Have you been to Van Gogh yet?

The Van Gogh exhibit at Canada's National Gallery is a wonder and well worth the visit. Seeing all his wonderful paintings reminded me of these bikes that were at Ottawa City Hall a few weeks back. I wonder what became of them?

NCC's bike friendly canal-side amenities

One of my complaints about Ottawa has always been the lack of waterside amenities. Where can you stop for a drink or a bite while you're out biking in this city? Well, the NCC has surprised me this summer. First, we had the NCC allowing ice cream vendors along the multi-use pathway. Today, I noticed a "pop-up" bar across from the Congress Center. Not elaborate by any stretch but a nice little spot to watch the world go by and have a drink at the same time.



Canal side pop-up bar



Even more exciting is a new seasonal restaurant/bar being built just north of the Corktown Footbridge on the Colonel By side of the canal (along the multi-use path.




Seasonal restaurant/bar

Bikes everywhere or are my eyes deceiving me?

Recently there's been some ratcheting up of the complaints about the Laurier Avenue Segregated Bike Lanes (LSBL) in the local media. A recently formed coalition of citizens opposing the lanes claim that the city is fiddling with the number of users for the bike lanes and that these numbers are exaggerated. Today in the Ottawa Citizen one letter writer, incredibly, stated that only about 25 people use the lanes per day. I probably shouldn't have mentioned this comment because it's beyond ludicrous but this is the sort of thing being tossed around by bike lane opponents. Interestingly, a recent comment to this blog complained about having to deal with the "thousands of cyclists". Too many, too little...I guess they can't decide. On my way down Laurier West today I did a rack by rack count from Kent Street to Elgin Street. Every single rack, without exception, had a bike attached and most had two or more. In total, I counted 220 bikes. This does not include any bikes on any of the north or south running streets that were visible to me. Now imagine if all these cyclists were to drive instead! Where would they find the parking?

Three on a bike

Recently there appeared a comment in the local paper pointing out the disadvantages of a bike vs a car. The anti-bike author expressed a very North American bias about bikes. Basically he said you can't do that much with them. They can't carry groceries (mine does) or they can't transport children. He specifically said two children so I thought of his comments when I saw this cyclist last week with two children on board. Nicely done too!

A spring made for bikes

Record warm temperatures are really bringing the bikes out. It's a great thing to see.

Left or right it's just riding a bike

Recently I attended the annual general meeting of the Citizens for Safe Cycling. (The details of the event are on the CfSC website.) Several politicians were present. From the federal New Democratic Party (NDP) was local MP Paul Dewar. The NDP is considered a left-wing party. Also in attendance was local city counselor David Chernushenko. He is a former leadership contestant for the left-leaning Green Party of Canada. Yasir Naqvi of the provincial Liberal Party (a centrist party) was also in attendance. Neither Chernushenko or Naqvi spoke, but they did request that their presence (signifying support for cycling) be noted. No member of a Conservative (or other right-wing) party showed up. That’s too bad because riding a bike or supporting cycling should not be a left–right notion.

Former U.S President George W. Bush

I must say that I don’t really like all these left and right labels. We affix them to so many things in Canada and it’s really quite ridiculous. For example, if you like to eat granola you are left-wing. Steak and potatoes are for the right-wing crowd because they all must be meat-eaters. Vegetarians are obviously left-wing. If you hunt and drive a truck in Canada you must be right-wing. Unless of course you are a hunting, truck-driving union member. Then you must be a lefty. Do you like nature? Then you must be a lefty. Are you fond of guns and the military…obviously right-wing.

Current U.S. President Barack Obama

Recently, the left–right nonsense has become an issue with cycling here in Ottawa and elsewhere (such as Rob Ford’s Toronto) as well. Quite likely it is anywhere where cycling is on the increase and certain factions have begun to fear that their way of life is under threat. The cycling debate is creating an us-vs-them mentality and small minds inevitably want to lump all cyclists together as left-wing and automobile drivers as right-wing. Even our two major local papers have taken completely different lines on cycling. One is supportive of cycling (Ottawa Citizen) and one is very much against cycling (Ottawa Sun). I think as more and more people start cycling here and elsewhere we need to put aside these silly notions and just start to look at cycling as another form of transportation. Because that is what it is. Studies have shown that the number one reason people ride a bike is because it’s the most effective way of getting from A to B. Other benefits are usually noted, but “saving the planet” or thinking green are far down the list of why people ride bikes.

U.K. Conservative Party leader David Cameron

In so many countries riding a bike is simply seen as an efficient, inexpensive and fun activity. We need to embrace that idea here. Left or right…whichever, it’s just riding a bike.

Look both ways before you cross the street!

One of the first rules you learn as a child is how to safely cross a street. Look both ways! How many times do we hear this as children? And yet, as adults, we often forget to do this. Last week I spoke to a cyclist who had been involved in a collision with a salad toting pedestrian (that red line in the photo is the salad trail). According to the cyclist and another passerby, the pedestrian just entered the bike lane without looking. I hope that had they made it safely through the bike lane that they may have looked both ways before crossing the avenue. Perhaps not though. The cyclist involved in this collision said he had a number of close calls with other pedestrians. It seems they are ignoring this simple rule that they learned as children. For myself, if I am not making eye contact with a pedestrian near the bike lane I am going to assume they are not going to look. A good place for the bell as well. The Laurier segregated bike lanes are only a month old. The police and paramedics were called to this scene but it seemed precautionary rather than necessary. According to the City of Ottawa there have been no major incidents along the SBL. Let's hope it stays that way.



Looking east down the Laurier segregated bike lane.

Laurier Avenue segregated bike lanes officially open

Today the Laurier Avenue segregated bike lanes officially opened. A large and diverse group of cyclists gathered as well as a small group of protesters. After a series of small speeches it was time to try out the lanes. The initial ride was lead by Mayor Jim Watson. This project has been very controversial in Ottawa, a city that always resists change. Now that the lanes are here for the next two years perhaps we can put all the acrimony behind and just see how things work. Personally, I suspect the Laurier SBLs will be a big success and the first of many that we will see.



Alex deVries, vice-president of Citizen's for Safe Cycling (SFSC), discusses the Laurier SBL with Mayor Jim Watson. I overheard the mayor say how important it is to write to your local papers. Very true! Don't let the complainers make the most noise.



I did say a diverse group. Charles Akben-Marchand, president of the Centretown Citizen Community Association had a rather interesting swing bike. He's also part of the team that runs the very successful bike parking at Bluesfest.



One of the many volunteers doing some bike lane outreach.



A pair of Dutch cyclists happy to have a segregated bike lane.

No one bikes in Ottawa II

Recently, in the local newspaper, yet another letter writer said she didn't notice anyone cycling on Laurier Avenue. Really! Here is a photo of another "unused" bike rack. It's located on the south side of City Hall. City Hall, of course, is at 110 Laurier Avenue.

Bike launch pads on Laurier Avenue

If you have been down Laurier Avenue in the last few days you may have noticed these "launch pads". These pads will facilitate the turns of cyclists from the Laurier segregated lanes. According to the City of Ottawa, "To enable safe left turns for cyclists using the pilot facility, bike “launch pads” have been proposed at intersections in front of automobile traffic and pedestrian crosswalks. These launch pads would enable cyclists to safely perform a two-stage left turn: the cyclists would cross the intersection in the designated cycling lane, then would wait on the launch pad for the traffic signal to switch to allow movement on the cross street.

Originally these were going to be blue but green works for me too. This one is at Laurier and Bay but there will likely be more in the next few days. On inspection, they appear to be made of a skid resistant material that should last a good while. I am looking forward to sitting in my launch pad!

Laurier segregated bike lane is taking shape

Laurie Avenue looking east from Bay Street

The segregated bike lanes on Laurier Avenue now run from Bronson to Bay though they are not open yet. Phase two of the project is set to start on Monday the 30th according to the City of Ottawa. The sooner the better I say!

A splash of colour

Recently I noticed a brightly painted house not far from where I live. I was surprised I hadn’t noticed it before. Maybe it was freshly painted this past fall. Regardless, it certainly caught my attention. The blue is quite vibrant and while I can think of a few other blue houses in Ottawa this one appears to be the brightest. That started me thinking of other brightly painted houses around town.

Most downtown residents are familiar with the "six sisters", a group of colourful homes packed tightly together off Bank Street:

The Golden Triangle has several colourfully painted houses. This small yellow charmer is one of them.

Is there a more colourful house in Ottawa than the big pink house of Westboro? It’s tucked away in a quiet corner of the neighbourhood.

Winter cycling?

Most people, including avid cyclists, seem to think cycling is impossible in Ottawa in the winter. I agree, but not because of the weather. Poor winter maintenance of what little cycling infrastructure we do have is the reason. Several years ago the NCC bike path along the canal was a treacherous place to be a pedestrian. As a long distance runner with little choice but to run in the winter, the canal pathway was usually a reasonably safe alternative to running on sidewalks, or worse, the road. However, it usually ended up as a single narrow goat path. The last few years have seen a huge improvement and the pathway is plowed fairly well and, indeed, cyclists have started using it frequently. So the real reason, aside from storms and ice, is the lack of maintenance on the cycle paths. As excited as I am to hear about the proposed (and promised by the new mayor) east/west route down Somerset Street it will be for nothing if it is not maintained in the winter. It needs to be completely segregated and plowed and not be at the bottom of the city's priority list...as even pedestrians are these days. 
So can we cycle in winter if we have the infrastructure and the maintenance? Well, interestingly, Finnish cycling advocate Timo Perälä will be in Ottawa on November 2nd to talk about cycling in the winter in Finland. If they can do it in Finland then surely we can here as well. The talk starts at 7:00 p.m. at the Tom Brown Arena. It is presented by the Ottawa chapter of Citizens for Safe Cycling.

Bike lane violations

It seems both the City of Ottawa and the National Capital Commission are doing their homework with a goal to make Ottawa more bike friendly. An integrated bike lane plan is apparently in the works. However, it will only work if cars stay out of the bike lanes. There is an interesting website called My Bike Lane which shows car after car parked in the bike lanes here in Ottawa. In particular, the bike lane on the Laurier Bridge seems to attract alot of violators. Obviously, without education and ticketing campaigns, the use of bike lanes will still be problematic.

Trying to break the car habit

 I have wanted to break my dependency on cars for years. Rising gas prices and terrible oil slicks fouling the planet were reasons. But also the laziness of driving. I am ashamed to say that I would often make trips of less than one kilometre by car. Ok, when it is pouring or the weather is generally inclement then this may be understandable but it is not really something I want to see myself doing on a sunny summer day. So things had to change.

Part of the problem for me was my choice of bikes. I have had numerous racing bikes and then gravitated to the mountain bike, somehow thinking the mountain bike would be more suitable to city biking. I guess I envisioned myself hopping over curbs and down stairways.  Not really. What I mostly ended up doing was getting a sore back and a crick in my neck. Making matters worse, I would ride alongside my partner Marie, she riding tall on her classic upright bike, me appearing like some forlorn sidekick looking up at her. The inevitable sore back would lead to the obvious question: when are you going to get a real bike?

Now let me say that I have nothing against the spandexed, helmeted, team jersey wearing road bike crowd.  As a dedicated marathon runner, I too put on the coolmax and spandex from time to time. But for simple commuting and recreational cycling I think this trend is coming to an end.  You may have noticed the increasing number of people riding classic uprights or modern takes on the theme.  Some of them have new bikes and others have clearly dragged their old 70’s and 80’s bikes out of some storage room.  Many of them are squeeking down the bike paths on cycles that have not seen a tune-up in a long time.  But they are out there, in “regular” clothes getting around town without sore backs and cricks in their necks.  It was my turn.

It was not easy finding just the right bike in Ottawa. I searched and searched, expanded my search to Toronto, and then Canada, but nothing grabbed my fancy until I saw MY BIKE. The answer was the Swedish Skeppshult.  That is me astride my beautiful green Natur model.  What a wonderful bike it is!  Now I can look Marie in the eye as we cycle together.