Bike Ottawa is a not-for-profit volunteer-based advocacy group. We believe riding a bike in Ottawa should be a fun, safe, and easy choice for all ages and abilities. We are committed to advocating for a vibrant and equitable Ottawa where active transportation plays an important role in year-round mobility.
We hear a lot about “privileged cyclists” on social media, especially from people complaining about cyclists on the roads and (ironically) the existence of separated bike lanes that keep cyclists off the roads.
Join Bike Ottawa and Strong Towns Ottawa on Saturday October 26 for the rally against bike lane bans. The start point is Confederation Park (100 Elgin Street) at 3:30 pm.
Bike Ottawa has been speaking out about the legislation that we anticipate will be tabled next week. Here are links to some of the interviews we have done.
Your experiences and your vision of the biking city that you’d like to live in are the most important things you can bring to advocacy. And there is a lot more information you can use to be as effective as possible. City and NCC plans and policies, provincial and federal programs, open data sources, and even just some history of riding bikes in Ottawa can be invaluable resources.
But sometimes it’s hard to know where to look. So, to make things a little easier, we have compiled a set of resources to get you started.
Also check out our DOCUMENTS page for a list of guides, and tools to search City projects and information.
Check out our page about the laws for riding your bike in Ottawa/Gatineau area.
You can also check out The Biking Lawyer, David Shellnut’s site will give you a good understanding of what to do if you are ever in a crash.
Email your councillor and city project managers to let them know your opinion on a project, or to make the case for a project.
Community associations, parents at your school or other groups may be open to biking improvements. There is power in numbers!
Elected officials and city staff will hear plenty about what is right or wrong with a project, and will be more likely to engage when offered concrete proposals for making better infrastructure for people on bikes.
Make sure your message is short, sharp and easy to understand. What would you tell a reporter if you were interviewed, or if you had the chance to speak at a community meeting?
There will be victories and there will be times when you aren’t able to achieve what you hoped. This is what everyone will experience. By talking about what worked and what didn’t with people who are working on similar projects.
For more tips visit our Tips for Bike Activism page.
A list of great reads to get you started when considering what it means to be an ally while engaging in advocacy:
· Bike Advocacy’s Blind Spot: The biking community is overwhelmingly concerned with infrastructure. For urban anthropologist Adonia Lugo, that’s an equity problem. By Tanvi Misra.
· The Bicycle as a Vehicle of Protest. By Jody Rosen
· Why We Must Talk About Race When We Talk About Bikes: SYSTEMIC RACISM CAN’T BE FIXED WITHOUT TACKLING IT WITHIN CYCLING. By Tamika Bulter
· Last Year, the Bike Industry Promised Inclusivity. But Advocacy Allies Still Don’t Get It. By Tamika Butler.
· Inclusive City Building: Q & A with Jay Pitter.
Every year Bike Ottawa creates a look back at the previous year of riding bikes in Ottawa.
You can read our reports (dating back to 2010!) HERE.
Read up on how the City has changed over the years, and what improvements still need to be made.
Bike Ottawa keeps the wheels moving because of our volunteers.
There are different ways to volunteer with Bike Ottawa, and we need people with a variety of skills. Volunteering can mean different levels of time commitment depending on your ability and availability.
Are you interested in making Ottawa more bike-friendly? Do you have an idea for a project and want to collaborate with other people? Join Bike Ottawa’s Advocacy Working Group! AWG members are constantly working on projects to improve biking in Ottawa. We follow and provide feedback on projects from the design phase to post-build review.
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We can always use extra hands to help us represent Bike Ottawa at community events throughout the year. We also welcome suggestions for events, such as fun rides or community rides that explore bike-able routes in different neighbourhoods of our City. Our Events Working Group is the door to helping boost our presence at events throughout Ottawa.
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Bike Ottawa has created a number of online mapping tools for people on bikes to get around our city–and those tools need maintenance! The Tech Working Group is dedicated to supporting our existing IT infrastructure and starting up new projects. Make a donation against tech debt and help out!
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Through social media, traditional media, and targeted campaigns, Bike Ottawa’s communications are its strength. Help us plan and implement our public advocacy messaging and keep our members informed.
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Bike Ottawa makes efficient use of our resources, but sometimes a project is too big to rely on donations and volunteers alone. Our grants working group looks for opportunities to secure funding for specific projects where it might be available.
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