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Darcy Allan Sheppard Documents Revealed Through Freedom Of Information Request 2

Darcy Allan Sheppard Documents Revealed Through Freedom Of Information Request
In Memory of Allan Sheppard – Photo by Tsar Kasim New details have emerged through a Freedom of Information request regarding the August 31, 2009 death of Darcy Allan Sheppard. Sheppard’s father claims the evidence he has obtained through the freedom of information request does not support the explanation in the decision to drop charges ...

Sitting Side Saddle on Batavus Fryslan 8

Sitting Side Saddle on Batavus Fryslan
Photo courtesy of Peter Bojanczyk for The Urban Country  On Sunday I bought a used 2011 Batavus Fryslan bicycle that I spotted on Craigslist to replace my 2010 Fryslan that was stolen in March. Last night we tested the rear rack while my 210-pound colleague Al sat side saddle while we transported ourselves from one ...

How Rotterdam Crowdfunded a Bridge 2

How Rotterdam Crowdfunded a Bridge
Prior to World War II, the Hofplein area in the centre of Rotterdam was a lively, bustling gathering place where pedestrians were king, and cars were secondary. Just as we have seen in many North American cities, a highway was built after the war that divided central Rotterdam from Hofplein, and pedestrians became an afterthought ...

Rachel McAdams Gets Around Toronto By Bike 25

Rachel McAdams Gets Around Toronto By Bike
Rachel McAdams and Michael Sheen bicycling at Queens Park in Toronto – Photo credit Sean O’Neill After starring in The Notebook in 2004, Rachel McAdams launched herself onto Hollywood’s A-list. It would hardly be surprising if Rachel had soaked up the Hollywood lifestyle by buying a large mansion with 6 cars in the driveway and ...

Top 20 Bicycle Friendly Cities in the World

Top 20 Bicycle Friendly Cities in the World
Our friends at Copenhagenize Design Co. have launched their 2013 Copenhagenize Index, where they painstakingly combed through data for 150 cities to come up with their 2013 index of top bicycle friendly cities in the world. Amsterdam tops the list once again, with Copenhagen trailing behind at a close second, while Canada’s only city, Montreal, ...

You Are Wasting Your Life Away Sitting In Traffic… 9

You Are Wasting Your Life Away Sitting In Traffic…
… But at least you aren’t on a bicycle. Or so that’s the message being portrayed by the local newspaper’s automobile section. Every year we see more and more bicycles on the streets here in Toronto. Instead of acknowledging that more people on bicycles means less traffic congestion for car drivers, many drivers seem to ...

Help Todd Find a Tandem Bicycle 1

Help Todd Find a Tandem Bicycle
Photo of Todd and Daegan with their tandem bicycle in 2012 – Photo from 500 Kindnesses Blog Last year, our friend Todd O’Reilly pedalled 1,500km with his 13-year-old son Daegan in a 25-day charity ride, from Toronto to Ottawa, to Montreal and then ending in New York City. But instead of asking for donations for ...

“Giving Up Driving My Smartest Move Yet”

“Giving Up Driving My Smartest Move Yet”
Traffic in Toronto – Photo by Nariman Haghighi  Our friend Nariman recently posted a photo of traffic congestion in Toronto with the following caption: “Giving up driving close to 10 years ago was my smartest move yet. Few things are more effective for your well being.” Indeed, driving in this city is detrimental to our ...

Tabloid Columnist Calls For Bicycle Ban in Toronto 20

Tabloid Columnist Calls For Bicycle Ban in Toronto
Amsterdam Cycle Chic – Photo by Mikael Colville-Andersen In a series of columns in a Toronto tabloid, columnist Mike Strobel has called for a ban on bicycling in the city in order to address traffic congestion, comparing bicyclists to psychos in his anti-bicycling rant that spans three articles. Strobel’s outrageous nonsensical articles reveal more than ...

Bicycles Are For People Who Can’t Be Late 12

Bicycles Are For People Who Can’t Be Late
Businessman in Amsterdam – Photo courtesy of Mikael Colville-Andersen  Bicycles may be a healthy way to get around a city, helping to reduce traffic congestion and pollution. But they are often the fastest and most reliable way to get around a city too. On Tuesday I had a client meeting downtown Toronto at 3PM. The ...