The "war on motorists" is a myth

Everyone's feeling the pinch, but we shouldn't mistake that for a war on motorists. Read more.

Barrie ON: Bike lanes needed on Essa

The Allandale Neighbourhood Association (ANA) is circulating a petition urging Barrie to rethink its plans for Essa Road. In 2015, Barrie envisions four lanes under Highway 400, but between the highway and Anne Street, the road has three lanes in each direction, plus turning lanes, for a total of eight lanes.

The $35-million project doesn't include bike lanes because of "constraints of property acquisition and access through the Highway 400 structure," said Barrie's design and construction manager Bob Kahle. Read more.

Hong Kong - $1b plan gives elderly, disabled welcome lift

A multimillion-dollar plan is under way to build elevators at footbridges and pedestrian subways to help the elderly and those with disabilities. Read more.

Spectacular New Floating Cycle Roundabout

The bright white 70 meters (230Ft) tall bridge pylon can be seen from far away. Attached to the top are 24 cables that suspend a large bicycle roundabout, 72 meters (236Ft) in diameter, that seems to float over a large new junction for motorized traffic. Read more.

Active Transportation in the North

Part of Burns Lake's down town revitalization plan is to encourage a healthy lifestyle by Active Transportation. The Boulevard Group out of Victoria is hired to do the work for Burns Lake, however, a delegation at the last Smithers town council meeting has got council thinking but not convinced. Read more.

Halifax NS - City should establish standards for trail construction

A city-wide standard for trail construction in new neighbourhoods in the Halifax region should be part of future subdivision planning, a regional council committee heard Thursday. Such uniformity would help ensure all developers are on the same page, council’s active transportation advisory committee was told. Read more.

Victoira BC - Don't go hastily down cycle path

Idealism should not trump common sense - $220 million is a lot of money to spend without a guarantee that it will reduce motorized traffic. "Build it and they will come" is a line from a movie, not a sound business plan. Read more.

London ON - Health unit pushing city to cater to ‘human-powered’ transportation

With the goal of having more London residents use leg power over gas power, the Middlesex-London Health Unit is pitching ideas to the city on how to make the community more friendly to walkers, cyclists and rollerbladers. Read more.

Yonge St. pedestrians get more room in pilot project

Shops and restaurants along a stretch of Yonge Street in downtown Toronto are gearing up for a pilot project that will open up two additional traffic lanes to pedestrians starting Friday. Read more.

More Americans Walking, But Still Not Enough

According to 2010 data, almost 62 percent of American adults were taking at least one 10-minute walk per week, compared with 56 percent who did so in 2005, researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report. Read more.

Sarnia - Survey finds people want walking and cycle paths

A recent survey found strong support for more spending on cycling and walking routes, says the Lambton County Active Transportation Committee. Read more.

Sports Promote Healthy Weight in Teenagers

Teenagers can significantly lower their likelihood of being overweight or obese by walking or biking to school and playing on at least one high school sports team, but preferably two or more, a new study suggests.
In their study, which was published in the journal Pediatrics, Dr. Drake and his colleagues tried to quantify the impact that greater sports participation and less reliance on mass transit might have on childhood obesity. Read more.

European Greenways - Issue 15

Read it here.

Goodbye 1956 and the automobile, hello 2012 and the bicycle

Quick—name Vancouver’s first “auto-oriented” shopping centre. It’s Oakridge Centre. But that will likely change, according to a staff report going before city council on Wednesday which provides details on plans to redevelop the mall and surrounding property.

City staff says any new design should minimize traffic impacts and “encourage walking, cycling and transit over the private car.” It’s a direction embraced by Oakridge Centre owners, Ivanhoe Cambridge. Read more.

World Carfree News #96 - Summer 2012 - English Version

Read it here.

Bicycle Studies Pick Up Speed in Academia

More than 100 academic studies related to cycling have been published this year alone, including new research on the mathematical optimization of bike infrastructure, the health benefits of mass cycling events, and even the precise nature of the “wobble” that can strike riders at inopportune times. Lees-McRae College in North Carolina even offers a cycling minor. Read more.

Underpass Park in Toronto: Opens world of possibilities for Gardiner Expressway

Few people know that the land beneath the confluence of the Richmond St., Adelaide St. and Eastern Ave. overpasses, just west of the Don River, has been transformed from a desolate, neglected space into a park with skateboard ledges, basketball hoops and swings.

Christened Underpass Park, it’s the most extensive park to ever be built under an overpass in Canada, and the first of its kind in Toronto. It has been called brilliant, an urban oasis. Read more.

Victoria - Pedestrian & Cycling Master Plan

As a key part of the Regional Transportation Plan to encourage active transportation, the Regional Pedestrian and Cycling Master Plan (PCMP) was developed to help direct planning and investment decisions that support more cycling and walking in everyday life. Read more.

Toronto - Completing Our Streets

The Toronto Centre for Active Transportation is trying to foster visionary goals for improving Canada's public streets. Read more.

Charlottetown - Multi-million dollar 'Active Transportation' plan approved

The city of Charlottetown has officially approved a multi-million dollar plan aimed at encouraging people to get out and be more active through biking or walking in the P.E.I. capital region. Read more .