bikingtoronto

[via bikelanediary] A little over a week ago, a cyclist was struck and killed in Mississauga, and a "ghost bike" memorial has been set up by the Advocacy for Respect for Cyclists group: via the Biking Toronto Forum Posted via web from bikingtoronto's posterous

Here's a great tongue-in-cheek video from riconroy about how drivers should deal with pedestrians and cyclists in Toronto:

Want to know what's possible with bikelanes in a big city like Toronto? Look no further than New York (a much bigger city) for some inspiration. It doesn't take miracles to get cycling infrastructure like this... just political guts. :) Bike lanes: In some cities people are literally dying to have them and some people go so far as to mark their own. Here in New York City, it feels like every time I get on my bike there is a new bike lane - sometimes on the left, sometimes buffered, and sometimes completely separated from automobile traffic. To understand these lanes, I had the opportunity to go for a ride with the NYC DOT bicycle boys. They explained the classes of bike lanes and showed off some of these inventive facilities. You can use Ride the City to find a safe bike route in New York City and watch this video to see what lanes are used on your route.via streetfilms.org Posted via web from bikingtoronto's posterous

via The BikingToronto Forum Posted via web from bikingtoronto's posterous

With only one bicycle station currently in Toronto, the lifetime membership doesn't provide access to anything else, but that should change in the near future as some TTC stations (and hopefully elsewhere) begin adding their own bicycle stations.However, since this is only a pilot project, then what could the future of bicycle stations in Toronto become?First, let's go to Chicago: McDonald's Cycle Center offers not only secure parking, but showers, repair service and even bicycle rentals. It's essentially a one-stop shop for cyclists.via Duncan's City Ride Posted via web from bikingtoronto's posterous

Very creative and funny video on making sure you get seen on the roads when it gets dark: via bikingtoronto.com Posted via web from bikingtoronto's posterous

Awesome video and post from Streetsblog of bikelanes down the middle of Sands Street in NYC... where they replaced some unused road space with lanes! Chalk up more bikeway innovation to the folks at the NYC Department of Transportation. Nearly complete, the Sands Street approach to the Manhattan Bridge is now safer and more enjoyable thanks to a New York City first: a center-median, two-way protected bike path. The facility is a perfect solution to counter the dangers posed by a tangle of roads and highway on-ramps that burden the area. Dramatic before-and-afters tell the delicious story. More at Streetsblog

More Video from the Bells on Bloor ride on May 31.

More Video from the Bells on Bloor ride on May 31.

Biking with 5D Mark II from Sam Javanrouh on Vimeo. Sam has a fantastic photoblog. Here's a cool tour of downtown Toronto. Biking with no hands with an expensive camera scares me though. :)

Bells on Bloor 2009 from BellsOnBloor on Vimeo.

Brilliant and hilarious video from the always fantastic Streetfilms site in NYC: This line cracked me up: "Bikers think that they own the road, they dodge in front and they dart, and you know... I feel unsafe!"

A great comment was left yesterday on BikingToronto by Tamy, a Montreal resident who *loves* her city and the new Bixi bikesharing program. So much so that she made a video about seeing Montreal by Bixi! Toronto is looking at Bikesharing too, so lets hope this video is widely seen. Here's Tamy's comment, with the video embedded below: Every big city of Canada should have a BIXI system. I'm from Montreal and I can't wait for it to launch this week :-) I think it's already inspiring a lot of cities in Canada and in the States. There's a rack right next to my apartment, and I'm a girl who takes her car on the daily, don't want my own bike because I would have to transport it up the stairs every night and morning, but Bixi makes it really easy for me. Plus there's tons of city bike routes that lead to the main business districts, so it's perfect for work. So sick of being stuck in traffic... I actually had the chance to try a bixi bike before the launch and I was really satisfied, although they are a bit heavy. Anyway, if ever you're planning on coming to Montreal this summer, I just put together a nice little video of my favorite bike paths in MTL, on a Bixi of course ;) http://www.tourisme-montreal.org/Blogs/Girls-Getaway/Bike-Taxi-BIXI

For those of you who missed it on Thursday (or those of you who want to see it again), below I've embedded the video from TVO's the Agenda when they discussed transportation planning and sharing the road amongst different users. Make sure you are using Internet Explorer.. the below video doesn't seem to work in Mozilla Firefox.

This video is everywhere online these days... over on YouTube it's been played over 800,000 times in the past 3 days. It's slow for the first minute or so, but if you get through that, your jaw may drop in wonder at what Danny MacAskill can do on a bike. It truly is inspiring to see what some people can do on two wheels. Some of these tricks seem to defy the laws of physics.

In addition to the Ice Bike Race photo links posted earlier today, here's a video of some of Saturday night's fun from YouTube user ArbyW. If you know of more videos from Saturday night, please let me know in the comments below. :)

Tonight is the 2009 edition of the Ice Bike Races at Dufferin Grove Park. It's always entertaining (if cold). Come out and watch the professionals who stud their tires with screws, and then the "Rubber Race" at the end of the night, where all the ordinary cyclists have a race full of wipe-outs. :) Date:Saturday, February 21, 2009Time:9:00pm - 11:00pmLocation:Dufferin Grove Hockey RinkStreet:Dufferin Grove Park (map) City/Town:Toronto, ON BikePirates is hosting an after-party following the races. They are located at 1292 Bloor Street West. If you're on facebook, check out the Facebook Event page for the races. Videos from past years:

Anyone who missed the Toronto Bike Awards back in January will want to see the new video posted over on DearToronto.com. They've done a great job capturing the happenings and spirit of the Awards.

Cyclists in Toronto know that one of the nicest rides in the city is the Martin-Goodman Trail along the waterfront. It's so popular, in fact, that this winter the city is using it as a trail project on keeping bike routes clear after a big hub-bub last winter about snowbanks covering bikelanes. Chris Shulgan has made a great short film called "Free Martin-Goodman" that interviews not only the people now using the trail year-round, but also the people who do all the work to move that snow. Chris also wrote an article about it for the Globe and Mail.

Just a reminder to you... the Toronto Bike Awards are tonight! The City of Toronto in partnership with the Toronto Cyclists Union will present the Bicycle Friendly Business Awards and the Cyclists Union own awards, the Golden Spokes. Don't miss this unveiling of BFBA winners and a good party to boot! This is a fundraiser for the Toronto Cyclists Union. The Golden Spokes are awards handed out by the Toronto Cyclists Union recognizing individual or group efforts to improve cycling in Toronto. They are a celebration of cycling and serve to illustrate how many people across Toronto are committed to bicycling and want to work together to make Toronto a more bike-friendly city. January 20, 2009 Gladstone Hotel (1214 Queen St. W.) Doors at 7 p.m.; Show at 8 p.m. $10 or Pay What you Can BikingToronto is a sponsor of the event... and I have put together a slideshow of photos from the BikingToronto Flickr Photo Group that will be playing during the awards. I've embedded it below. Let me know in the comments if you're planning on attending, and we can meet up.