King Street (Streetcar Transit Priority)

[steveintoronto]

The problem isn't so much temperature, since I can layer up for that. The problem is the loss of traction with icy/slushy roads, especially when many of the routes I would take involve unavoidable steep inclines/declines.

Excellent post, but there's another rarely mentioned factor, and that's how the body reacts to *impending danger*. You naturally tense up, for damn good reason, you could go flying into concrete or asphalt just by using a bit too much lean when turning, so the body does the opposite to what it should, it tenses up, and that causes all sorts of consequences to balance and traction, let alone muscle tone and satisfaction. When happy, the muscles release massive amounts of triggers for endorphins, or endorphins themselves, it's still topical how exactly that mechanism works.

The bottom line is: "If it's not enjoyable, don't do it". And winter for most is not enjoyable. When cycling becomes a dangerous task, take transit. Or walk, also dangerous this time of year, but the consequences of slipping are far, far less than being on a busy roadway.

Now someone is going to trot out the accident stats for winter-time cycling in Toronto, showing little difference...not taking into account that the stats are not corrected for the 80% less number of cyclists on the road this time of year.

 

[LNahid2000]

It's just that I said "liberty village needs decent public transit to remain economically viable" and the reply I got was "they can always cycle", which doesn't really quite make sense.

Read back one page. That's not what you said, or what I said.

 

[mdrejhon]

I'm willing to use Bike Share Toronto sometimes on milder winter days. There's plenty of that in Toronto.

In practice, I cycle less than 10% of the time in the winter months -- the nicer days -- on the Sherbourne bike lane which is one of the more winter-friendly cycle lanes. Probably I can easily be coaxed to bike about 25%+ of the time in the winter under cycle-path improvements. It really depends on the state of roads, the temperature, and how much I can wear. I'm usually on the TTC instead.

That said, I have a bikeshare card handy and can randomly spontaneously replace a TTC journey with a bikeshare journey on a nice sunny winter day on my commute towards Union. Better city policies/encouragements (more protected cycle tracks) could very easily prod me to do the mode-substitution 25%+ of the time (maybe lots more). I'd rather be biking on a warmer winter day than burning time to the elliptical at the gym, so biking can be an exercise-preference/exercise-time-savings replacement. It may not work in the suburbs but could be workable in the core.

Done at the macro level (by city policy) -- enough people do such a increased mode-switch -- that is a noticeable difference in reducing subway crowding. Which might cause mode shifts from drivers to the TTC in a cascading effect. (TTC to bikes, and more drivers to TTC)

While uncomfortable, it's less uncomfortable in Copenhagen when they salt bike routes before many car roads and more offices there seems to have showers (thanks to cycling culture) so you one can still have a hot shower after a freezing/slushy commute, or to cool down after a sweaty summer.

I think policies should continue to make cycling more safe & comfortable, and eventually even a 10%-rare winter cycle becomes a 25%-sometimes winter cycle around here. Plenty of growth room for the downtown core. When done on routes that can potentially have more summertime cyclists than cars (Yonge Street, Bloor-to-Front, raised cycle track, circa 2025?) that will only help winter cycle mode-switches like mine even if usage is much less in winter.

 

[W. K. Lis]

Moscow is colder than Toronto or Montreal.

 

[nfitz]

We have snow and -20c weather in Canada. Not everyone will want to bike under those conditions and there really is no way to take steps to fix that.

The lowest it got the entire last winter was -15°C - and that was in the middle of the night, being sunny and closer to -5°C the day before and after.

-20°C certainly happens in Toronto, but seldom in daylight. I suspect you lose more days in other seasons because of rain - for some riders.

 

[amnesiajune]

I also took a shot of King and York. Not much happening there at the moment, but a good "before" shot. I'll post again if there is any change:

Nothing's visibly changing at King and York. Eastbound traffic won't be allowed to turn left but they can't turn southbound onto York (a one-way street) and westbound cars will be allowed to turn right or continue to University.

 

[UD2]

With all these comments about cycling in the winter, I wonder if everyone who make these comments really are cyclists.

Commuting on a bicycle on winter roads is not an enjoyable experience in any respect.

1. You need to deal with the windchill that comes with speed which makes everything colder.

2. Regardless of how well the roads are cleared, they will always be slippery and dangerous.

3. Commuting to work carries the very practical issue of dirty clothes. Not everyone wants to walk into the office with outfits covered in salt and slush.

As an excyclist my self, I would have never biked anywhere when there is snow/slush/ice on the ground. Simply not worth the effort or risk.

 

[W. K. Lis]

The lowest it got the entire last winter was -15°C - and that was in the middle of the night, being sunny and closer to -5°C the day before and after.

-20°C certainly happens in Toronto, but seldom in daylight. I suspect you lose more days in other seasons because of rain - for some riders.

In Moscow, it gets down to -30°C (as mentioned in the above video), and still ride bicycles.

 

[LNahid2000]

With all these comments about cycling in the winter, I wonder if everyone who make these comments really are cyclists.

Commuting on a bicycle on winter roads is not an enjoyable experience in any respect.

1. You need to deal with the windchill that comes with speed which makes everything colder.

2. Regardless of how well the roads are cleared, they will always be slippery and dangerous.

3. Commuting to work carries the very practical issue of dirty clothes. Not everyone wants to walk into the office with outfits covered in salt and slush.

As an excyclist my self, I would have never biked anywhere when there is snow/slush/ice on the ground. Simply not worth the effort or risk.

Cycling is far more enjoyable than taking the TTC for me, even in the winter.

I live at Bloor/Yonge and work at Bay/College.

Taking the TTC to work would involve watching full trains pass me by at Bloor-Yonge before finally shoving myself into one. Its completely unpredictable how long my commute would take each day.

Instead I grab a bike share in front of my building, and then drop off the bike in front of my office. The most unpredictable part of my commute is the two elevator rides.

I could also walk, but that involves 15 minutes of being in the cold instead of 4 minutes. I'll walk on days when the roads haven't been cleared properly.

 

[goleafsgo_chris]

This is one of the first times I have heard this articulated so well.

I get around the city by either driving or biking. If Im commuting within the downtown (king and john to typically church and queen area, but it varies) I will always bike no matter the weather. I also use bike share. I just hate the ttc. I feel independent, free, and in control on a bike. Its fun and I love it.

Im 30 and male, I dont know if that plays a role. Either way, because of this, I prioritize speed and efficiency above all else. A bike does that for me. A car does that when I need longer distances. The TTC literally never does that.

 

[mdrejhon]

1. You need to deal with the windchill that comes with speed which makes everything colder.
2. Regardless of how well the roads are cleared, they will always be slippery and dangerous.

Not a problem for dry roads! I don't usually cycle on slushy days.

(The very few times I did, the Toronto Bike Share bike does it well -- The heavy bikes feel stable in slush -- it felt okay as long as long as I wasn't racing, and was in a protected cycle track away from cars. And the bikeshare bikes have slush splash-guards, so I never had problem on my work pants.)

Half of winter is dry-roads. Of that portion, part of the winter is temperatures warm enough where wind chill isn't a major bother. (e.g. -5C or warmer)

Having a card that gives me unlimited 30-minute bikeshare rides 365 days a year for any spontaneous 1-way trips, has increased my winter cycling from 0% to 10%. That's quite an achivement, I hadn't normally considered biking in the winter. But the bikeshare bikes have thick tires and are pretty safe in the winter. And I don't have to worry about the bike at the end of my trip, or bike maintenance.

Also, the bikeshare hops are good for the diagonal trips that require a transit transfer -- like a short subway ride and a short streetcar ride. For example, I can get from Church-Bloor to Carlton-Parliament in 8 minutes on bike (most of it on good Sherbourne bike lane), while it takes me 25 minutes on TTC. And often spend less time outdoors (walking and/or waiting for streetcar plodding its way through).

Normally I use it in the summer, and that what I originally got it for. But I found myself biking sometimes in the winter. The card is valid 365 days a year, so in the winter if I'm walking past a Toronto Bikeshare rack, the road's dry, the weather's good, I'll spontaneously speed up my walk into a cycle trip even for a 1 kilometer 3-minute bike rental, or even a ride all the way to Union station from Bloor. Takes only 3 seconds to unlock a bikeshare (the card bypasses the kiosk). The convenience is there for me, depends on the day.

It's not quite copenhagen winter biking, but...

 

[Midtown Urbanist]

Yah, I think that is going to be the secret to unlocking winter biking for many people. Bikeshare.

You don't have to worry about abusing your bike during the winter, and on the especially cold/wet days, TTC is still an option.

 

[reaperexpress]

Anyone have anything to say about the King Pilot that's being rolled out as we speak? Are the Jersey Barriers up yet?

 

[TheTigerMaster]

What are jersey barriers?

 

[MetroMan]

Anyone have anything to say about the King Pilot that's being rolled out as we speak? Are the Jersey Barriers up yet?

I saw them installing temporary ramps at streetcar stops. Makes sense. Transit has to be accessible and those sidewalks weren’t built for transit. That said, I wonder why they didn’t just put in some asphalt to create ramps rather than buy these expensive temporary ramps. Are they expecting to move the stops that much?