Second Annual Willowdale Community Ride

Last year, fellow cyclist Peter Low organized the first Willowdale Community Ride with Councillor Lily Cheng. However, I couldn’t make it since Helen and I were on vacation in Uzbekistan at the time, though you can check this great recap from fellow bike blogger Lisa Stokes from Brampton. Today marked the second time Peter and Lily put together this ride which almost 100 people made it out for. A testament to show there indeed is demand for cycling in North York even with the lack of cycling infrastructure! 😉

Late August Don Trail Exploring

Over the past few days, I found out on Urban Toronto that the East Don Trail has made some more progress since the tunnel installation in late May, while Joric shared in the Cycling in Toronto Facebook group that the Lower Don Trail access at Don Mills Road has been made more accessible. Earlier today, I went on a 19-kilometre ride to check out both items.

An aerial shot of Bridge #2 on the East Don Trail (via TwinHuey on Urban Toronto)

TCBC 5th Anniversary Ride to the Brickworks

Last month marked five years since the Toronto Community Bikeways Coalition was started by Albert Koehl, Janet Joy Wilson, and I; among others. To help mark the anniversary and Bike Month, Jessie Ye and Janet Joy organized a ride from AccessPoint on Danforth to the Evergreen Brickworks along with Marvin of Scarborough Cycles (and Access Alliance) and Regenesis. About thirty people took part.

March 2024 East Don Trail Visit

Happy St. Patrick’s Day, everybody!

Yesterday, I did a ride along the Lower Don Trail, checked out the East Don Trail, and checked the progress along Eglinton Avenue. Since the eglintonTOday Complete Street project is expected to go to the Infrastructure & Environment Committee on Wednesday, March 27, I will focus this post on the East Don Trail and discuss Eglinton separately when the final report comes out on Wednesday, March 20.

Let's Build a Cycling Loop in Scarborough

With today’s nice weather and a day off work, I went for a ride around Scarborough. It was a brutal 90 kilometre trek with 681 metres of elevation gain that took me to the northeastern part of the City and back. It helped give me a feel for what is needed to complete a recreational loop east of Victoria Park.

Toronto Loop (and a Protected Intersection)

On Sunday, April 24, Albert, Mark, Arthur, and I from the Toronto Community Bikeways Coalition joined urban planner Al Rezoski for a ride covering the Toronto Loop. This recreational loop is 81 kilometres long which consists of the Martin Goodman Trail, Humber River Trail, Finch Hydro Corridor, and the Don River trail system. The loop is one of Mayor John Tory’s long term initiatives which has the potential to encourage cycle tourism in the city. Before starting by Queen’s Park, Al showed us a map of the loop and highlighted the following seven gaps which we planned to stop at for discussion. Some of these gaps will be addressed with the latest bike plan.

• Stephen Drive (north of The Queensway)
• Weston Road (between St. Phillips Road and Cardell Avenue)
• Finch Hydro Corridor (between Weston Road and Norfinch Drive)
• G Ross Lord Park (near Finch Avenue and Dufferin Street)
• Yonge Street (at Hendon and Bishop Avenues)
• Betty Sutherland Trail (between Duncan Mill and York Mills Roads)
• West Don River Trail (near Eglinton Avenue and Leslie Street)

Toronto Loop highlighted in orange with the seven gaps circled

Winter 2021 Consultation Roundup

While winter may appear to be a slow period for cycling – notwithstanding the growing numbers of people choosing to bike year round – the public consultations have come fast and furious. The City of Toronto hosted two consultations in December bike lanes on Martin Grove Road and Cummer Avenue, while Metrolinx hosted one about the Durham – Scarborough BRT which includes protected bike lanes. In early February, the City unveiled plans to upgrade the Davenport bike lanes and extend them to Yonge. If that wasn’t enough for you, there are at least four more projects the City is currently collecting feedback on.

Rendering of The Esplanade - Via City of Toronto

Completing the East End Grid

Last month, the City of Toronto installed new bike lanes in Thorncliffe Park and Flemingdon Park. When I had a chance to briefly check them out recently, I found them to be a promising start. However, there are several key gaps which need to be filled in order to truly give a boost to cycling in those neighbourhoods and Toronto’s east end as a whole.

Recently installed bike lanes on Thorncliffe Park Drive

Trail Gaps Along the Don

While Toronto’s bikeway network has lots of gaps to fill, east-west connectivity is arguably much better than north-south. Especially north of St. Clair where continuous routes are limited to the Don River and Humber River trails, as well as the bike lanes on Royal York which go to Dixon Road. Back in August, I biked the Don River trail system to Sheppard Avenue to identify trail gaps and better understand how the trail system fits with the Lake to Lake Route.

Wayfinding signage used on the Lower Don Trail