Halifax cyclists prepare to take to the streets for a Critical Mass rally to promote bike riding in Halifax. Photo: Mark Teo

Critical Mass cyclists to motorists: ‘hey, we’re here, too’

Halifax's busy four-lane Quinpool Road is no stranger to congestion. But on a recent Friday evening, a sea of helmets and tiny flashing lights replaced cars and trucks as a phalanx of cyclists took over the street.

Police temporarily interrupted the ride for obstructing traffic. But the cyclists' message wasn't lost amidst the continual stream of supportive honks and whoops from passersby.

We're not stopping traffic - we are traffic.

The event was Critical Mass, a giant monthly bike ride and, for some, a tool for promoting cycling awareness. It's a grassroots movement active in more than 300 cities worldwide. According to its Facebook group, Halifax alone has more than 600 members.

Earlier in the evening around 100 of them gathered at Victoria Park on Spring Garden Road - as they do every month. Attire ranged from Lycra to denim, with bikes spanning the spectrum of rust to carbon fibre.

The ride is leaderless and the riders are as eclectic as the bikes themselves. Nobody would confuse this with the Tour de France.

"It's doing something positive to combat something negative, as opposed to waging a war," said Hayley Gray, a Dalhousie university sociology student and four-time participant.

"Maybe you're clogging the streets, but you're doing it in a peaceful fashion."

Gray, 21, sees Halifax's cycling culture as a "work in progress." She says the ride promotes better driver awareness and increases the visibility of cyclists.

Kyrie Stoll, a 22-year-old anthropology student at Dalhousie, says the ride's visibility promotes cycling safety and combats some of the negative stereotypes of cyclists.

"There are a lot of cyclists who don't have good cycling etiquette," said Gray, and many "do stupid things while cycling, and they give us all a bad reputation."

Some are hoping that visibility will extend to city hall.

The Halifax Cycling Coalition, a bike advocacy group, says that only one in ten Haligonians regularly commutes by bike. That's a figure they'd like to see rise to one in five by 2015.

But to achieve that goal, they'll need the city's help in making Halifax a friendlier place for cyclists.

"The city has to be serious about this," said Steve Bedard, the coalition's co-chair. "Cyclists have needs that aren't being met."

Halifax's Blueprint for a Bike Friendly HRM, a plan developed in 2002, targeted setting up bike networks, educational programs and support facilities.

Seven years later, Bedard says, the city still lacks sufficient bike lanes and secure bike racks, and showering facilities for commuters.

"When you go through the bike plan itself, it's good," he says, "but because of the (10- to 20-year) timelines it's not realistic."

As for Critical Mass, its appeal extends beyond cyclists.

"People walking along the street and motorists - they really tend to enjoy it. I think it raises our profile," said Bedard.

"It reminds people that ‘hey, we're here, too, and we absolutely have the right to be on the road.'"

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