a charitable tax receipt (if requested), and will send a gift card recognizing your gift to the individual of your choice. Visit www.communitybicyclenetwork.org for more information about this great program. Bike-inspired Holiday gifts Photo: Janet Bike Girl Bicycle stencil artist Janet Bike Girl will open her charming studio to the public as part of the 401 Richmond Holiday Marketplace. The show and sale begins on Thursday, December 11th and runs until Sunday December 14th. Janet Bike Girl will sell an assortment of bicycle-themed organic cotton baby clothing and t-shirts for the whole family, as well as bicycle-themed gift cards and framed bicycle art prints. Everything is an original art piece, so she suggests early shopping for the best selection. A sampling of show items is available here. What: Janet Bike Girl Show and Sale, 401 Richmond Holiday Marketplace When: Thursday, December 11, 2008 to Sunday, December 14, 2008. Hours: Thursday - Friday: 11am to 8pm, Saturday - Sunday: 11am to 5pm Celebrate winter cycling Photo: City of Toronto It's not too early to start planning your new year cycling activities. In January the City of Toronto hosts Bike Winter, a celebration of winter cycling that includes: The Coldest Day of the Year Ride: Come out on Toronto's statistically coldest winter day, and join the "Coldest Day of the Year Ride" on January 30, 2009. Because riding your bike, especially for shorter distances in urban centres, is not only possible but practical here in Toronto. 2nd Annual Bike Art show - Call for submissions: Now in it's second year, the Metro Hall Bike Winter Art Show will take place January 12-19. Please submit your photos or graphics-based artworks and spread the word to all bicycle artists you know! Deadline to submit is Thursday, January 8, 2009. Toronto Bike Awards - featuring the Bicycle Friendly Business Awards & the Golden Spokes: On January 20, 2009 the Toronto Cyclists Union will host the inaugural Toronto Bike Awards and introduce the Golden Spokes! The City of Toronto will present their annual Bicycle Friendly Business Awards in recognition of businesses who are working to promote cycling in Toronto (the CSI/Robertson Building where we have our office won last year). To find out who the winners are, head to the Awards ceremony at the Gladstone Hotel on January 20, doors open at 7pm and more details will be available on bikeunion.to by the end of December! For more information about these and other Bike Winter events, click here. And if you're considering cycling through this coming winter, the resources you'll need can be found here.