Both BikeWorks North and South locations will be closed August 11 through August 19, to allow for a summer break for volunteers and staff. The tools for our outdoor repair stands at BikeWorks South will remain locked during this time due to theft and vandalism concerns.
BikeWorks South will re-open August 20, and BikeWorks North will re-open August 21 for regularly scheduled hours.
If you'd like to start working on bikes or if you're interested in increasing your bike mechanic skills, you can sign up for one or more EBC bike repair courses. This Friday, July 13, 2018 we're running a Bike Repair 101 course. You don't need any mechanical experience to take the Bike Repair 101 course. The following Friday, July 20, 2018, we're running a Wheels 201 - Hubs course. You don't need to be an expert with tools to get the most from this class, but you should have enough experience to know how to remove the wheel from the bike. Learning how to do a hub overhaul is a perfect launching point to more advanced bicycle mechanics. Our courses are taught by knowledgeable instructors and offer hands-on opportunities for learning. For more details about the courses, cost, and to register, please visit our EBC courses calendar.
Volunteers interested in helping strip bikes and tidy at BikeWorks South Tuesday July 17, 2018 from 1pm to 6pm can click here to sign up. We'll be taking apart bikes for recycling and parts, hauling away what we can't use, and tidying up the bikes and shop. Our goals are to get rid of what we won't use and to make space so that it's easier for volunteers to help people. You'll get some snacks and a great deal of our community's gratitude as thanks. A clean tidy shop is safer and more enjoyable for those who visit us as well as for the volunteers. A big shout out and thank you to all of you who have tidied and cleaned the shop throughout this busy season!
These two people broke in to BikeWorks South (8001 102 St) on the morning of June 25, 2018.
If you can identify them, please message us here on Facebook, e-mail us, text 780-433-2453 (or call that number and dial extension 901), or call the Edmonton Police Service directly at 780-423-4567.
In addition to damaging our door and several things inside, they also stole a chain lock, accessories, and cash, and stole a yellow/lime Norco Storm 7.1 hardtail (front suspension) mountain bike with 27.5" wheels. Serial number AJ30181151. Full bike details at https://bikeindex.org/bikes/398719
If you see this bike for sale, please contact us immediately. Do not approach them, as they may be armed.
Note that the backpacks and clothing they were wearing was dark (except the main thief had light-coloured pants, with his right sock pulled up over his pant leg). The main thief had a black hoodie, black baseball cap, and a black backpack with red bands.
The clothing and backpacks appear to be light-coloured in some of the infrared photos due to reflections.
Goo Goo Dolls. TLC. Blind Melon. Ma$e. Eve 6. And Wannabe, a Spice Girls tribute band. Want to see them all for free tomorrow?
Then sign up to help monitor our bike parking compound at the festival at Kinsmen Park. No experience or skills needed: you'll just be sitting outside by the bikes saying hello to people.
Explore the river valley and discover native plant species with guides from the Edmonton Native Plant Group (ENPG) and the Edmonton Bicycle Commuters Society (EBC). Learn from members of the ENPG about plant species that grow in Edmonton's river valley at four different sites. We'll stop at each location, chat with ENPG volunteers about the native species, and then bike on to the next location! We will visit Dawson Park, the Muttart Conservatory, Buena Vista Park, and a demonstration native bed at John Janzen. The tour happens Saturday, June 9, 2018. Start times are 2pm, 2:25pm, or 2:45pm.
Please see the Facebook event or Eventbrite registration page for full details and tickets.
Join EBC and the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra for our ninth annual Bike to the Symphony on May 27 at 1pm. We'll bike as a group to the Winspear (starting from BikeWorks South) to enjoy the performance.
Immerse yourself in the sounds of the most famous symphony ever written!
After the show, there will be a casual post-concert chat with the afternoon’s conductor and featured soloists in the lobby. Following this chat, we’ll be joined by maestro Alex Prior for drinks at Brass Tracks, which is a family-friendly restaurant/pub/cafe and serves a full menu. Get to know the ESO’s chief conductor in a casual atmosphere with great food and drinks!
The ride is open to all, but EBC members get a special discount for $24 tickets and 15% off at Brass Tracks.
For full details and tickets, please see the event page.
A car travelling at 60 km/h has four times the energy of one travelling at 30 km/h. Put another way: being hit by a car at 60 km/h has the same energy as being hit by four cars at the same time, each travelling at 30 km/h.
Put another way: an average sedan travelling at 60 km/h has the equivalent energy to 405 bullets (9mm fired at 1300 km/h). A Ford F-150 at 60 km/h has the equivalent energy of 679 bullets.
At 30 km/h, the energy drops to just a quarter.
According to the report going to Council's Community & Public Services Committee tomorrow (April 18), 80% of Edmontonians are concerned about speeding on local streets, and 72% of Edmontonians would prefer lower residential speed limits.
Please write to your councillor today to let them know you support 30 km/h residential speed limits. You can also contact the committee members: Councillors McKeen, Henderson, Cartmell and Caterina.
Keep it brief (just a few sentences is fine), and let them know your name and neighbourhood.
There are numerous reasons why bullets can be more lethal than cars, primarily that the total energy of a moving car isn't entirely transferred to a human body when they collide. The human body gives way while the car keeps moving. So the comparison is a bit silly on the one hand; on the other hand, there are 12 times as many automobile fatalities in Canada as there are gun-related homicides.
As a society, we've largely decided to accept the risk of death and injury associated with driving, in return for the convenience and mobility that personal automobiles provide. When we drive, we impose that risk not just on ourselves, but also on those around us: people who have not agreed to that risk, and who may not benefit from it (people who aren't currently in cars).
Without giving up the convenience of driving, we can still easily reduce the risks. Driving at 30 km/h on local residential streets is an extremely effective measure to reduce the risk we impose on others.
A 30 km/h residential speed limit would make speed limits consistent and simple (rather than having to watch out for changing playground zones).
Lower speeds makes neighbourhoods quieter and more pleasant: the kinds of streets that kids (and adults!) play street hockey on, where you can take your dog for a walk comfortably, and where, if a child momentary steps off a sidewalk without looking, everyone, including a nearby driver, has time to safely react.
A 30 km/h residential speed limit is also expected to lower annual fatalities on local residential streets to 0.
Toronto and East York already has 30 km/h residential speed limits (reduced from 40 km/h several years ago), and many other cities around the world have 30 km/h speed limits on their residential streets.
In short: you've probably spent more time reading this than the impact a speed limit change will have on your daily commute.
Edmonton arterials are generally spaced about 800m between north-south roads, and up to about 1100m between east-west roads.
For most neighbourhoods, that means the maximum distance from a home to the nearest arterial roadway is about 475m.
Even in non-grid neighbourhoods like Mill Woods, for houses buried in the deepest cul-de-sacs, the maximum distance to the nearest collector roadway is still about 400m, and a maximum of about 800m to the nearest arterial along the collector.
Note that these are maximum distances. The average home isn't as far away as possible from collector and arterial roads. Making a simplified assumption that homes are about evenly spaced throughout neighbourhoods, the average distance from a home to a collector or arterial roadway is about half the maximum: 200-250m.
Travel time:
250m @ 50 km/h: 18 seconds (averaging 50 km/hr assumes that a driver is driving at full speed through multiple intersections within a neighbourhood) 250m @ 40 km/h: 22.5 seconds 250m @ 30 km/h: 30 seconds
The average change in travel time at 30 km/h, assuming the driver normally drives at a constant 50 km/h through the entire neighbourhood, is 12 seconds. (No reasonable driver maintains a constant 50 km/h through the turns and intersections of a residential neighbourhood, though, so the real time difference is likely smaller.)
The difference between 40 km/h and 30 km/h is 7.5 seconds, and just 4.5 seconds between 50 km/h and 40 km/h.
The survival rate for people hit by a car at 30 km/h is 90%. At 40 km/h, that drops to 60 per cent: four in ten people die. At 50 km/h, the survival rate is only 2 in 10. Children fare even worse: they're even more likely to die.
Tim Querengesser took to the road recently and tested the difference of driving at different speeds along 98 Ave through Cloverdale. 98 Ave is classified by the City as an arterial roadway, with a speed limit of 60 km/h. It cuts the neighbourhood of Cloverdale in half, with Accidental Beach on one side, and the Muttart Conservatory and Gallagher Park (home of the Edmonton Folk Music Festival and Edmonton Ski Club) on the other.
His result? At 40 km/h instead of 60 km/h, traversing the entire neighbourhood from one end to the other took an extra 20 seconds.
Thread:
1/ The conversation about walk safety inevitably ends up at speed and with it, time. How much time does ensuring a street is safe for people on their feet add to those commuting through it in a car?
Well, I just did the test. Read on for results. #science pic.twitter.com/Z4RcaeE0Fz
— Tim Querengesser (@timquerengesser) April 16, 2018
2/ Now, before we dive in, here's what walkability science shows. People being hit by drivers don't have to die. Nearly every pedestrian lives in a 30 km/hr collision. On the flip side, however, nearly every pedestrian dies in a 60 km/hr collision. #science. pic.twitter.com/yRR9aZkwQk
— Tim Querengesser (@timquerengesser) April 16, 2018
3/ So, to put it all to the test, I drove my fiancee's Kia Sportage from the eastern end of Cloverdale (91 Street) to the western end (98 Avenue, where it breaks away from what becomes 97 Avenue. And I timed my trip at differing speeds — 60 km/hr, 50 km/hr and 40 km/hr.
— Tim Querengesser (@timquerengesser) April 16, 2018
4/ Results: At the current speed limit of 60 km/hr on 98 Avenue, my trip took about 49 seconds. pic.twitter.com/D4JvQnDeEZ
— Tim Querengesser (@timquerengesser) April 16, 2018
5/ At 50 km/hr, the exact same trip took about 10 seconds longer — 59 seconds. pic.twitter.com/GxmcChfXhI
— Tim Querengesser (@timquerengesser) April 16, 2018
6/ And finally, at 40 km/hr, the exact same trip took about 20 seconds longer than it did at 60 km/hr, or about 68 seconds.
So there it is. Slowing traffic through a residential area to a speed that's far more survivable would add 20 seconds to a driver's commute. pic.twitter.com/qga9iM0KOL
— Tim Querengesser (@timquerengesser) April 16, 2018
7/ What does this mean? Well, it likely took you longer than 20 seconds to read this entire thread. Meanwhile, it means the difference between a survivable and livable community and one that people risk injury just to live within.
— Tim Querengesser (@timquerengesser) April 16, 2018
8/ Twenty seconds is what we need to keep in mind. How much is 20 seconds worth to you? #yegwalk #yegbike #yegtraffic #yegvisionzero
— Tim Querengesser (@timquerengesser) April 16, 2018
9/ What's incredible about 98 Avenue's development in Cloverdale is the consistency that speed is identified as a problem. Here's our area redevelopment plan, first published in 1986, or 32 years ago. https://t.co/ZWjoGzmXus
— Tim Querengesser (@timquerengesser) April 16, 2018
10/ "The volume of the unrestricted flow of traffic and its speed represents a daily problem for neighbourhood residents ..Residents have asked...the installation of a full phase traffic signal on 98 Avenue, and the reduction of the speed limit on the avenue to 50 km per hour..."
— Tim Querengesser (@timquerengesser) April 16, 2018
Please write to your councillor today to let them know you support 30 km/h residential speed limits.
Do you love the Edmonton Folk Music Festival? Would you like to help EBC, help the festival, and get in for free? This year's festival takes place August 9-12, 2018, and we need volunteers! You don't need any experience, and just a few hours of volunteering gets you the equivalent of 2 tickets!
Find the full details, including role descriptions and times, and sign-up here: https://goo.gl/forms/eEgGNXpcGbB9w2dV2
Get ready for summer with EBC Club Night at MEC! For EBC members, all regular priced merchandise is 10% off — even bikes and boats. If the south location of MEC is more convenient for you, you can also go there. Simply check-in with the MEC staff at the front of the store and give their name and identify that you belong to EBC.
Date: Monday, April 30, 2018 Time: 5pm-9pm Location: MEC Downtown (11904 104 Ave) or MEC South Edmonton Common (1624 99 St)
Please note that you must be a member of MEC ($5 lifetime membership) and EBC ($15-$20 annual membership) to take advantage of this discount. MEC memberships will be available for purchase the night of this event. EBC memberships are available for purchase online, and will be available in-person at the downtown MEC location during the event.
Have you renewed EBC your membership yet? You can also purchase or renew your EBC membership online: http://edmontonbikes.ca/membership
Products on clearance or marked down or products that get a discount from packages are not eligible for the 10% discount. Discount applies only to items that are in stock in the store at the time of the club night. No store transfers or web purchases. Blundstone footwear is exempt from this discount.
On Saturday April 28, 2018 between 11am and 1pm we'll have up to 100 inexpensive used bicycles for sale at our Spring Big Bike Sale at BikeWorks South (8001 102 St). Do you need a bike? Do you have a friend who needs a bike? Find a ready-to-go bicycle at our spring bike sale! Buying a used bicycle means you won't spend much money so you can budget for a good lock and other accessories. An added benefit to buying a used bike from us instead of online is that you're less likely to be buying a stolen bike. We check our donated bikes through available bicycle registries and stolen bike databases. We have cruiser bikes, road bikes, mountain bikes and more. To find out if we have a perfect bike for you, you'll have to come to the Spring Big Bike Sale. If you need help choosing, volunteers will help direct you to a bike that fits you and suits your riding goals.
Entrance to the sale will be on the Southside (on 80 Ave) through the parking lot. At the sale you'll be able to look over the bikes, talk to knowledgeable friendly volunteers, test ride, shop for accessories, and sign up for a membership (free with bike purchase). During the sale you won't be able to bring your bike in to have volunteers teach you to fix it. You can do that during our scheduled public BikeWorks hours which will start at 1pm after the sale.
Judging from our previous bike sales, we expect there will be a line up before the 11am opening. This will be a fun and exciting event to kick start your spring and summer bike adventures!
Don't forget that if you can't find a bike at our sale, the (much larger) Edmonton Bike Swap is also coming up on May 12.
Sign up on-line with You Can Ride 2 program to help children with disabilities ride bikes at the Borrow a Bike bike fitting event, this Saturday April 7, 2018. Mechanic and non-mechanic volunteers are needed. If you have any questions, contact info
Over 150 children with disabilities were able to ride last year with the help of volunteers. Children who previously had to stay home, could feel the freedom that comes with riding a bike. Here's what one parent says about their child with disabilities being able to ride a bike:
"Often times for most of these kids they have their wings clipped, but this program provides the opportunity to give them their wings back. The bike gave our son independence, pride and confidence."
We partner with You Can Ride 2 to make cycling possible for children with disabilities. Come and help kids get out and meet their neighbours, have outdoor fun with their families, and enjoy life to its fullest!
Apologizing for the recent stretch of unseasonably cold and snowy weather, local cyclist Anna Prentice has claimed full responsibility for Edmonton's cold snap. "I'm sorry. I got excited for spring and switched to my summer bike last Friday," said an abashed Prentice. "I know now it was too soon. I'm really, really sorry, everyone."
Not to be outdone, other cyclists also tried to claim responsibility and apologize:
Dear #yegbike community: today's snow is my fault. I changed from my #fatbike to skinny tires. So sorry. pic.twitter.com/CDpk5duqdZ
— Michael Norton (@northern_norton) March 27, 2018
Some simply teased fate:
Is it too early to take my studded tires off? #yegbike
— subtweets r us (@erinlovesyoga) March 26, 2018
One in particular, while running a weather-focused blog and being better aware of local weather than almost anyone else, seemingly laughed at the stats:
#FirstCommuteOfDST pic.twitter.com/N7kV2MVfEC
— chris - sᴉɹɥɔ (@newfangl3d) March 13, 2018
...looking at the High temperatures, this might be one of the relatively uncommon Marches with no days that hit 10°C. In the last 20 years that's happened 4 other times: 2011, 2006, 2002 and 1999, #yegwx pic.twitter.com/AQXAbtMX2N
— chris - sᴉɹɥɔ (@yegwxnerdery) March 26, 2018
Not everyone, however, was disappointed by the turn in weather. Reached at Goldbar Park, local skier Jesper Katzenberg was especially pleased with the extended ski season. "On behalf of all skiers, I thank cyclists for their noble sacrifice. It was a hard winter, with barely any snow, but I know that some hopeful cyclist out there brought out their summer bike at the end of January and saved the Birkie from being cancelled again."
Bart Nguyen, also skiing at Goldbar, agreed. "Yeah, that was me."
When asked if he identified as a cyclist, Nguyen explained, "I bike to work about half the time, and drive when I have big errands to run. When I go skiing I usually drive to the trails. My car's in the shop right now, though, so I took the bus today."
Unfortunately for this writer, such an explanation makes it difficult to create artificial conflict and division or apply broad labels for easy stereotyping. At press time, it is assumed that driver/cyclist Nguyen is self-loathing.
Please join Paths for People for an evening with Janette Sadik-Khan as she inspires us with her work and sparks the imagination for what Edmonton could be: a safe, comfortable, beautiful city focused on the human scale. Saturday, April 14, 6:30pm-9pm Metro Cinema (8712 109 St)
The former Commissioner of New York City’s Department of Transportation and the author of Streetfight: Handbook for an Urban Revolution, Janette Sadik-Khan is one of the leading voices in urban transportation policy. She led the charge in revitalizing New York’s streets with the building of nearly 400 miles of bike lanes and more than 60 pedestrian plazas. She brought in Citi Bike – a bike share network – to New York, which is currently the largest bike share system in North America with 12,000 bikes and more than 22 million trips taken.
From mass transit to economic revitalization through the creation of safe cycling and pedestrian-centered infrastructure, her work has transformed New York.
Doors open at 6:30pm. Tickets through Eventbrite. A free copy of Streetfight will be given to the first 50 guests. (Note: Tickets not claimed by 6:45pm will be made available to the general public.)
Streetfight is available in advance at Tix on the Square, BikeWorks and Homestead. Copies will also be available at the event.
• Tickets • Event website • Facebook
In February, the Strathcona Centre Community League appealed the development permit for a house to be built at 9213 97 St, in Mill Creek Ravine, between the main asphalt path and a granular walking path. EBC presented at the appeal, along with many others, in opposition to the development. The Subdivision and Development Appeal Board (SDAB) denied the appeal and confirmed the original development approval.
The Strathcona Centre Community League is now circulating a petition requesting City Council to explore alternate ways to preserve the ravine from this development.
You can read the SDAB's full decision here, as well as view our original response.
In summary, the Board was not convinced that the development would "unduly interfere with the amenities of the neighbourhood, nor materially interfere with or affect the use, enjoyment or value of neighbouring parcels of land".
Since the appeal, we were able to receive clarification from the City of Edmonton that public access to Mill Creek Ravine via 93 Ave will be maintained, and the signage won't discourage public access, while the driveway will face stop signs before crossing the shared-use path. We are pleased to hear both of these things, as they were some of our major operational concerns with having a private driveway crossing the trail, and the original development documents had suggested trail access closures.
The Edmonton Bicycle Commuters Society opposes two of the recommendations in the Valley Line West LRT concept plan amendments report, which goes to City Council hearing today. We oppose the proposed 149 St interchange, including its $160 million cost, the destruction of many businesses, and the undermining of the urban LRT's goals. Those costs would all be just to avoid an additional 17-28 second wait for car drivers, compared to today's traffic conditions. The expense, entirely for the benefit of non-transit users, would be subsidized through transit funds. Administration's report ranks the at-grade crossing as its #1 choice according to Council's assessment framework, yet ignored that rank in its recommendation to build an underpass instead.
We also oppose the 110 St sidetrack, which will cut off the busiest and most critical north-south bike route and pedestrian crossing in downtown Edmonton, and indeed in the entire central core. 110 St directly connects the 105 Ave/Columbia Ave area and MacEwan University with Railtown, the High Level Bridge, and the southside of Edmonton.
Attached is our full response to the report and its recommendations.
Residents and commuters are invited to attend a pre-construction meeting for the final year of the 83 Avenue and 106 Street bike route construction. The project team will be on hand to provide information about the activities taking place this year, as well as anticipated timelines and impacts. Construction areas for 2018 include: • 83 Avenue between 106 Street and 111 Street • 106 Street between 84 Avenue and Saskatchewan Drive
Date: Wednesday, March 21 Time: 5 - 9 p.m. (drop-in) Location: Roots on Whyte (Conference Room), 8135 102 Street
https://www.edmonton.ca/transportation/southside-bike-routes.aspx
The 83 Avenue and 106 Street bike route projects connect the central communities south of the North Saskatchewan River, including Strathcona, Garneau, Queen Alexandra, McKernan, Belgravia and Allendale. Both projects were approved by City Council in 2014 to further refine the Bicycle Transportation Plan to include high quality, all-season, accessible and all ages cycling infrastructure.
Join us at BikeWorks South on Friday March 23rd for an evening to (hopefully) look back at a season of winter cycling! The International Festival of Winter Cinema and Edmonton Bicycle Commuters are partnering to host a re-screening of Bicicles, a made in Calgary documentary about winter cycling, at BikeWorks South. Admission is pay-what-you-can, and includes all the popcorn you can eat. They said it was too cold, that it was only for the hardcore elites and the insane. Winter cycling, they declared, just isn’t something you do in Calgary. Despite the naysayers, hundreds of Calgarians put on their mittens and toques and pedal off to work every winter. From old to young, riding clunkers or high-end road bikes, cyclists in Calgary keep the bike lanes busy all year round.
“Bicicles” is a film celebrating those people who refuse to stop biking in the face of snow and sleet. Filmed during the winters of 2014 - 2016, the documentary follows four "brave" souls on their typical winter commute. Along with interviews with city councillors, business organizations and everyday cyclists, “Bicicles” explores how winter cycling is becoming mainstream in a city full of drivers.
Bicicles, The Documentry 8:00pm, Friday, March 23rd BikeWorks South 8001 102 Street
https://vimeo.com/173569356
Volunteer with our partner program, You Can Ride 2 (YCR2), helping children with disabilities ride bikes. Sign up online. No experience necessary.
YCR2's Borrow A Bike program is looking for volunteers for two upcoming events. There are mechanic and non-mechanic volunteer opportunities. You could bring food for the volunteers, help families register for the program, scan bikes into the online inventory database, or adjust bikes. No experience is necessary for many of the positions. No experience with children or knowledge of disabilities is needed. Training is provided on the day of the event. Great lunch and snacks are provided.
Over 150 children with disabilities were able to ride last year with the help of volunteers. Children who previously had to stay home, could feel the freedom that comes with riding a bike. Come and help kids get out and meet their neighbours, have outdoor fun with their families, and enjoy life to its fullest!
Event dates are Sunday, March 11, 2018 and Saturday April 7, 2018.
If you have any questions: [email protected]
BikeWorks North and South will both be closed between December 23 and January 1, inclusive. The last day to access BikeWorks until the new year will be Thursday, December 21. Enjoy the holidays!
