Spring 2016 Update

Message from the President

Dear HUB Committee Chairs & Members,

On behalf of the HUB Board and Regional Advisory Committee (RAC), thanks for all the work you do to be the voice for more cycling - and safer, more convenient cycling - across Metro Vancouver.

Your time is precious, and we recognize that it can be challenging to keep communicating while we all keep our heads down and focused on work in our areas. We hope that by issuing periodic updates like this, you'll stay apprised of program-related activities undertaken by staff at "HQ", as well as some of the topics we're working on regionally, via RAC.

Thanks in part to your work at the local level, RAC is working to support action in Tri-Cities to connect the Central Valley Greenway to the Port Mann Bridge, consultation related to the Massey Tunnel Replacement Project, and topics that often arise related to coordinating effectively with the Province of BC on cycling issues on their many road and interchange projects. Plus, the Climate Action Plan - there's a lot going on!

We're also here to support your committees with any special requests related to your work, especially collaboration on UnGaptheMap - our long-term campaign to connect the regional cycling network. More on that below - thanks again for your hard work, and please contact me if you have any feedback.

Alexander Clarkson
President, HUB Cycling Board of Directors • Co-Chair, Regional Advisory Committee (RAC)
president@bikehub.ca

 

HUB Programs

Spring is here, and HUB staff continue to negotiate with some Metro Vancouver municipalities to confirm our cycling education and promotion activities for 2016.  HUB is still awaiting confirmation of our 2016 deliverables from New Westminster and the City of North Vancouver, and immigrant cycling courses remain an interest of several municipalities and granting organizations. From what we already know, it will be another busy year coming with maintained or expanded contracts with many municipalities.  

Through our City of Vancouver, contract HUB is continuing instructing 8 elementary schools each year and partnering with SFU academics to undertake longitudinal research into our course outcomes. The City of Maple Ridge has committed to contracting HUB to provide courses to students in all its elementary schools. City of Coquitlam, in partnership with TravelSmart, is bringing HUB in to continue cycling instruction for its middle school students,  and for the second year in a row, Coquitlam is contracting HUB to deliver summer cycling instruction to children through parks programming. Coquitlam also joins Surrey in booking HUB for public bike maintenance workshops through libraries.  

We have secured 2016 Gaming BC funding for Bike to School Week as well as our first ever courses in Delta and District of North Vancouver schools.  Meanwhile, the City of North Vancouver administered an open tendering process for school cycling instruction, and HUB was not the successful vendor.  

2015 Program Reports

Included with this report are HUB’s 2015 final reports to TravelSmart, which provide overviews of our program delivery across the region.  For detailed information about our municipally and grant-funded programming for 2016, read on.  

2016/17 TravelSmart Funding

TransLink’s TravelSmart active transportation promotion program is confirming a 2016 contract with HUB to support core activities and subsidize our services to Metro Vancouver municipalities, but given broader changes within TransLink following the transit referendum the contract negotiation process is taking longer than usual.  HUB expects to have maintained 2016 funding confirmed by early April, and is working with TravelSmart to find a more effective and equitable approach for allocating municipal subsidies for HUB programming.

Municipal Updates

If Local Committee members are interested to learn more about contracted HUB services in your municipality, or to help support program delivery, please contact Tim Welsh at tim@bikehub.ca.  If your committee members are meeting with local city engineering/transportation staff, please contact Tim in advance to ensure office staff and local volunteers are working towards the common cause.

Burnaby

Burnaby City is maintaining the number and types of programming it is contracting from HUB for 2016.  We will deliver a Learn2Ride course for grades 4 and 5 students at one elementary school, and an Immigrant Learn2Ride course in partnership with Burnaby Neighbourhood House and other local immigrant service providers.  Burnaby is again hosting one spring and one fall Bike to Work Week station, and has requested additional HUB reporting on Burnaby BTWW rider characteristics and preferences.

Delta

To date, Corporation of Delta has not contracted any HUB services.  HUB Local Committee members are engaging with Corporation of Delta and Delta School District staff to encourage increased focus on transportation cycling.  HUB in collaboration with Delta Local Committee members applied for BC Gaming funding to deliver one course in a Delta elementary school.  The Gaming application was successful, and HUB is already confirming a spring course at Holly Elementary to which we will invite municipal staff so they may better understand our approach and outcomes.

Langley

HUB received a City of Langley Community Grant in 2014 to deliver a school-based course, but our 2015 grant application was unsuccessful and we didn’t apply for a 2016 grant.  HUB was hopeful that the City of Langley would contract school cycling education in 2016, after HUB demonstrated our services to City staff during a course we delivered in the Township of Langley.  But the City of Langley didn’t allocate any funding for 2016 for cycling promotion.  HUB Local Committee members continue to engage with City of Langley staff to encourage future cycling promotion and education.  

HUB received Township of Langley grant funding in 2015 to deliver a Learn2Ride course at a Township elementary school.  Township staff viewed the course, as well as one we delivered in Surrey earlier last year.  HUB staff also met with Township staff at the municipal hall to provide more background about HUB and our cycling education and promotion.  The Township is currently developing a cycling plan and, while no municipal funds have been allocated for this spring we are encouraged by staff to check back about potential fall programming.

Maple Ridge - Pitt Meadows

The City of Maple Ridge is a new success story for cycling education.  The City funded HUB to deliver one Ride the Road course to grade 6 and 7 students at Yennadon Elementary in 2015, and staff monitored our delivery and feedback from school staff, students and parents.  Based on the quality and effectiveness of our 2015 Yennadon course, and on a City councilor viewing a course HUB delivered in the Township of Langley earlier last year, Maple Ridge has requested that HUB provide Ride the Road courses to all 18 Maple Ridge elementary schools over the next two academic years (starting fall 2016).  

HUB invited Pitt Meadows municipal staff to observe delivery of our Ride the Road course at Maple Ridge’s Yennadon Elementary in October 2015.  Pitt Meadows makes decisions about cycling and other active transportation through its municipal Active Transportation Council, and HUB Local Committee members remain engaged with Pitt Meadows staff through that body.  At this point they are considering cycling education in one Pitt Meadows school for 2016.

New Westminster

The City of New Westminster has yet to confirm HUB’s 2016 contract, but we expect to be delivering Ride the Road courses in the new Fraser River Middle School.  City staff requested that HUB propose some new activities including summer family cycling courses and outreach to school parent advisory councils.  HUB applied to the New Westminster Community Grant in partnership with the Immigrant Services Society of BC to provide cycling instruction during the summer to 24 government assisted refugees living in the Royal City, and the grant was awarded as requested.  

North Shore

HUB has delivered cycling education through schools for the City of North Vancouver since 2010. The City decided to put its cycling education services up for open tendering for 2016, and HUB presented a proposal which stressed our quality of organization, curricula, instruction, equipment, and evaluation.  The City awarded the schools cycling instruction contract to another provider with cost being the main deciding factor.  City staff requested a proposal from HUB for our other services for 2016, and we are awaiting confirmation about which Bike to Work Week, StreetWise and / or Bike Friendly Business activities the City may contract.  

HUB’s relationship with the District of North Vancouver is very similar to that of Delta.  The District has never contracted any HUB services, although HUB Local Committee members are very engaged with District staff and political representatives.  As with Delta, HUB worked with District of North Vancouver Local Committee members to apply to BC Gaming for funds for a course at Canyon Heights Elementary.  The Gaming application was successful, and HUB will invite District staff to observe during our course delivery as a way to encourage future funding allocations to cycling promotion.    

This District of West Vancouver is again contracting HUB in 2016 to organize one spring and one fall Bike to Work Week Celebration Station.  While District staff continue to work directly with public schools to promote active transportation, there is no funding allocation by the District to contract external cycling education providers.

Richmond

Richmond is maintaining a relatively high amount of HUB services again for 2016.  We will be organizing one spring and one fall Bike to Work Week station (with YVR likely sponsoring an additional spring station), as well as delivering 3 Ride the Road courses and 1 or 2 Learn2Ride courses in Richmond elementary schools.  In addition the City is funding HUB to deliver one Immigrant Learn2Ride course in the summer, after our 2015 Immigrant Learn2Ride courses proved very popular with newcomers.  

Surrey - White Rock

Surrey has contracted HUB for 2016 to deliver two public bike maintenance courses through libraries, 2 spring and 1 fall Bike to Work Week Celebration Stations plus four additional 50% subsidized Celebration Stations for HUB to offer to matching funders.  In addition, The City of Surrey is contracting HUB to organize a summer public ride to profile cycling infrastructure improvements.  Surrey continues to fund cycling instruction for children in its elementary schools, though through another service provider selected through open tendering last year.

Tri-Cities

The City of Coquitlam remains one of HUB’s strongest municipal customers.  Through a partnership with TravelSmart, Coquitlam brought HUB in to instruct grade 6 and 7 students in four middle schools in 2015.  The Coquitlam-TravelSmart partnership continues for 2016, with HUB now booking courses in Coquitlam’s other 4 middle schools.  The funding supports HUB to instruct 8 classes in each school, although most Coquitlam middle schools have more than 8 grade 6 and 7 classes.  HUB is looking for ways to increase our capacities so we can instruct more, if not all, classes in each school.  Coquitlam is asking HUB to come back for a second year of cycling courses for younger children through summer parks programming, as well as a public bike maintenance course through a library and a City staff Workplace Cycling Workshop.  HUB has submitted an application to the Coquitlam Community Foundation to deliver cycling courses for government assisted refugees who are settling in that municipality.

Port Coquitlam is another Metro Vancouver municipality which has never contracted any HUB services, and has for 2016 again not allocated any funding for active transportation promotion.  HUB has submitted an application to the Port Coquitlam Community Foundation to deliver a Ride the Road course at Minnekhada Middle School, with the goal of inviting municipal staff to observe our delivery in hopes cycling education will become a priority for PoCo in future years.

The City of Port Moody has contracted Bike to Work Week stations for the last 2 years, but has yet to confirm interest in any other HUB programming.  For 2016 HUB provided a proposal overviewing all of our service options.  City staff have confirmed another spring Bike to Work Week station, and will be making decisions about any other 2016 HUB services in May.

Vancouver / UBC

The City of Vancouver’s main contracted activity for HUB in 2016 is continued Bike to School instruction from the competitive tendering process HUB won in 2015.  We have already confirmed 8 more Vancouver elementary schools to instruct this spring, and we are working with our SFU academic partners to continue with in-depth outcomes evaluation for the City of Vancouver – 4 additional schools have been selected as “control” schools for observational transportation mode counts to allow comparative evaluation.  The City of Vancouver will host the most Bike to Work Week stations of any municipality again in 2016, with 6 spring and 3 fall stations booked.  

UBC has contracted one spring and one fall Bike to Work Week Celebration Station for 2016, and has instructed HUB to check back in coming months about potential Bike to School and StreetWise courses for campus public school students and residents.

Bike to Work Week

Bike to Work Week has seen steady growth each year, and we understand committee members play a large role in this success.  

This year municipalities are requesting the same or increased station numbers for 2016 and our goal is to see this continued growth in stations outside Vancouver.  To do this, we encourage Committees to set up independent community stations.  Community Stations are required to offer free snacks, drinks and bike mechanic services.  

Emma Cunnington is our new Bike to Work Week Program Manager, and will support our committees to help make this possible.  If assistance is needed in permitting a station location, we require this information ASAP - please get in touch with Emma at btwwmanager@bikehub.ca.  

We appreciate all of those who have been involved in Bike to Work Week and we look forward to working with you to make 2016 our best year yet!

New Events - Bike the Night & Bike to Shop

HUB Bike to Shop Day: Saturday, August 13, 2016

HUB’s first-annual ‘Bike to Shop Day’ will encourage people to ride to and shop at their favourite local businesses. The event will include activation sites in Vancouver where people on bikes can stop for free snacks, prizes, giveaways, bike repairs and tips for how to carry shopping items by bike. The event will also feature a "Bike to Shop Challenge" Media event between people in cars, on bikes, and in transit. Participants will be invited to register online and log their shopping trips or other errands to be entered to win prizes. 

Most people's trips to shop are shorter than their commutes to work. The aim of the event is to celebrate cycling for transportation in a fun and unique way, educate people about how to carry their shopping items by bike, connect with local businesses to spread the message that #BikesMeanBusiness, and get more people on bikes. Our hope is that with a successful first year at a small scale, this event can be expanded to other municipalities.

HUB Bike the Night

HUB is currently in talks with the City of Vancouver about the possibility of hosting a fun and family-friendly night ride that would include rolling closures of streets to cars in July. This easy 10-15 kilometre musical ride would involve up to 5000 people on colourful and glowing bikes. Bike the Night would also include celebrations at the start and end of the ride route where participants could enjoy music, free bike repairs, free hot chocolate, free snacks, bike decorating, light giveaways, and a HUB tent with bike maps and other information about cycling in Metro Vancouver. Stay tuned for more information about this exciting possibility! 

Bike Friendly Business Program

Top employers are known to be a catalyst for employee health and wellness, and recognize these factors when recruiting and retaining top talent in a competitive labour market.

Businesses can leverage the popularity of Bike to Work Week - and support the well-being of staff - by certifying with HUB as a Bike Friendly Business. BFB certification is a new incentive for businesses to invest in facilities assessments, engaging and educating employees, building better cycling facilities, and providing other safe and convenient commuter cycling amenities at the workplace. All this results in awards and recognition for businesses, plus a free Workplace Cycling Lunch 'n' Learn for certified businesses.

For more information, contact bfb@bikehub.ca 

Action - #UnGaptheMap

All committees have participated in the first phase of UnGaptheMap - working in small groups (or as full committees) to identify, log and define, and (lastly) to score gaps in your jurisdiction, according to the 18 criteria relating to utility, safety and feasibility.

We understand that the relevance of the scoring, and comprehensiveness each committee's gap list, has been a slow discovery process - it takes time! Going forward, we hope that each committee considers the current gap list as simply the first step in an ongoing process of refining, adding and (ideally) closing off gaps as our local and provincial government continues to implement AAA facilities - paved, lit, direct, and suitable for all ages and abilities transportation cycling - metre by metre, across this region.

Ultimately, the Gap list is your committee's priority list, and shares a common framework with all oither committees, and RAC. For those who have not done so yet, we encourage you to establish a small working group or sub-committee of lead members to maintain the Gap list, so it accounts for all the desired infrastructure imporvements, of all kinds, in your local area.

Any questions about the Gap list - including how to introduce the campaign and collaborate on the Gap spreadsheet with local municipal staff - please contact Colin at colin@bikehub.ca.

HUB Membership - Why It Matters

Individual and Organization Memberships directly support the action work of HUB Cycling and our committees.

HUB members get a voice - when HUB staff and committees meet with local, regional and provincial government to push for improvements to cycling, HUB member voices represent the strong base of support from the public for this work.

How can you help? Spread the word to all supporters of our work - such as new committee members and walk-ups at events - that their membership supports HUB and gives a voice for cycling when we meet with decision-makers.

You can help increase our member base and our effectiveness by promoting membership through the following methods:

  • Ensuring that new meetings attendees are welcomed appropriately are given information on the important and effective work of the committees but also information on membership
  • Informing event participants, volunteers, committee members that they can join/renew HUB for a yearly fee of $15-40/year online at bikehub.ca/join
  • Having membership sign up forms easily available at meetings and events

If you have any questions about HUB membership or require membership-related material for events or meetings, reach out to Cathy Acuna at membership@bikehub.ca.

HUB Committee Liaison

Final word from your Local Committee Liaison - we continue to do our best to keep our committees updated with the latest news from HQ, as well as committee best practice overall. We've had monthly calls, periodic group emails, and occasional group meetings...plus this news update.

As a reminder from a few big emails from December 2015, here are the ways I'm prepared to support your committee:

  • Committee Administration: Meeting scheduling, committee roles and responsibilities, minute-taking, and file storage
  • Communications: Email list management, meeting agenda, letters to gov't (and approval process), ride assessments and reports
  • Marketing: Committee welcome letters, new member recruitment, public messaging/PR, social media, committee budgets

What's working? What do you want more or less of? Let Navdeep know at navdeep@bikehub.ca.