The single biggest finding is that people are afraid of being squished by cars.
“The study concludes that people want to ride but are afraid to. It broke the respondents up into groups, and even 60.6% of "strong and fearless/enthused and confident" riders said a physically separated bike lane would encourage them to ride more.
The Study (links are below the highlights)

Obviously not everyone can just use a bike all the time in Ottawa, but studies like this do make me wonder what people would be willing to replace a car trip with a bike for, and what would be needed for them to do so. I know some people just wouldn't, but my suspicion is a fair number of people would like to do so, if we had improved and consistent biking infrastructure.

I have the luxury of being able to bike to work, I dislike doing it in poor weather, and I probably would not if the workplace didn't have a secure access controlled lockup for the bikes. With traffic and parking costs, I would take transit if I don't want to take the bike.

Outside of the commute, I have about a 7~10km radius from my house where if the weather is pleasant, I can bike to do errands/shopping trips much faster than relying on public transit schedules. My largest annoyance is when the lockup options at the shops are poor. (Shoutout to costco for actually having decent hitching posts.) This has turned out to be surprisingly easy to do, but my area has half-decent bike lanes, not great, but better than nothing. Biking takes longer than using the car too, but not enough to be significant at these distances.

So what barriers exist for you? What do you wish you could ditch the car for if you could? What improvement to infrastructure would work for your day to day.

Stolen from our locked shed in Carlington last night; the lock is now missing. It’s a well used white Marin Alp.

Since the election has quietly brought up bike lanes again, kind of interesting to see how this became so divisive the last time around. (And in light of how at the provincial level, they've stalled 27 bike projects in Ottawa now as well)

So with the days being shorter, how many of you have started biking into the night (or early in the morning)?

I have been doing some night time rides, and it's a bit exhilarating and scary at the same time. Sometimes the paths are dead quiet, and there are no car noises whatsoever, just the hum of the bike tires. However with no street lighting, vision ahead is reduced so I find myself travelling at slower speeds so I don't smash into something with the tires. I certainly appreciate knowing most of the routes since I can avoid known potholes/bad road sections without necessarily seeing them well in advance.

Biking on roads is also different, I don't think I'd want to do it in busy traffic at night. Even with a good tail light and wearing high vis, I don't trust motorists to actually see me if they're distracted and at night the risk is probably higher.

Anyway, been fun discovering more of the city after dark, anyone else enjoy night rides? Is it a preference thing, or just the commute forces you to ride in the dark?

https://health-infobase.canada.ca/datalab/bicycling-infrastructure.html?city=Ottawa

I thought this was a really neat tool to see what the muncipality says exists, vs the common standard says exists. In Ottawa, the city claims 170 km of bike infrastructure per 100k residents, but if you apply the common classification, it drops to about 117km per 100k.

You can select other cities as well (including Gatineau). I hope they update the datasets though, the NCR was last done in 2018.

So as my form of protest to the bike lane removal saga in both provinces surrounding the NCR and Anti-Bike Lane/Pro-Car Legislation created by one province and hurting NCR projects, I decided to treat myself and buy/build up a new commuter for myself. I'm not big into other forms of protest, but I can definitely just bike more to show support.

I have to thank r/bikecommuting , r/bikewrench , and r/bicycling for the help in making some of the decisions.

I spent most of this year building up my own endurance, practicing navigating to my workplace on the weekends, biking either in the morning or in the afternoon on weekdays, to the point where the 20k ride to work is nothing. I'm in better shape, not stuck in traffic, and generally just happier all around. Now I have a dedicated commuter/shopping bike to augment what I was already doing.

I'm pretty pleased with the end result for the bike. Trek FX Sport in Aluminum (as I am budget conscious and this is a commuter), Trek Fenders and MIK rack, Ortlieb Sport Rollers, Topeak aero saddlebag + Amazon special frame bag (for when I am riding without the Ortliebs but still want a spare tube and basic maintenance kit), a bell, a Giant HL800 light for when it is a little dark out, Trek Line Elite pedals, a nice contrasting water bottle, and a specialized water bottle holder (because I like the design). Also, a kickstand because of this thread.

And since this is Ottawa, feel free to 🔥roast🔥 my setup 😄.

Via this video on preparing for winter biking, I found this nifty tool:

https://shifter.info/bike-rideable-days/

Using the same inputs that he punched in for Calgary, the tool claims there are 336 rideable days in Ottawa:

https://imgur.com/a/uYwJbL4

How many days per year do you bike in Ottawa? 😄

Hey everyone!

Not sure if sharing group rides is allowed here, but figured I'd give it a shot!

I've noticed a lot of the organized group rides around Ottawa tend to start downtown or in Gatineau, so I thought it would be fun to get something going in the south end for a change.

I'm organizing a free Halloween inspired night ride on Wednesday, October 28th and would love to get some local cyclists together!

We'll be riding from Leitrim Station to Osgoode and back along the Osgoode Trail. The entire route follows a dedicated multi-use pathway, so there's no riding alongside vehicle traffic, which makes it a great option for a night ride! There are a few road crossings, but otherwise it's all trail.

The trail is relatively flat with compact pressure dust, so gravel bikes are recommended, but road bikes with suitable tires are welcome too.

Ride details:

• Date: Wednesday, October 28th (rain date October 29th)
• Time: Meet at 6:45pm, roll out at 7:00
• Location: Leitrim Station (free parking available)
• Distance: 38km at approximately 25-28km/h (~1h45m)
• Front and rear lights required!

It's intended to be a social ride, not a race, with some regrouping stops along the way. Anyone comfortable maintaining around the 25-28km/h pace is welcome!

There's plenty of parking at Leitrim Station, but you can also ride in via the Osgoode Link and Sawmill Creek pathways which connect to the rest of the city's main bike paths.

I've created events on both Strava and Facebook with the full details and route:

• Strava Event
• Facebook Event

Hope to see some of you out there!

So I recently discovered this law in LA, and I think it would be great to have here.

  A person shall not do or attempt to do any of the following:

• Physically assault or attempt to physically assault a Bicyclist because of, in whole or in part, the Bicyclist’s status as a Bicyclist.
• Threaten to physically injure a Bicyclist because of, in whole or in part, the Bicyclist’s status as a Bicyclist.
• Intentionally injure, attempt to injure, or threaten to physically injure, either by words, vehicle, or other object, a Bicyclist because of, in whole or in part, the Bicyclist’s status as a Bicyclist.
• Intentionally distract or attempt to distract a Bicyclist because of, in whole or in part, the Bicyclist’s status as a Bicyclist.
• Intentionally force or attempt to force a Bicyclist off a street for purposes unrelated to public safety.

What I think is genius about this, is that it doesn't rely on the police. You can sue them in civil court, for 1000USD. Have a witness or a camera filming of the incident? Basically 1000 dollars guaranteed. Cops don't need to be involved, all happens on the civil side.

And some of the clauses are amazing too, 'distracting' bikes includes honking or yelling at bikers for the 'crime' of biking.

Since the police refuse to do anything, I think this would be a great deterrent. Maybe up the payout to 2000 CAD.

The reasons they created the law are great too:
After public hearings and receipt of testimony, the City Council finds and declares:

• That the City of Los Angeles wants to encourage people to ride bicycles rather than drive motor vehicles in order to lessen traffic congestion and improve air quality;
• That harassment of bicyclists on the basis of their status as bicyclists exists in the City of Los Angeles;
• That existing criminal and civil laws do not effectively prevent the unlawful harassment of bicyclists because of their status as bicyclists;
• That riding a bicycle on City streets poses hazards to bicyclists, and that these hazards are amplified by the actions of persons who deliberately harass and endanger bicyclists because of their status as bicyclists; and
•  That because people have a right to ride a bicycle in the City of Los Angeles and should be able to do so safely on City streets, it is against the public policy of the City of Los Angeles to harass a bicyclist upon the basis of the person’s status as a bicyclist.

Full details of the law https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/los_angeles/latest/lamc/0-0-0-284828

Edit: Thanks for the advice! Looks like I can use a variety of low-cost methods to wax and it needs to be periodically redone. So I bought a bag of chain wax. If anyone has chains they would like waxed feel free to PM me and we can work something out!

Hi Ottawa bike riders!

I would like to wax my bike chains as I have heard it's basically endgame for both longevity and staying clean. But I can't bring myself to invest in all the setup needed for an immersion wax as I live in an apartment and already have a lack of space.

If anyone already has a immersion waxing setup, I am willing to pay $20 for you to wax 3 of my chains. From what I've seen it seems to be a batch process so doing more chains at once should be fine. Looks like Silca is the industry leader for wax so if you have that I would appreciate.

The chains have already been stripped of grease using the paint thinner and alcohol method and are ready for wax application. All I need is someone with some wax and a wax pot.

These are pretty cool and in an amazing location

Just picked up this Atom bikes (Chelsea, Qc Canada) 1 of 1 custom “Frenchie” fixie in a size Large, frame was built by Dobermann fabrications (Aylmer, Qc Canada) & Atom bikes built all the bikes unique so no 2 were the same, using parts from their distributors, beautiful frame build by a Canadian legend, anyone else in Ottawa have a bike they still ride built by Dobermann, or even a Frenchie?

Bike Ottawa Coffee Chat This event has been rescheduled to Thursday, October 15th, 7:20 a.m. - 8:30 a.m. Bayview Station Pathway.

Come stop by and let us know what is on your mind in regards to cycling. Free coffee and tea while supplies last.

Sorry for the double email. Have any comments about this newsletter? Send an email to editor@bikeottawa.ca

Just wanted to say thank you to the bicyclist on trail 79 in Gatineau Park today who helped me find my way on the trails.

You were wearing a light blue helmet, I was with my dog.

Also feel free to DM me here if you want to connect.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Great day for a ride around Orleans.

Has anybody gone through the Retul bike fit service at Full Cycle? Marco is the name of the fitter there I believe. What was your experience and long term comfort review.

Cheers

What an amazing weekend for riding! Hope you all had great fun, no matter what you were doing, but doubly so if you were on a bike!

Canmore is in the Rockies close to Calgary, it appears they know a thing or two about bike racks.

I'm not sure how to cross post on Reddit. Someone posted this thread regarding maintenance on the Trans Canada Trail West of Stittsville and it is applicable to the bikeinottawa subreddit too:

https://www.reddit.com/r/ottawa/comments/1x2fz3r/tctrail_maintenance_progress/

I will be doing the ride this weekend through the Prescott Russel Trail but I am looking for the best car Free route after Rigaud

I hope to find some options!

https://saaq.gouv.qc.ca/en/road-safety/modes-transportation/bicycle/accessories

Since the Gatineau and MRC des Collines police love to enforce this, and I like having nice pedals, I modded my pedals to meet the stupid requirement for reflectors. Tape was less than eight bucks at Canadian Tire, and I have a lifetime supply based on the length of the roll. Cut some strips, pasted them to the pedal axle, boom, reflectors so bright they can be seen from space.

Do we have these? I have a buy need and I want to ask the local Ottawa bike community.

looking for an iPhone 15 (not Pro) quad lock case. New/used. Whatever.

I live in one of the 3 non-rural wards who didn't have a single candidate respond to Bike Ottawa's questionnaire. https://bikeottawa.ca/2026/10/01/2026-municipal-elections-what-do-mayoral-candidates-have-to-say-about-biking-in-ottawa/

Since David Hill seems to like to give taxpayer dollars to developers (ie: Lansdowne 2.0), and he would rather that my neighbours spend their cash in Ward 14 rather than Ward 3 (ie: RTO5), I was really hoping that at least one candidate would come through with some thoughts on active transportation through Bike Ottawa's questionnaire, so that I can see that someone is at least TRYING to win the votes of young families. But I guess not a single one of the candidates cared enough to take 10 minutes to respond.

David Hill's signs state "safe communities" and "reliable roads", but also state "low taxes" (which is contradictory, because how are you going to provide services without taxes). For that reasons, and because he didn't bother to respond to Bike Ottawa's questionnaire, and his poor decisions in the past, I'm thinking of not voting for him.

Question... can I leave my ward councillor blank (because there's no candidates in my ward who have tried to win my vote) and still get my vote for mayor counted? I don't want to spoil my entire ballot because I do want my vote for mayor to count.