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Toronto Bike Summit 2008: New report calls for greater investment in Toronto bicycling infrastructure - Environmental Communication Options/Huff Strategy

Toronto Bike Summit 2008: New report calls for greater investment in Toronto bicycling infrastructure

Apr 25th, 2008 3:58 AM

Media Release – For Immediate Release Toronto Bike Summit 2008: New report calls for greater investment in Toronto bicycling infrastructure (April 25, 2008) Toronto’s bicycling infrastructure scores low compared with other world cities, according to a new report card released at Bike Summit 2008 in Toronto. The Toronto Coalition for Active Transportation (TCAT) and the Clean Air Partnership (CAP) partnered to host this unique one-day summit at the St. Lawrence Hall, where leading international transportation experts and decision-makers discussed ways to improve urban cycling environments. The report, “Benchmarking Toronto’s Bicycle Environment: Comparing Toronto to other World Cities,” released by TCAT, calls for greater investment in active transportation – walking and cycling – in Toronto. According to the report, Toronto’s per capita budget is one tenth of what London (UK) spends for cycling and pedestrian infrastructure. Numbers on bike ridership in Toronto are also low compared to some leading cities. On average, only 4% of commuters bike to work in Toronto, whereas in cities with more established commuter cycling, such as Copenhagen and Amsterdam, bicycling is the primary mode of transportation for one out of three commuters. Fred Sztabinski, TCAT’s Project Coordinator for the Summit commented, “The findings of the report suggest that greater investment in municipal bicycling infrastructure could increase bike ridership, help to combat climate change, establish Toronto as a leader in sustainability, and would also make Toronto more competitive with other world-class cities.” The Summit featured keynote presentations by Koy Thomson, Chief Executive of the London Cycling Campaign (UK), and Randy Neufeld, Chief Strategy Officer of the Chicagoland Bicycle Federation (Chicago). Other visiting presenters included Peter Lagerwey, City of Seattle Senior Transportation Planner, and Jeff Olson, Alta Planning Principal (New York). Attendees participated in discussions on strategies to encourage cycling, case studies of bike lane design, and best practices for bicycle transportation funding and planning. For more information, contact Fred Sztabinski, Project Coordinator, Toronto Coalition for Active Transportation (TCAT), 416-392-0290, info@torontocat.ca. , or visit http://www.torontocat.ca/main/bikesummit2008 The “Benchmarking Toronto’s Bicycle Environment” report is posted at http://www.torontocat.ca/main/documents Podcasts of interviews and presentations are available at http://soundsofsustainability.podcastpeople.com/ The Toronto Coalition for Active Transportation (TCAT) is the unified voice for over fifty groups, promoting an improved environment for walking and bicycling in Toronto. TCAT provides policy analysis and plans and implements outreach and education campaigns to this end. The Clean Air Partnership (CAP) is a registered charity that works in partnership to promote and coordinate actions to improve local air quality and reduce greenhouse gases for healthy communities.