BIKEPOC partners with local community bike groups like Charlie’s FreeWheels and Bike Chain to build and repair donated bikes. They completed 20 bike matches last year, getting bikes in the hands of women, children and people of colour.

We are making temporary changes to our streets to help residents physically distance and mitigate the risk of COVID-19 to our communities by:

• Room to Move. Repurposing street space for more walking, rolling, and cycling along Beach Ave.
  
• Pop-up Plazas. Creating pop-up plazas so people can gather outside
• Temporary Patios. Approving temporary patios so people can dine out and businesses can continue to serve customers
• Sidewalk Widening. Making more room for walking and queuing along busy streets
• Room to Queue. Making more room to line up and board buses at some key bus stops
• Slow Streets. Calming traffic to make ‘slow streets’ more comfortable for people walking, rolling, and cycling

These measures also support our ongoing effort to create safer streets, limit the effects of climate change, and increase social connection between residents. We are monitoring the impacts of these initiatives and getting feedback from the public to understand what could become longer term.

The COVID-19 Street Rebalancing Guide is for decision-makers and practitioners alike. Drawing on case studies from around the world, it offers strategies and practical guidance on rebalancing streets through three phases of COVID-19 response—from immediate to longer-term—including pedestrian and bike lanes, curbside queuing areas, and temporary patios and parklets. This is a unique opportunity to spark projects with transformative value. Temporary measures can be deployed quickly to address long-standing gaps—demonstrating value, building support for permanent installations, and providing a foundation for more walkable, livable cities across Canada.

All of this is in addition to the 50 km of temporary “slow streets” that will be created by July that benefit pedestrians and cyclists. A number of cities around the world have also made ambitious road reallocation changes that either create “slow streets” or establish new bike lanes.

The first phase of the Halifax Mobility Response plan began with the widening of sidewalks in high traffic areas, traffic signal modification and the implementation of temporary loading spaces for businesses in downtown Halifax and Dartmouth. Slow Street Implementation: Approximately 20 streets will be designated as ‘slow streets’. They will be open to local traffic only, to reduce vehicle volumes and to create a space for residents to walk, roll and cycle while adhering to physical distancing guidelines. Shape Your City Halifax project page has been created to provide residents with an opportunity to share suggestions

Categories being tracked include: are bicycle shops an essential service; are beg buttons disabled; partial closures; closed streets; distance and transit-oriented development.

These sections of road are a part of the planned East-West Cycling Corridor connection as proposed in the Active Transportation Master Plan. The City is working to implement permanent protected bike lanes on these streets in line with the Brampton 2040 Vision and the Streets for People Term of Council Priority.

To enable physical distancing for residents who live in the dense surrounding areas, the City is closing the Queen Elizabeth Driveway to motor vehicle traffic, daily from 8am-8pm, from April 18 to 26, 2020.

After weeks of lobbying, and examples set in Montreal and other cities, officials are moving to “pedestrianize” some of Ottawa’s streets for people out on essential trips. That should include bikes and all sorts of active transportation.

Studying pinch points, the City is studying the situation and acting to “ensure people have safe spaces to walk and cycle – away from motor vehicles while also allowing social distancing to occur,”

The City of Ottawa tells CTV News Ottawa that traffic, pedestrian and cycling signals have been adjusted to reflect the decrease in vehicular traffic on the roads.

Two busy roadways in Edmonton’s river valley will open to pedestrians and cyclists Thursday to allow them to meet COVID-19 physical distancing requirements. The city will be also deactivating beg buttons at 56 intersections in the city’s core so pedestrians don’t have to press a frequently-touched button to cross the street.

These interventions will free up space inside Beacon Hill Park and in constricted areas along Dallas Road so local residents can stay active, while also maintaining physical distance. City staff will be out in public spaces to engage with residents about playground and recreation facility closures and to encourage physical distancing.

City officials say they want to make it easier for pedestrians to follow physical distancing guidelines of at least two metres from others. The city hopes closing some streets and bridges to cars will provide more space for people walking and biking at these locations. Parks, green spaces, trails and pathways remain open for walk-through only. The city says it will be actively monitoring outdoor spaces

The City of Winnipeg is opening up its annual active transportation routes for pedestrians and cyclists, though the routes will be monitored to ensure Winnipeggers are practising physical distancing to fight the spread of COVID-19. Routes will limit vehicle traffic to one block from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. every day until May 3

London-based Squeaky Wheel Bike Co-op is a volunteer-supported, self-serve bike repair shop and Big Bike Giveaway is organized by a husband and wife team in London Ontario.

Four streets have limited motor vehicle traffic to just one block throughout the designated area and are normally in place only on Sundays from June to September.

Calgary’s pathways and walks are filling up as people are desperate to get exercise

The group put out a series of designs showing how certain Calgary corridors could be temporarily redesigned to accommodate more foot traffic at a time when physical distancing is critical to stop the spread of COVID-19.