At its meeting today, September 20, 2006, the Toronto Transit Commission approved the continuation of the Bike Rack on Buses program by deciding that all future buses ordered by the TTC will have bike racks. This was reported today in a Media advisory from the TTC which is quoted below.

Media Advisory: TTC Future Bus Purchases to Include Bike Racks

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(CCNMatthews - Sept. 20, 2006) - At its meeting today, the Toronto Transit Commission approved the addition of bike racks to all its future bus orders. The current TTC bus fleet includes about 1,500 buses.

"This is a great step forward for bike riders in Toronto - I look forward to joining the thousands of bike and transit riders who will be able to bike and bus from Scarborough to Etobicoke in the future," said TTC Vice Chair Adam Giambrone. "I've worked with the Toronto Cycling Committee to introduce bike racks to the whole TTC bus fleet and, with the support of the rest of the Commission today, we have done it. The future looks bright."

Currently, bike racks are available on the following six bus routes: 7 Bathurst, 29 Dufferin; 47 Lansdowne; 98 Willowdale-Senlac, 161 Rogers and 310 Bathurst. A one-year pilot project was launched on these routes in June 2005 and was extended through the summer of 2006.

Vice Chair Giambrone commented on some of the random survey findings:

"When asked about their support for the bike rack pilot project, of those who had used the racks - 81 per cent were strongly in favour of the bike rack project and, of those who had never used the racks, 47 per cent were strongly in favour and 28 per cent were somewhat in favour.

"For a pilot project that had just been in service for a couple of months at the time of the survey, these findings indicate strong support, support that will build as the whole bus fleet becomes bike friendly."

As bus routes become equipped with bike rack buses, they will be announced to the public.

"Ultimately, the entire bus route network will be equipped with buses with bike racks," said the Vice Chair.

This is victory for those who want to see the bike plan implemenetd. It is a first step in integrating cycling and transit as called for in the Toronto Bike Plan. The Cycling & Transit chapter of the Bike Plan also recommends that TTC should improve bicycle parking at transit Stations. The bike lockers that are mentioned in the media release are one type of bike parking that should be implemented. The Bike Plan also mentions bike parking shelters and Bikestations at transit stations. These are described in the Bicycle Parking chapter of the Bike Plan which includes the following recommendations

9-2: Research Enhanced Bicycle Parking Facilities
That the City research and develop demonstration projects for enhanced bicycle parking facilities, including bicycle lockers and bicycle parking shelters.

9-3: Determine Viability of Operating a Bikestation
That the City, in co-operation with the Toronto Parking Authority, the TTC and other potential partners, undertake a feasibility study to determine the viability of operating a Bikestation to serve Toronto cyclists.

It is good to see that the TTC commissioners see the value in combining cycling & transit to give people more convenient alternatives to the automobile. Hopefully they continue to push forward and in the next term of Council we see the other recommendations implemented with initiatives like a bikestation at the redesigned Union Station and enhanced bike parking shelters at transit stations.