Dedicated staffing resources required to provide mobility options
By Jamie Stuckless, Executive Director, Share the Road Cycling Coalition
At City Council’s budget deliberations on January 30th, Thunder Bay came very close to losing its Mobility Coordinator. The motion to eliminate this position was defeated 7–6 and the full budget is set to be ratified by Council on February 11th.
The Mobility Coordinator is responsible for making it safer and easier to walk and bike in Thunder Bay. Eliminating the Mobility Coordinator position would limit the transportation options available to residents and visitors. When we heard about this proposal going to council, the Share the Road team coordinated with local stakeholders in Thunder Bay to support ongoing advocacy and to reach out to Councillors and the Mayor and voice our support for the Mobility Coordinator role.
At present, it looks like our voices have been heard.
On February 11th, we encourage Council to maintain this position and to build on the progress that has been made for walking and cycling to date.
Investing in walking and cycling is a key component of building an accessible community. Approximately 30% of people in every community do not have access to a car because of age, ability or cost. Making walking and cycling a real transportation option helps to ensure that Thunder Bay residents can get around their neighbourhoods and to work or school without needing to drive for every trip. Dedicated staffing resources are required to meet the transportation needs of all residents.
We also know that many residents would prefer to walk or ride a bicycle if there were more safe spaces to do so. Even though the Census currently shows that only 1.3% of Thunder Bay residents commute to work by bike, a 2018 poll of Ontario residents indicates that 32% would prefer to cycle to work. That number increases slightly in Northern Ontario to 35% of residents. The Mobility Coordinator position is essential to helping Thunder Bay meet this demand. And progress has been made since the role was established.
In 2015, I travelled to Thunder Bay to present the community with a Bronze Bicycle Friendly Community Award. Thunder Bay was the first community in Northern Ontario to be recognized as Bicycle Friendly, and one of only 42 communities in Ontario to receive the award. The award recognized local efforts that had been led by the Mobility Coordinator, including the Arundel Active Living Corridor and events like Open Streets and Discovery Rides.
More recently, the work of the Mobility Coordinator has helped get bike education into school classrooms, seen new Pedestrian Crossovers installed, worked with businesses to install bike racks, developed a Wayfinding Plan for the City and established new multi-use trails along major corridors like Balmoral Avenue. The City needs a champion and expert to make sure that initiatives like this continue to happen.
Thunder Bay’s leadership has also paved the way for other communities in Northern Ontario like Sudbury and Temiskaming Shores to make investments in walking and cycling and be recognized as Bicycle Friendly.
We know that municipalities across Ontario face tough choices each year at budget time. As highlighted in our #BikesCanDoThat campaign, investing in cycling is about providing mobility options for residents, and about building safer, more sustainable and affordable communities. We also know that investing in cycling provides a return on investment – increasing spending in the local economy, reducing road maintenance costs and attracting new talent and investment in the community.
The Share the Road team is available to support your local advocacy work at budget time, and year-round. Reach out to us when you want support. We often write letters and op-ed’s (or provide templates), make presentations to Council and speak with media about the benefits of cycling. You can also take advantage of our advocacy resources like the #BikesCanDoThat campaign and our Advocacy Toolkit.
Together, we will achieve our vision for a more bicycle-friendly Ontario.
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