Bike Map Holder – Photo courtesy of Mr. T in DC

Cities in Canada and the United States have long catered to automobiles, providing drivers with a comprehensive network of roads with direct routes to their destinations.

Bicycles, as a mode of transportation, have largely been ignored over the last several decades here, and people who use bicycles to get around are often required to choose between uncomfortable, unsafe routes that go directly to their destination. Or indirect, roundabout, long, awkward routes that provide some safety and comfort.

Here in Toronto, a driver can almost invariably find a direct route to their destination without having to put a whole lot of thought beforehand into how to get to their destination.

Bicyclists are burdened with finding their own routes to their destination that provide them with some level of comfort and safety.

However, safe comfortable routes that are indirect and difficult to navigate deter people from riding bicycles in the city.

To illustrate this point, I will share a story. This afternoon I received a text message from a friend who wanted to ride her bike 10km to the north side of Toronto.

She was looking for a safe, comfortable route to get to her destination, so she figured (correctly) that I would know a good route to take.

Using Google Maps to gauge how direct a route is

So I pulled out my Google Maps and used the bicycle directions as a starting point. The default route that Google derived was a total of 17 steps to travel 9.6km. 17 turns of direction. 17 different streets.

In this situation, it would behoove Google to provide users with a link to a map-reading and land navigation course along with these overly-complicated directions.

To make matters worse, I tweaked Google’s proposed route to make it more comfortable based on my own experience with riding to that part of town. The resulting route was now a whopping 22 steps for a 10.5km ride:

To illustrate how ridiculously and unnecessarily complicated it is to navigate this part of the city by bicycle, we can view the proposed route that a car driver would be provided on Google Maps.

Car drivers are provided a direct route that require only two steps. Two steps compared to the default 17 steps required to do the same trip by bicycle. In the photo below you can see how direct the driving route is.

Driving to the same destination hardly requires thinking. A driver could almost do it with her eyes closed, while a bicyclist requires a live navigator in tow.

As expected, the friend was overwhelmed by the 22-step route I sent and decided she would take the unsafe, uncomfortable, direct route to her destination. The direct route would ensure she wouldn’t get lost. But car traffic would be buzzing by her at 60-80km/h in some places.

Perhaps a driver who is in a hurry to get home for dinner would honk at her to move out of the way. Another driver might not be so courteous and pass her dangerously close to send her a message.

After a close call, some bicyclists may never ride again. Others might move to the sidewalk. Others still might stick with bicycling and try to navigate the safer route.

I couldn’t live with myself by letting her ride on a busy urban highway, so I hopped on my bike and showed her the comfortable route. It was a gorgeous day and we had a great ride. Now she is familiar with the comfortable, safe route, with no thanks to the transportation planners in the City of Toronto.

In the Netherlands, bicyclists get more direct routes than drivers

Over in the Netherlands, David Hembrow discusses the importance of direct routes for bicyclists:

“Most cycle routes in this country (The Netherlands) are as direct or (more often) more direct than routes for motorised traffic.”

Providing direct, well-marked routes for bicyclists to make it easy to avoid busy, arterial roads with high speed traffic is arguably as important as any other measure we can take to increase the number of people bicycling in our cities.

Routes that are more direct for bicyclists than motor vehicle drivers provide further incentives for people to take their bicycle and leave their car at home.

My friend could have taken the most direct route on an uncomfortable busy road, but she most likely leave her bike at home the next time she visits this destination. This is exactly what transportation planners should be trying to avoid.

James D. Schwartz is the Editor of The Urban Country and is based in Toronto, Canada. You can contact James at james.schwartz@theurbancountry.com or follow him on Twitter.

More Articles Like This:

• Urban Bicycling Is For Lazy People (June 2013)
• Bicycles Are For People Who Can’t Be Late (Mar 2013)
• The World Has Changed. So Can You. (April 2011)
• “Bicycling makes me feel like I’m a part of the city instead of feeling apart from the city (June 2013)
• My Ideal World (Sept 2012)

Sofia on Daddy’s cargo bike – Photo by James Schwartz / The Urban Country 

Last night my wife took her car to the grocery store and when she tried to start it again, the battery was dead. I grabbed my cargo bike and went to a nearby mechanic to borrow their mobile booster pack to recharge the battery enough to start the car.

The booster pack managed to get the car started once, but when she stepped inside to drive the car away, she inadvertently shut the car off.

Unfortunately, the booster pack didn’t work again. So I packed all the groceries along with my daughter into the cargo bike and headed home and returned the booster pack while she waited for roadside assistance.

When I returned the booster pack to the mechanic, a taxi driver, who was a patron of the garage, lauded the cargo bike. He loved the idea that a bicycle can easily carry a 2-year-old and a couple weeks’ worth of groceries.

He was of course waiting for his taxi to be fixed by the mechanic, so I explained to him that we can’t always rely on cars, but I can always rely on my trusty cargo bike.

He agreed and said, “there isn’t much that can go wrong with that bike”.

Indeed. My two bicycles require a tune up once a year, and in between there isn’t much that goes wrong with them, save for the odd flat tire, which has happened just once in the past three years.

Efficient, reliable, lazy transport.

James D. Schwartz is the Editor of The Urban Country and is based in Toronto, Canada. You can contact James at james.schwartz@theurbancountry.com or follow him on Twitter.

More Articles Like This:

• Urban Bicycling Is For Lazy People (June 2013)
• Bicycles Are For People Who Can’t Be Late (Mar 2013)
• The World Has Changed. So Can You. (April 2011)
• “Bicycling makes me feel like I’m a part of the city instead of feeling apart from the city (June 2013)
• My Ideal World (Sept 2012)

Screenshot from YouTube video by Vancouver Cycle Chic

Below is a wonderful video by our friend Chris Bruntlett and the folks over at Vancouver Cycle Chic featuring Vancouver librarian Cecily Walker, as she introduces her city as a great place to live and to get around by bike.

Vancouver, as you probably know, rests inside a province that has a mandatory all-ages helmet law, so it is great to see Cecily standing up against this asinine law in this film (as many other people do in Vancouver each day).

Cecily does a wonderful job of showing how safe and pleasant urban bicycling is.

Just a lovely, lovely video:

James D. Schwartz is the Editor of The Urban Country and is based in Toronto, Canada. You can contact James at james.schwartz@theurbancountry.com or follow him on Twitter.

More Articles Like This:

• Urban Bicycling Is For Lazy People (June 2013)
• Bicycles Are For People Who Can’t Be Late (Mar 2013)
• The World Has Changed. So Can You. (April 2011)
• Vancouver Approves Hornby Street Dedicated Bike Lanes (Oct 2010)
• Don’t Judge Canada: Velo-City Global 2012 Vancouver (Apr 2011)
• The Unconventional Urban Citizen Bicyclist (April 2012)
• Barriers to Cycling: Debunking the Myths (Nov 2009)

Older people on bicycles in Amsterdam –  Photo by Marc van Woudenberg / Amsterdamize

In the midst of Toronto Mayor Ford’s crack scandal was a revelation about how Canadian society views adults who ride bicycles for transport. A 45-year-old man who is in the middle of the scandal was recently approached at a TD Bank by a Toronto Star reporter. The man reportedly refused to speak to the reporter before pedaling away on his bike:

“Fabio Basso refused to comment when approached by the Star while leaving a TD Canada Trust bank. He jumped on a bike and pedaled away, turning back to give an obscene gesture.”

A commenter on another news organization’s website facetiously wrote that the 45-year-old man apparently hasn’t left high school yet, given that he still uses a bicycle to get around.

This comment illustrates the perception in our society that bicycles are childish, and grown men and women who use bicycles are undignified and need to grow up.

This view has long been perpetuated by automobile advertising, which often show professional, “successful”, good looking adults driving their cars, while encountering reckless young hipsters on their bicycles.

In reality, bicycles have few age restrictions. A trip to Amsterdam or Copenhagen will illustrate this, as you will see plenty of elderly people who use bicycles as their primary mode of transportation. In fact, people over 65 years old in the Netherlands make 24% of their journeys by bike.

Perhaps people in Canada could never fathom their own parents or even grandparents using a bicycle to get around. The insatiable need to conform to our car-centric society is difficult to oppress, and the perception is that older people must give up some dignity to use a bicycle as their transportation.

But this couldn’t be further from the truth. Urban bicycling is both dignified and healthy for people of all ages. In Shanghai they have bicycle parking spaces for handicapped folks.

Below are a few photos of some older people riding bicycles, to grant back the dignity that they rightfully deserve for choosing a fast, healthy and fun mode of transportation.

Older people on bicycles in Amsterdam –  Photo by Marc van Woudenberg / Amsterdamize

Older people on bicycles in Amsterdam –  Photo by Marc van Woudenberg / Amsterdamize

My recently retired father on his bicycle near his home in Florida – Photo by James Schwartz / The Urban Country 

Older people on bicycles in Amsterdam –  Photo by Marc van Woudenberg / Amsterdamize

Older people on bicycles in Amsterdam –  Photo by Marc van Woudenberg / Amsterdamize

Older people on bicycles in Amsterdam –  Photo by Marc van Woudenberg / Amsterdamize

Older people on bicycles in Amsterdam –  Photo by Marc van Woudenberg / Amsterdamize

James D. Schwartz is the Editor of The Urban Country and is based in Toronto, Canada. You can contact James at james.schwartz@theurbancountry.com or follow him on Twitter.

More Articles Like This:

• Urban Bicycling Is For Lazy People (June 2013)
• Bicycles Are For People Who Can’t Be Late (Mar 2013)
• The World Has Changed. So Can You. (April 2011)
• Motorists Prime Beneficiaries of Socialism (Aug 2011)
• Americans Work 2 Hours Each Day To Pay For Their Cars (May 2011)
• The Unconventional Urban Citizen Bicyclist (April 2012)
• Barriers to Cycling: Debunking the Myths (Nov 2009)

Transporting cargo by bike in Portland, Oregon – Photo by Ryan Good 

On a visit to Shanghai in 2010, I snapped dozens of photos of people transporting large objects by bicycle – including a bathtub and a full sized refrigerator – among other large household items.

Here in Canada or the United States, it would be difficult to find a pizza being delivered by bike, let alone a bathtub or a fridge. That is, unless you have met Ryan Good.

Ryan reached out after reading our “Home Depot Trip By Bicycle” article a few weeks back, sending us photos of the objects he has transported by bike. Ryan’s photos make my Home Depot trip look like a trip to the spa.

Ryan lives in Portland, Oregon – one of America’s most bike-friendly cities. When people transport large household items in America, they would typically use a truck. But not Ryan. Ryan has transported heavy loads exceeding 600 pounds, all by bicycle, and he has the photos to prove it.

Transporting cargo by bike in Portland, Oregon – Photo by Ryan Good 

Transporting cargo by bike in Portland, Oregon – Photo by Ryan Good 

Transporting cargo by bike in Portland, Oregon – Photo by Ryan Good  

Transporting cargo by bike in Portland, Oregon – Photo by Ryan Good  

Ryan has been car-free for 4 years now, and he and his partner Steph get around primarily by bicycle:

“Steph and I live about 10k from my work, and 5k from her school (she wanted a career change and is studying massage therapy), so we find we just have no need for a car.

We both have bike trailers, and I have a cargo bike that either of us can ride, so we do all our commuting and shopping, etc., with our bikes. We also travel by bike, sometimes combined with the train. And we have a tandem that we very much enjoy riding together, and we often commute that way- we’ll ride the tandem to her school where I drop her off, then I’ll ride solo the rest of the way to work, and then pick her up in the evening. We really enjoy that.”

One time, after dropping Steph off at the airport on their tandem bicycle, a minivan driver asked Ryan where the other person was.

“I thought that was hilarious because he was asking me that question while driving alone in a vehicle that’s designed to carry at least six people!”

I asked Ryan how he got into carrying large objects by bicycle. He explained that in Portland, they have a listserv where people who are moving to a new home will post their planned moving date. Then on moving day, 20-40 people often show up to help that person move all of their belongings, all by bike!

Ryan explains how “bike moves” work:

“I went to my first one out of curiosity, and was amazed at all the different types of cargo-bikes and trailers- many of them homemade. I was also amazed at how incredibly quick and efficient it was. Most bike moves- and we’re talking about moving entire households- take less than two hours. Partially because of sheer numbers- when you’ve got 25 or more people, things happen fast- and partially because of the skill-level involved. Many of us in Portland have been doing bike moves for years- I’ve been doing them for four or five years now, and I’m a relative rookie- and have had a lot of practice, so we know how to move large things efficiently.

Ryan explains the types of household items they have moved by bike over the years:

“I’ve seen all kinds of things moved by bike- a clawfoot tub; a piano; a refrigerator; a 28 foot long, 680 pound beam- the sky’s the limit.”

Participants of these bike moves compete for the largest loads:

“Bike moves are funny too in that everyone wants the biggest load, the biggest object. Many of us seem to really enjoy the challenge of testing our skills and our gear. And as for me, I really enjoy the challenge of defying the status quo.”

People sometimes explain to Ryan that they need a car to move furniture, do groceries etc. They say it would be “impossible” to do those things by bike.  To which Ryan responds, “umm, actually…”.

Here is a 3-minute video showing how these bike moves work. The volume level is a bit wonky, but it’s an otherwise nice video, and you will see Ryan being interviewed:

Portland Bike Move from Ande taylor on Vimeo.

Here are a couple more photos from Ryan’s wonderful Flickr gallery:

Transporting cargo by bike in Portland, Oregon – Photo by Ryan Good 

Transporting cargo by bike in Portland, Oregon – Photo by Ryan Good

Ryan seemingly attempts to dispel our assertion in yesterday’s post that “Urban Bicycling Is For Lazy People”. Or, perhaps one could argue that people who participate in these bike moves are too lazy to rent a truck and spend their entire day moving, so they get it done in 2 hours and then sit around and drink beer and socialize for the rest of the day. As a lazy person, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Make sure to check out Ryan’s flickr gallery – “Things I Carried on my Bike”.

I think I have some ideas for next time I move to a new home.

James D. Schwartz is the Editor of The Urban Country and is based in Toronto, Canada. You can contact James at james.schwartz@theurbancountry.com or follow him on Twitter.

More Articles Like This:

• Home Depot Trip By Bicycle (May 2013)
• Urban Bicycling Is For Lazy People (June 2013) 
• Bicycles for Transporting… [fill in the blank] (May 2010)
• Utility Cycling in China (May 2010)
• Bicycles Are For People Who Can’t Be Late (March 2013)
• My Ideal World… (Sept 2012)
• The World Has Changed. So Can You. (April 2011)

Lazy people riding bicycles in Copenhagen – Photo courtesy of Mikael Colville-Andersen / Copenhagen Cycle Chic 

Here in Canada, as in the United States, people tend to generally view bicycles primarily for recreation or sport. Thus, when someone asks me how I arrived somewhere and I tell them I rode my bicycle, they naturally assume that I am athletic, brave, unusual, always late, and I probably need to take a shower.

In reality however, I arrive on time, I’m not sweaty, and I rode my bike not for a workout, but rather au contraire, I rode my bicycle because I am lazy.

I step outside my front door and hop on my bike because I’m too lazy to go downstairs in the parking garage to get the car. I pull my bike up to the front door at my destination because I’m too lazy to drive around looking for a parking spot then having to walk from the car to the building.

I ride my bike instead of taking public transit because I’m too lazy to go to the store to buy bus tickets, and I am far too lazy to dig for loose change under my couch. I am also too lazy to transfer from the bus to the subway to the streetcar, preferring to ride directly to my destination without transfers.

Instead of walking 15 minutes to my destination, I ride my bicycle there in 5. Yes, I ride there because I am too lazy to walk.

I ride my bicycle past dozens of cars at rush hour because I’m too lazy to be stressed out sitting in traffic and too lazy to explain why I’m late all the time.

I sold the last car I owned in 2010 and bought a couple solid bicycles because I was too lazy to maintain the car*. I was too lazy to renew my license plates each year, too lazy to fill up the gas tank, too lazy to shop around for insurance rates, and too lazy to take it to the car wash.

Now I just hop on my bike and go. Lazy transport. No insurance or major repairs required. No licensing, fuel, parking fees or traffic jams.

Urban bicycling is just pure, lazy, simple transport. Great for the body and wonderful for the soul.

James D. Schwartz is the Editor of The Urban Country and is based in Toronto, Canada. You can contact James at james.schwartz@theurbancountry.com or follow him on Twitter.

*Note: In 2012 my wife decided to buy a car, so we do have a car sitting in the parking garage right now that doesn’t get used a whole lot.

More Articles Like This:

• Bicycles Are For People Who Can’t Be Late (Mar 2013)
• The World Has Changed. So Can You. (April 2011)
• Motorists Prime Beneficiaries of Socialism (Aug 2011)
• Americans Work 2 Hours Each Day To Pay For Their Cars (May 2011)
• The Unconventional Urban Citizen Bicyclist (April 2012)
• Barriers to Cycling: Debunking the Myths (Nov 2009)

Cargo bike sofa – Photo by Mikael Colville-Andersen for Airbnb listing 

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to travel to your favourite cities around the world and to stay in a reasonably-priced flat in the heart of the city and have bicycles readily available to tour around town?

Add to that, a friendly and passionate host who can tell places you should visit and places you should avoid, and one who makes the time to ensure your visit is as memorable as possible?

This is precisely what our friend Mikael Colville-Andersen – from Copenhagenize Design Co. – is doing in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Mikael listed his flat on airbnb.com and takes guests into his home while providing them bicycles to get around the city, sometimes even giving them tours of the city (by bike of course).

This gives Mikael the opportunity to meet fascinating people from all over the world – and allows him to showcase his bicycle-friendly city – giving hope to those of us who live amidst the car culture that has tainted North America.

Mikael explains in an email to The Urban Country his rationale for opening his home to strangers:

“Airbnb has been a great experience. I had an extra room and thought about renting it out to a student but didn’t want a “roommate”. Airbnb has provided me with a far more rewarding experience. I grew up in a home without locks on the doors and where neighbours and family wandered in and out as they pleased. We were also a host family for refugees from Czechoslovakia, Uganda and Vietnam. So airbnb has given me the chance to recreate, in a way, this culture of welcoming strangers into my home. Great for me, great for my kids and great for the guests.

This is certainly something I would love to do if I had an extra room in my loft. Although Toronto has a long way to go to be anything like Copenhagen, it is still a great city to see by bicycle (as most cities are).

Here are a few photos from “Casa Copenhagenize”:

Living room – Photo by Mikael Colville-Andersen for Airbnb listing 

Bedroom – Photo by Mikael Colville-Andersen for Airbnb listing 

Bicycle Christmas tree – Photo by Mikael Colville-Andersen for Airbnb listing 

James D. Schwartz is the Editor of The Urban Country and is based in Toronto, Canada. You can contact James at james.schwartz@theurbancountry.com or follow him on Twitter.

More Articles Like This:

• A Cycling Revolution With Mikael Colville-Andersen (Dec 2009)
• Top 20 Bicycle Friendly Cities in the World (Apr 2013)
• You Are Wasting Your Life Away Sitting In Traffic (Apr 2013)
• Bicycles Are For People Who Can’t Be Late (March 2013)
• My Ideal World… (Sept 2012)
• The World Has Changed. So Can You. (April 2011)

Google Bicycle – Photo courtesy of Leon Hoffman 

One useful and amusing way to identify current trends and to gauge public perception on a topic is to use Google Search Auto-Complete. To do this, simply start typing in a phrase on a topic of your choosing, and watch Google complete the sentence using data from common search phrases.

For example:

Okay, so sometimes the results aren’t so flattering. But these are real phrases that people are commonly searching for, so it does provide some sort of indication about what is on peoples’ minds.

I decided to do some searches with keywords pertaining to bicycling to gauge how the general public views bicycling.

The first term I tried was “bicycles are”:

This tells me that there is a perception that bicycles are primarily for the summer season. We have shown here on The Urban Country that bicycles aren’t limited to any one season.

Update: The “Bicycles are for the summer” phrase probably refers to a Spanish play written in 1984. Thanks Kent for pointing this out.

It is refreshing to see “bicycles are better than cars” as one of the top searches. Although cars can serve a useful purpose and have their place in our society, we happen to agree that bicycles are better than cars for most trips most of the time.

Let’s ask Google users what bicycles can do for us:

Indeed, bicycles can change our cities and thus change the world. Over a hundred years ago bicycles did indeed change the world and significantly changed how people get around. There is no reason not to believe that bicycles can again change the world – we are already seeing many cities changing to better accommodate the most reliable, fast, fun and proven mode of transportation. We learned some lessons over the past few decades, and cars simply aren’t going to cut it anymore.

(I won’t start a debate about whether bicycles can save the planet – though they certainly can help reduce our footprint.)

Another common search phrase asks whether bicycles can ride on the sidewalk. Indeed there are many places where sidewalks are shared between bicyclists and pedestrians, but we believe that proper bicycle infrastructure will eliminate the need and desire for bicyclists to ride on the sidewalk.

Speaking of bicycle infrastructure, what do Google users think of bike lanes?

It seems to be a unanimously held view that bike lanes are bad. It would be hard to fault English-speaking users for perceiving bike lanes as bad and dangerous. A large proportion of the bike lanes that have been painted in English-speaking countries are inadequate and fail the comfort test. They are often too narrow, too close to fast-moving traffic or too close to parked cars.

Instead of inadequate, narrow, painted bike lanes, we prefer wide cycle tracks, with curb/fence/painted buffer or grade-level separation from motor vehicle lanes, and a buffer space between parked cars.

Wide fence-separated cycle track in Beijing, China (circa 1986) – Photo courtesy of Beijing Shots

Next, we asked what Google users think of bicyclists themselves:

Not very flattering. Sadly, our bike infrastructure is terribly lacking here, so bicyclists have a bad reputation for not following the rules. Unfortunately, these rules were designed for motor vehicles and following the letter of the law can sometimes be more dangerous than breaking the law.

The argument that bicyclists are polluting when they ride is a myth that some in the media have tried to perpetuate to rationalize our car culture. One writer even claimed that drivers are doing the environment a favour because the air is cleaner when released from a modern exhaust system than the air that was taken in. This nonsense holds no water and has been duly debunked many times over.

Wouldn’t it be nice to see the following when doing a search for bicyclists? (photo edited of course)

But don’t feel too badly fellow bicyclists. Drivers aren’t off the hook on this one either:

James D. Schwartz is the Editor of The Urban Country and is based in Toronto, Canada. You can contact James at james.schwartz@theurbancountry.com or follow him on Twitter.

More Articles Like This:

• When School’s Out In Amsterdam (March 2012)
• You Are Wasting Your Life Away Sitting In Traffic (Apr 2013)
• Bicycles Are For People Who Can’t Be Late (March 2013)
• My Ideal World… (Sept 2012)
• The World Has Changed. So Can You. (April 2011)

Cargo bike with hockey equipment – Photo by James Schwartz / The Urban Country

A couple Wednesdays ago I needed to make a run to Home Depot to pick up some plywood and hardware for some small renovations I am doing in my loft. The same evening I was planning to meet my brother at his house and carpool with him to play ice hockey with his work mates.

It just so happened that my brother lives near Home Depot, so I could do my Home Depot run and play hockey the same night.

So I loaded up my Babboe cargo bike with my hockey gear and pedaled 9 kilometres to the Home Depot on the east side of the city.

Cargo bike with hockey equipment – Photo by James Schwartz / The Urban Country

I wasn’t entirely sure at first whether the cargo bike would adequately carry the amount of lumber I was going to purchase, so I kept open the possibility that I may need to return the next day with a motor vehicle.

As it turned out, my cargo bike proved sufficiently capable of handling a heavy load of plywood (oak no less) in addition to all of my ice hockey gear. Hell, I probably could have thrown a 24-pack or two of beer on top of everything without issue.

I hadn’t brought any rope with me, so I used my cable bike lock to hold the wood together to avoid shifting as we hit bumps along the way. The ride was surprisingly smooth, and the weight of the load making bumps in the road hardly noticeable.

Cargo bike with hockey equipment and building supplies from Home Depot – Photo by James Schwartz / The Urban Country 

It was a beautiful spring evening, so my brother accompanied me on my ride home after midnight that night and we took a 13km scenic detour along the waterfront, breathing in the fresh spring air.

Sure, I could have taken a car, but I wouldn’t have been able to slip past busy traffic early in the evening on the way there. Nor would I have gained any exercise, or had the opportunity to clear my mind and enjoy the fresh air while riding along the waterfront path on the way home.

Yet another pragmatic use for the trusty bicycle that goes against what is considered “normal” in our society. I may get strange looks now, but perhaps some day Home Depot will have designated cargo bike parking spots for people who prefer the joy of getting around town by bike over being stressed out behind the wheel, stuck in traffic.

James D. Schwartz is the Editor of The Urban Country and is based in Toronto, Canada. You can contact James at james.schwartz@theurbancountry.com or follow him on Twitter.

More Articles Like This:

• Bicycles for Transporting… [fill in the blank] (May 2010)
• Utility Cycling in China (May 2010)
• Handicap Bike Parking (May 2010)
• You Are Wasting Your Life Away Sitting In Traffic (Apr 2013)
• Bicycles Are For People Who Can’t Be Late (March 2013)
• My Ideal World… (Sept 2012)
• The World Has Changed. So Can You. (April 2011)

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 against the man who killed his son.

On August 31st, 2009, Darcy Allan Sheppard was killed on his bicycle after an altercation with former Ontario Attorney General Michael Bryant. Special prosecutor Richard Peck was brought in from Vancouver to avoid the appearance of a conflict-of-interest, since Mr. Bryant had appointed many of the judges and prosecutors in Ontario.

Prosecutor Peck made the decision to drop the charges on Mr. Bryant, heavily relying on Mr. Bryant’s statement which seemed to strongly contradict evidence that was available at the time.

From an article in the Toronto Star published on May 25, 2010:

“Peck told court Tuesday eyewitness accounts coupled with forensic examinations suggest Sheppard was attempting to enter the vehicle and attack Bryant during the encounter.”

The police had tested the victim’s blood alcohol level but had failed to bother testing Mr. Bryant to see if he had been drinking (Mr. Bryant has since confessed to being an alcoholic in a book that he published after the incident).

Mr. Peck had also identified prior altercations that had occurred with Sheppard and other motorists over the previous month, claiming his aggression towards motorists was escalating.

At the time, Sheppard’s father Allan had accepted the dropped charges. But over the years Allan Sheppard Sr. worked through a Freedom of Information Access request to uncover the documentation that Peck would have had access to in order to make his decision.

Those documents were released today, and in a media release, Sheppard Sr. has indicated that the documentation does not support Prosecutor Peck’s explanation for dropping the charges. Sheppard Sr. says that the documents he obtained place blame on both Mr. Bryant and his son:

The father of cyclist Darcy Allan Sheppard (known to friends as “Al”) says he has obtained documents that contradict Special Prosecutor Richard Peck’s explanation of circumstances surrounding Sheppard (Jr.)’s death and Peck’s decision to drop criminal charges against Michael Bryant three years ago.

Mr. Bryant had been charged with criminal negligence causing death and dangerous operation of a vehicle causing death after an August 31, 2009 incident involving Sheppard (Jr.).

“I reluctantly accepted that decision,” Sheppard (Sr.) says. “Given the circumstances and my son’s background, getting a conviction would have been difficult. But I emphatically reject Mr. Peck’s explanation of his decision. Information obtained through freedom of information access does not—and cannot—support the exoneration implicitly given to Mr. Bryant by Mr. Peck. The documents say my son and Mr. Bryant were both responsible for what happened.”

Read the press release here or view the documentation here:

Event Documents

Police Memo Book Notes

Post Mortem Documents

Decision Documents

More details will be added as The Urban Country combs through the documentation. Stay tuned.

James D. Schwartz is the Editor of The Urban Country and is based in Toronto, Canada. You can contact James at james.schwartz@theurbancountry.com or follow him on Twitter.

More Articles Like This:

• Bicycles And Sidewalks Can Get Along (Sept 2009)
• You Are Wasting Your Life Away Sitting In Traffic (Apr 2013)
• Bicycles Are For People Who Can’t Be Late (March 2013)
• “Giving Up Driving My Smartest Move Yet” (April 2013)
• My Ideal World… (Sept 2012)
• The World Has Changed. So Can You. (April 2011)
• Paying Employees To Bike To Work (Jan 2013)