You may often hear folks in the \u201canti-bike\u201d community say cyclists don\u2019t ride in the winter. Well, , cycling advocates in Guelph say winter riding is alive and growing \u2014 and that safe infrastructure makes all the difference.<\/p>\n
City council\u2019s recent decision to continue plowing bike lanes through the winter was welcomed by local riders. They say it validates what they see every day: people still rely on bikes for transportation year-round. Members of the Guelph Community for Active Transportation (GCAT) even gathered outside city hall to celebrate the move. Originally, the City of Guelph<\/a> cut bike lane plowing for the winter, but after backlash from local riders\u2013and politicians, the mayor used his special powers to reverse the decision.<\/p>\n The politician who changed his mind on winter bike lanes<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n Andrea Bidgood, Guelph\u2019s honorary Bicycle Mayor through the global BYCS initiative, says winter cycling is often misunderstood. \u201cThe weather doesn\u2019t stop me from getting out on my bike,\u201d Bidgood told the Guelph Mercury<\/a>, noting that cycling has been part of her life since childhood.<\/p>\n Bidgood says winter riding can actually be easier than walking, particularly with the right equipment.<\/p>\n Studded tires and a stable bike help her stay mobile, especially given past back issues. She adds that affordability, accessibility and climate concerns motivate many others to ride all year. \u201cEven early in the morning there is almost always someone else out there,\u201d she said, pointing to a rise in winter ebike use.\u201d<\/p>\n Still, safety remains a concern. Bidgood says close passes from cars and buses are especially frightening in icy conditions. \u201cThe cold is the least of my worries out there,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n GCAT<\/a> advocacy co-chair Mike Darmon echoed those concerns after being forced out of an ice-filled bike lane on Woolwich Street. \u201cAll these cars were careening around me,\u201d he said, calling the situation \u201cprecarious.\u201d<\/p>\n Advocates say plowed bike lanes help everyone, but they\u2019re also urging drivers to slow down, give space and adjust to winter conditions.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, other cities in Canada are pushing to spread the word that cyclists ride all year, whether it\u2019s frigid Winnipeg<\/a>, or also cold Montreal<\/a>. Well, everywhere is kinda cold in Canada apart from parts of B.C., right? But still, there are a lot of cyclists whose message is simple: cyclists aren\u2019t going anywhere \u2014 even in January.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"You may often hear folks in the \u201canti-bike\u201d community say cyclists don\u2019t ride in the winter. Well, ,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":387545,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[569],"tags":[64,63,39913,784,194237,938,85],"class_list":{"0":"post-387544","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cycling","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-bike-lanes","11":"tag-cycling","12":"tag-guelph","13":"tag-montreal","14":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/387544","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=387544"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/387544\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/387545"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=387544"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=387544"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=387544"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}