I Bike T.O. 2008 Wrap-up

As 2008 wraps up us bloggers at I Bike T.O. wish you happy holidays and a good, safe new year for you and your bike. We've enjoyed blogging about cycling in Toronto and we've had plenty of interesting fodder this year. We ask that you seriously consider a small contribution of 10 to 20 dollars towards our hosting costs so we'll stick around for another year.

A lot has happened in 2008:

• Toronto Police finally busted Toronto's most infamous stolen bike dealer, Igor Kenk, and this fine city made international news when police discovered over 2400 of his bikes stuffed into garages around the city. Cyclists try to find out if Igor actually made money off these stolen bike or if he has an obsessive collecting disorder.
• E-bikes took over the streets in a big way. Ontario's e-bike pilot period and the high price of gas contributed to a lot of people leaving their cars behind and stepping onto an e-bike. The controversy continues as pedaling cyclists see the e-bikes as too heavy and fast for bike lanes and paths. E-bikers figure anything that keeps people from driving their gas-guzzlers has got to be a step in the right direction.
• On a sad note 2008 again saw cyclists injured or killed in traffic collisions. Most recently a man lost his leg in a late night argument with a taxi driver. The driver is now facing 6 charges in this violent hit and run.
• The Toronto Coalition for Active Transportation hosted the first Bike Summit with a great turn out of speakers and participants. Thank you Fred and good luck in Amsterdam!
• After a few hiccups the Toronto Cyclists Union launches and ends the year with a bang. They are now set to hire their first Executive Director and things are looking much better for stronger cycling advocacy in Toronto. Thanks to Mez for the inspiration and leadership, and to everyone else who've made sure it happened.
• Councillor Heaps promises to build 50 kilometres of bike lanes this year. He almost makes the mark with the surprise last minute addition of Lawrence East.
• The Mayor's draft 2009 budget shows a dramatic increase in the amount allocated to cycling infrastructure. Mayor Miller promises to spend the money to finish the Bike Plan. Callers to talk radio rant about their need for more roads as they try to hold their cellphone while changing lanes.
• TCAT and CBN present the Bikes as a Public Good forum on bikesharing. Bixi, the Montreal bikesharing program comes to show off their system to jealous Torontonians. Bixi gets into Time's Top 100 Inventions of 2008. Councillor Heaps promises to have one running in Toronto by next year.
• We had our first City-sponsored Bike Winter coldest day of the year ride where a surprising number of cyclists came out on a really cold, short day of the year.
• We had our first official Bike Month as the City accepts that our bike festivities have long expanded beyond one week.
• Bells on Bloor is once again the biggest bike ride in Toronto. It inspires many with the hope of bike lanes on Bloor. Albert Koehl, founder of Bells on Bloor, also puts in a lot of work leading the legal fight for the makeover of Bloor and Bay.

Yup, an interesting year. And we've been giving our own spin on the news plus give you a personal perspective on our own cycling adventures. To keep this running for another year we ask for a small contribution from our readers. With our volunteer time and about $200-$300 per year for hosting costs we can keep our freewheels spinning - the more popular we become, the higher our server costs. The more donations we receive the less likely we'll have to rely on a lot of advertising.

Thank you all for your support and interest! Keep safe on the roads and happy holidays!

UPDATE
And I still forgot a few defining cycling moments, as pointed out by Martin. These include:

• Cycle Messenger World Championships (CMWC) 2008, a yearly competition for bike couriers worldwide, was held on the Toronto Islands. Despite its distinct un-urban feel, the Islands allowed for laid back viewing and drinking as couriers busted their asses around the course and challenges and even got wet a few times from falling in the drink.
• Toronto's own urban cycling magazine, Dandyhorse, was launched! Thanks to the creators, especially to Tammy Thorne for the vision and lots of hard work.
• 200 cyclists take over the Gardiner as an impromtu turn during July's Critical Mass brings the group onto Toronto's waterfront highway. Attendees begin to speak like they experienced an epiphany.