The Big Smoke

Easter weekend brought me to Toronto for a visit. My hopes of trying out a Bixi in Toronto had to be put on hold due to the dodgy ankle still trying to mend, but I did see a couple of people riding them around the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO).

The Bixi Toronto website notes high numbers of kilometers traveled with the service, but these were the only two Bixis I saw in motion over the weekend. I did pass a few Bixi stations full of idle bikes. They are probably used more during weekday commutes, I suppose.

While I did see a fair number of cyclists on the streets, there is no where near the volume as compared to the streets of downtown and Plateau Montreal. This brings up the question of whether bike sharing can, of itself, increase ridership if a city does not have a sufficiently developed infrastructure of bike paths, lanes, signage, etc. I do not believe it can because a majority of people will not even try cycling in an urban centre because they do not feel it is safe. The car is still King in the Queen city.