Mixing Up the Commute (and Improving Bike Share)

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!

Kitchener to Hamilton – Part 1 (Waterloo Region)

This summer, I had been meaning to use one my summer Fridays off at work to bike from Kitchener to Hamilton using the Cambridge to Paris and Hamilton to Brantford Rail Trails. Unfortunately, the past two attempts in June had to be called off either due to rain or poor air quality. Last Friday, I finally got to bring my bike on the 9:34 GO Train to Kitchener and bike 115 kilometres – including a 5 km stretch in Brantford which Strava missed – to Hamilton’s West Harbour station. Making it the longest one-day ride I have done yet!

Connecting Southern Ontario's Rail Trails

Over the past few years, I have had the chance to ride several regional trails in southern Ontario; starting with the Greater Niagara Circle Route in 2016. I have since done the Oro Medonte Trail from Barrie to Orillia, the Georgian Trail from Collingwood to Meaford, the Brantford to Port Dover trail, the Elora Cataract, and part of the Omemee Rail Trail near Peterborough. However, a look at Google Maps show there are a lot more regional bike trails, along with some significant gaps. Let’s look at some of these regional trail gaps and how they can be filled.

Map of current bikeways per Google Maps

Biking to Brampton - April 2021

The last time I biked to Brampton three years ago, the underpass at Highway 401 was closed and there were no off road trails linking the Mississauga and Brampton parts of the Etobicoke Creek Trail. A fair bit has changed since then with the Mississauga – Brampton trail gap having been filled in, while the Highway 401 underpass was recently reopened per a post from Wayne Noble in the Cycling in Toronto Facebook group. With Saturday being 18’C outside, it was a good time for Helen and I to do our first long ride of the year, so we rode to Brampton and back for a 63 kilometre ride.

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

Get Ajax Moving - Part 3

Last month, I wrote two blog posts about Ajax’s cycling network as part of the “Get Ajax Moving” series. Part 1 provided a first-hand view while Part 2 provided a point and counterpoint about the Town’s #GetAjaxMoving initiative and the Durham Region Cycling Coalition. To get an elected official’s perspective on developing Ajax’s cycling network and future plans, I interviewed Ajax Mayor Steve Parish, an avid cyclist who bikes to work. His answers were complemented with information from Elysia Leung, the Town’s Transportation Demand Management Coordinator.

Safe Cycling Inspiration from Ottawa

Having written a travel series on last year’s Europe trip, I acknowledge the power of travel in providing new perspectives and inspiration to better our communities. However, inspiration can also be found closer to home. Thanks to a suggestion from a fellow Cycle Toronto advocate, three of us went to Ottawa last weekend for Spring Bike Ottawa; organized by Citizens for Safe Cycling (CFSC).