February 17, 2009

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Recent TCAT activities and news items:

1. New Report Shows Bike Lanes are Good for Business!
2. Operating Budget Public Consultations: Feb 18
3. Metrolinx Consultations: On-line
4. Western Waterfront Master Plan Public Open House: Feb 19
5. Survey on Ethnicity and Cycling in Toronto
6. Upcoming Events

The Clean Air Partnership is pleased to announce the publication of a research report titled Bike Lanes, On-Street Parking and Business. Contrary to common public perception, the evidence shows that removing on-street parking to install a bicycle lane or widened sidewalk would likely increase not decrease commercial activity. "This report should alleviate concerns that downtown business owners have about on-street bicycle lanes", said Eva Ligeti, Executive Director of the Clean Air Partnership.

The study – conducted in July of 2008 – surveyed the opinions and preferences of merchants and patrons on Bloor Street and analyzed parking usage data in the Annex area. Among the study’s findings:

•    Only 10% of patrons drive to the Bloor Annex neighbourhood;
•    Even during peak periods no more than about 80% of paid parking spaces are paid for;
•    Patrons arriving by foot and bicycle visit the most often and spend the most money per month;
•    There are more merchants who believe that a bike lane or widened sidewalk would increase business than merchants who think those changes would reduce business;
•    Patrons would prefer a bike lane to widened sidewalks at a ratio of almost four to one; and
•    The reduction in on-street parking supply from a bike lane or widened sidewalk could be accommodated in the area’s off-street municipal parking lots.

Background: To encourage more Canadians to use bicycles for utilitarian trips more often, it is essential that the implementation of bike lanes on major streets be accelerated. The Bloor-Danforth corridor is a particularly attractive option for a city-wide east-west bike lane in Toronto because it is one of the only long, straight, relatively flat routes that connects the city from end to end; there are no streetcar tracks; and has one of the highest car-bike collision rates in the city. However, the installation of bike lanes in this corridor has historically been thought to be too politically difficult to achieve.

The Western Waterfront Master Plan Team is inviting the public to a Combined Community Advisory Group Meeting and Public Open House to be held
together on Thursday February 19th, 2009.  The meeting will be held at St.
Joseph's Health Centre at 7.00pm. 

For more information, contact:

Kiran Chhiba, Urban Designer
pA | planningAlliance
t  416.593.6500

A University of Toronto graduate student is conducing an on-line survey on ethnicity and cycling in Toronto and is looking for cyclists to participate. Please see her description below.

"Only white yuppies bike in Toronto".  At least that's what I was told when asking people informally.  But there is some actual data on the issue, including a small survey in Toronto noting that visible minorities were less interested in cycling than white respondents and a Canada study finding that immigrants bike less than non-immigrants.  Even in bike-friendly countries like Denmark they're realizing that their incoming immigrant population cycles less than the "average" Dane.  And if there is a link between a person's ethnic background and the likelihood that they'll use their bike to get around, it could be an issue in encouraging more cycling in Toronto since 47% of Torontonians are visible minorities and over 50% are foreign born.

To find out more on this topic, I'm inviting all Toronto cyclists to fill out a quick 5 minute survey aimed at gathering information on who you think cycles in Toronto as well as who actually does.  There's also a space to add your email address, if you'd like to see my final findings.

To complete the survey, click on this link.

Thanks in advance for your time.

Erica Duque
M.Sc. in Planning 2009 Candidate
University of Toronto
duquee@geog.utoronto.ca

Feb 18. Tools of the Trade - PEDSAFE and BIKESAFE. Tools of Change Webinar in collaboration with the Association of Pedestrian and Bicycling Professionals and the National Center for Bicycling and Walking.

Feb 24, 12-1:30 p.m. Community-Wide Parking Management Strategies and Tools. Part One. Tools of Change Webinar in collaboration with Transport Canada's Urban Transportation Showcase Program.(Part Two on Feb 26, 2-3:30 p.m.)

Mar 27, 5 pm - Mar 29, Noon. In partnership with the Toronto Cyclists Union, TCAT is hosting Thunderhead Alliance Winning Campaigns© Training to be held at the Centre for Social Innovation, 215 Spadina Avenue, Suite 400.

May 28, all day. Bike Summit 2009. Registration details coming soon! Building on the success of Bike Summit 2008, which attracted over 180 attendees, TCAT is pleased to once again take the lead on organizing this event.