2026 (Not So) Coldest Day of the Year Ride

Today marks the longstanding annual winter cycling tradition called the “Coldest Day of the Year” Ride. However, the Alex Pretti Solidarity Ride held on January 31 was more deserving of that title with today ended up being a balmy 5’C. Even so, over 60 cyclists took part while Helen and Mozzie came along as well. This year’s route started at Sugar Beach Park headed southeast to the Tommy Thompson Park entrance before returning to Sugar Beach.

TCBC Clears the Bloor Bike Lane!

Almost three weeks after the big snowstorm, there were still some parts of the Bloor bike lane that were blocked by snow including the eastbound lane in Koreatown. Since I had to do some errands in The Annex and Chinatown this morning, I helped Albert Koehl and some other TCBC volunteers with the bike lane clearing in Koreatown.

East End Snow Check

On Sunday, January 25, Toronto had a record-breaking snowfall with 46 cm reported at Pearson Airport and higher accumulations downtown. Seventeen days later, there are STILL a lot of bike lanes that have not been cleared! Since I had the day off today, I went to the east end to do some errands and get some takeout while reporting on the bike lane conditions along the way. Having above zero temperatures also helped.

Winter Don Trail Riding

On Monday, I found out on the Urban Toronto forums that Bridge #2 on the East Don Trail (Phase 1) was finally installed; making it one of the last major pieces of infrastructure needed to complete the trail. Since I was also curious to check out how the trails are in the winter months, I went to check out that new bridge, as well as some of the trail conditions along the way.

A drone shot of Bridge #2 shared by TwinHuey on Urban Toronto on December 9, 2025

Cycling Good Cheer 2025

One of my favourite winter rides is by far Cycling Good Cheer; a ride organized by Community Bikeways. This is the sixth year they put it together with this year’s ride starting at Raccoon Park and ending at Biidaasige Park with feeder rides coming from High Park, North York (a.k.a. the North Pole), Scarborough, and the St. Lawrence Market. Helen and Mozzie came along as they did last year, while it was a much-needed positive ride after my LeMond road bike got stolen on Thursday while waiting to depute on a bike plan item at City Hall.

A Snow-Covered Chinatown Trip

More than 50 centimetres of snow had fallen in Toronto in a series of snowstorms from February 12 to 16; something which the City recently admitted could take as long as three weeks to remove. Since I needed to do my weekly grocery run in Chinatown, I took the Mozzmobile (cargo bike) this morning to see the status of the bike lanes.

2024 Coldest Day of the Year Ride

One of my favourite things to do during the winter months is to take part in Cycle Toronto’s “Coldest Day of the Year” Ride; an event aimed to promote winter cycling. However, this year’s event was unusually mild with temperatures around 10’C which can be very worrying from a climate change perspective. About 150 to 200 people joined us at Tom Riley Park to ride the recently extend Bloor bike lanes east to Christie Pits Park, which was almost as many as last November’s Bloor bike lane rally.

RANT – Toronto’s Winter Biking Gong Show

Last Monday saw 36 centimetres of snow fall in Toronto. While it may not be as much as the 48 centimetres fallen in December 1944 or the over one metre over two weeks in January 1999 which prompted then Mayor Mel Lastman to call the army leading to national ridicule, the aftermath still merits a rant. Especially from a cycling perspective after what I found while biking to do some errands yesterday.

A Case of the Toronto COVID-19 Blues

This week has been a depressing one in the City of Toronto as Ontario continues to set new records for daily COVID-19 cases. A bike lane has been removed, winter conditions have caused traffic chaos, and another person biking was killed. It’s time to do a round up of these events.

Bike lane symbols scrubbed off Brimley - via Scarborough Cycles

Bike Painting at Toronto Island

Until this past weekend, I never considered the idea of visiting Toronto Island during the winter. When Artscape Gibraltar Point organized a bicycle painting event called the Bike Island Mural Project, Helen and I felt we had to check it out. We set out on Saturday to Ward’s Island – the only destination open year-round – and were greeted by a vintage bus.

Budget Balancing Blues

This year’s Toronto budget is an opportunity for Mayor John Tory and City Council to set the stage for this fall’s election with $11 billion in operating expenditures and $25.7 billion in capital projects at stake. Unfortunately, the current plan fails to account for various council-approved initiatives such as low income passes and two-hour transfers for the TTC, as well as the TransformTO climate action plan. All this disappointment to satisfy the Mayor’s desire to limit property tax hikes to inflation. Social Planning Toronto has a good write up on some of the other unfunded priorities, though I will elaborate on the budget’s impact on cycling.

Habs vs Leafs Bike Showdown

One of the oldest and largest Canadian sports rivalries is the Montréal Canadiens (Habs) versus the Toronto Maple Leafs. Until last week’s Winter Cycling Congress (see previous post), I never biked in Montréal which Copenhagenize and Biking Expert ranked as among North America's best. After getting a taste of Montréal’s infrastructure, let’s review their facilities and see how Toronto stacks up.

Bike box (sas vélo) at Avenue de l'Hôtel-de-Ville and Avenue du Mont-Royal

Pedalling Back Full Circle

My love for cycling started during childhood in Moncton, New Brunswick more than twenty years ago. It's a journey that lead me to bike in four provinces (New Brunswick, Québec, Ontario, British Columbia) and four other countries (United Kingdom, Netherlands, France, Sint-Maarten); not to mention advocate for safer streets in Toronto since 2012. During Christmas vacation in Moncton, this passion has come full circle with some Viking Biking (or should we say Polar Pedal for a more Canadian tie-in?) to see what has changed since I last biked there in 2006.

Downtown Moncton from City Hall pedway

Nothing Wrong With Winter Cycling!

Upon seeing this title, some of you may be wondering “are you nuts?” Even for someone whose favourite activity since childhood has been cycling, I didn’t start biking regularly in winter until a couple of years ago. Looking back, I see it as a way of not letting our Canadian winters stop us from doing what we enjoy the rest of the year. After all, we still need to get to work or school, and we don’t make a big deal about people doing other activities in the snow such as jogging. To prove my point, I will discuss a recent bike ride, a book I recently finished, and some winter cycling tips.