I love my bicycle, and bicycles in general. When Cin and I go out walking, she'll catch me craning my neck constantly looking at the bikes people are riding, or stopping to admire a particularly well-made specimen. What sports cars are to other guys, bicycles are to me. And I don't even care if the bike is beat up and neglected. If it has good bones (i.e.: is well made) I'll be sizing up the lines of its frame, the aesthetically pleasing confluence of radiating spokes and round rims. I thought that moving so far from work would force me to be a subway commuter, never to feel the silent freedom of spinning wheels again.But then I sat down with the City of Toronto Cycling Map for 2006 (available in a PDF download here and at bicycle stores across the GTA) and realized that maybe I could still make my commute with two feet and a heartbeat. The tricky part would be finding a route that wouldn't result in me crossing paths with sleepy, SUV-driving vehicle commuters. And low and behold, there was such a route.
So the next morning, I swung my leg over the bike and set out. My route took me along a side street South of the Danforth to Riverdale Park. From there I crossed the Don Valley on a footbridge at the base of the park, then North along the Don River which was clearly the most enjoyable part of the ride. Next it was up Bayview Avenue, through Mt Pleasant Cemetary, then straight North along Lescelle and Elm streets.
And it wasn't that bad. The trip took approximately 1.5 hrs, counting the two times I got lost and all the stopping I did to read my map. My speedometer says it's approximately 25 km from home to work. Further, there was only one area where I felt I was in danger from the cars around me, and that was where Avenue Road crossed the 401. I had to cross several lanes of traffic filled with drivers eager to begin accelerating down the feed ramp to the highway. Still, one of the advantages of bicycle commuting is that you can get off and walk on the sidewalk if you feel the traffic is becoming too frenzied.
As I cycled, I pondered what the bicycle meant to ethical living. I don't think a more efficient personal people/cargo mover has been invented when one looks at the amount of green house gasses emitted and energy requried for construction and maintenance. It's clear that riding a bike is, in most cases, better than riding a car for short, in-town trips (or even longer out-of-town trips if you aren't in a hurry). While there are many downsides to the way bicycles are built (resource extraction, energy for manufacturing, etc.) there are far more of the same downsides to the way cars are built. Bicycles can be a personal statement as much as a car, and a whole industry is devoted to Kustom rides. As well, if properly looked after, a bicycle can last many years. My parent's bikes are well over 20 years old, and still perfectly ridable. Further, learning to fix your own bike isn't as archaic as learning to fix a new car - anyone who can hold a wrench can do it.
Many of my co-workers were amazed that I would attempt the long trek from my Danforth home to work. When I would try to encourage them to do the same, most people admitted that they didn't like riding on the same roads as Toronto drivers. I think to offset this, the City of Toronto should put in North-South and East-West bicycle "arteries" - highways strictly devoted to bicycle use. The city should be quartered in car-free bike lanes, much like it is right now in subway lanes. Only by providing people with a relatively car-free commute can we reduce the fear of car-bicycle collisions that I think hold many people back from enjoying this great way to get in shape and get where you want to go at the same time.
Regardless, I'll definately be using the bike to get to work more often. The trip was far to enjoyable to pass up.
Cycle on.
