I work with people in Pickering and Ajax, and they keep telling me that the waterfront cycling trails there are beautiful. They also tell me that they'd bike to work if there was a safe way into the city - as the only method right now is to use Lawrence East and Kingston Road - which are not cyclist-friendly. We need the Martin-Goodman Trail extended through Scarborough, please.
It's also the case that lots of Toronto cyclists would like to try out the Ajax and Pickering waterfronts for weekend rides but are held up by the same lack of access.
Luckily there's a new awareness campaign called "GO by Bike" which aims to let Toronto cyclists know that we can take the GO Train to Ajax (bikes are allowed on GO Trains at any time except during weekday rush hours) or anywhere else, really:It's a project conceived by Donald Wiedman that encourages cyclists to take a Sunday GO train to Ajax and ride a leisurely 15 km back along the Waterfront Trail to the Rouge Hill station, where they can catch another train back into the city. Not only do you get to avoid the nasty ride along Kingston Road, but you get to leave the car at home too. And best of all, because GO-by-Bike is promoting an existing capability on all GO trains along the Lakeshore line, you aren't limited to travelling to or from any particular station, or on any particular train, or at any particular time. You're completely free to go at your own pace and can even roll your own custom tour instead of taking one of the pre-surveyed routes covering the waterfront, Highland Creek, Petticoat Creek, Duffins Creek, and more.Much more great info in the great Torontoist post about GO by Bike.Wiedman saw an opportunity to promote both transit and cycling in the spaces around Toronto and approached GO Transit with "a handshake and a smile. I told them right up front that I wasn't looking for help, I was looking to help." Wiedman also says that he wants cyclists to have "do-it-themselves" experiences rather than provide guided or structured tours. "Trails are ultimately self-serve." In the end, it's up to cyclists to set their itineraries, buy their GO tickets, and make the journey. GO-by-Bike plants the seed and provides suggestions, but the form, structure, and timing of the trips are entirely up to the individual cyclists.
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Labels: infrastructure, news
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