Two years ago, I rode the Hamilton to Brantford Rail Trail as part of a longer Kitchener to Hamilton ride. It was a very good trail with the former Sulphur Springs train station being the main draw. However, I was meaning to check some other rail trails in the Hamilton area such as the Escarpment and Chippewa. Having got a new gravel bike last month and a day off work yesterday, I finally got to check both trails off my bucket list.
Thirteen years ago, I bought my first proper bike; meaning not a cheap department store one. It was a Felt Verza City 3 hybrid which I called Rusty. While it has been through a lot over the years, I wanted to replace it with a gravel bike that’s lighter and faster than the hybrid, can handle rail trails and Toronto’s bumpy roads more confidently than my road bike, and be used for bikepacking in the future. Yesterday, I picked up my new Brodie Romax Adventure 1.0 from Fix Coffee + Bikes and marked the occasion with a ride to Toronto’s new Biidaasige Park in the Port Lands!
With last year’s “Ride The Meadoway” being one of my favourite rides in Scarborough, I was thrilled to find out it was happening again this year! This year’s occasion also gave an excuse to check out the newest Meadoway segment from Military Trail to Morningside, as well as the Marcos to Midland segment under construction. This morning, I joined about 60 people who started at Wexford Hydro Park while a few others joined in afterwards.
Advocating for complete streets can be a drag sometimes whether it’s Doug Ford’s anti bike lane Bill 212 or the astroturf groups that recently emerged against RapidTO. To counter this negativity, it’s always good to have rave rides consisting of cool lights, music, and dance moves! Toronto Cruisers hosts smaller scale rave rides on Wednesday nights while Neon Riders typically hosts theirs on Thursday nights. The annual Bike Rave usually happens in August, but a similar ride called “Bike Party” has emerged in recent years. Last night, I joined almost 500 riders for the July 2025 edition of Bike Party!
Yesterday, the July 16, 2025 executive committee agenda was published which included the final report for RapidTO bus priority lanes on Bathurst and Dufferin Streets. The TLDR (too long didn’t read) version is city staff capitulated to the astroturf “Protect Bathurst” and “Protect Dufferin” campaigns by reducing the scope of both RapidTO routes to south of Bloor Street. This was in line with the latest language from the “Protect Bathurst” website which called for a pause north of Bloor Street, while Councillor Dianne Saxe (who represents my University-Rosedale ward) had previously called for the exclusion of the Bloor to Dupont stretch from RapidTO Bathurst. (see open letter from June 11)
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| Photo from TTCriders |
Back in March 2022, I got an e-scooter to make getting to the office in Vaughan easier. At the time, transit users needed to pay double fare between the TTC and York Region Transit (or other GTA transit agencies). With the cost of the e-scooter being $700 plus tax at the time, the savings from the double fare more than paid for itself. However, the Ontario government introduced the “One Fare” program in February 2024, while the TTC banned e-bikes and e-scooters on their subways, buses, and streetcars during the winter months in December 2024. Add the high cost of maintenance after having a third flat tire in less than three years back in November (and a battery replacement earlier in 2024) and I gave up on the e-scooter ever since. Of course, York Region Transit’s bus service could use some serious improvements with the Jane bus (#20) sometimes being full during the afternoons.
While I no longer see the e-scooter as a viable long-term commuting option, I recently took on a different way to mix up my thrice weekly commute.
I got an annual 30-minute bike share membership!
Happy Canada Day, everybody!
Part one of my Barrie to Brampton ride covered Barrie to Tottenham including the Thornton Cookstown Trail. While there were some gaps such as from Beeton to Tottenham, it makes for a promising route. Let’s start Part 2 which covers the Caledon Trailway with this picture of the trail entrance.
