Bike Lane Haters Are Wrong About Winter
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 4 фев 2022
- In this video we give a reality check on winter in Canada and explain how biking in all seasons is not as crazy as some people suggest.
Help keep Urbanity rolling:
Patreon: / ohtheurbanity
Subscribe for more videos: / @ohtheurbanity
Join us on Twitter: / ohurbanity
Urbanism playlist: • Five More Bad Argument...
More in the weeds winter cycling content from Canadian creators:
Paige Saunders, "Winter Biking: It's Actually Easy!": • Winter Biking: It's Ac...
Shifter, "Eight mistakes new winter bike commuters make and how to avoid them": • Eight mistakes new win...
Cjhoyle, Complete Guide to Winter Cycling - Clothing: • Complete Guide to Wint...
References:
The recent storm in the record books: / 1483247532897619969
The storm cancelling 4,200 flights: www.reuters.com/world/us/thou...
Half of Canadians use winter tires: tirf.ca/wp-content/uploads/20... (page 2 of document, page 10 of PDF)
Rideau Canal Skateway sees 20,000 visitors per day: ottawa.ctvnews.ca/nearly-20-0...
Ottawa's LRT weathered the snowstorm: ottawa.ctvnews.ca/quite-pleas...
Apple Mobility data: covid19.apple.com/mobility
The weather data comes from the 1981-2010 Canadian Climate Normals from Environment Canada. Explore here:
Toronto (climate.weather.gc.ca/climate...)
Montreal (climate.weather.gc.ca/climate...)
Vancouver (climate.weather.gc.ca/climate...)
Ottawa (climate.weather.gc.ca/climate...)
Winnipeg (climate.weather.gc.ca/climate...)
Calgary (climate.weather.gc.ca/climate...)
Edmonton (climate.weather.gc.ca/climate...)
Quebec City (climate.weather.gc.ca/climate...)
#winterbiking #canada #winterincanada
![Sean Rii, Karyon, Sharzkii - Taungule [My Love] (Official Music Video)](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/eJoMuypbSzQ/mqdefault.jpg)
at this point, Oh The Urbanity!'s motto might as well be "if one Canadian failed to convince you, maybe two will manage it instead"
I'm not sure if this comment is positive or not but, I enjoy the approaches of Paige, Shifter and this channel. We need all of the Urban voices in Canadian cities to voice these same concerns and help policy-makers see that these solutions can work and to prove to residents that it isn't hard. The more voices sharing the better. They all help to inform in slightly different ways even when the issues overlap.
@@Brackcycle I was actually referring to Jason Slaughter of Not Just Bikes, who made a video about cycling during winter as well, although his video focused on a city in Finland. It wasn't really positive or negative, I was just taking the piss, but I do appreciate OTU's content.
@@mantas1111000 Personally, I enjoy both channels' content. The topics are often similar (which is not surprising, given they both focus on urban design centered around actual human needs), but their respective viewpoints and therefore approaches are somewhat different. While NJB's often compares European cities with American ones and thereby exposes the narratives as flawed, OTU is more intrinsic in their approach, meaning they deconstruct the narratives in on themselves, without the need to point outside of the North American bubble. Both modes are valuable, I think, and you can easily watch two videos of the two channels about the same topic one right after the other and still learn something from the second one.
I prefer this channel because he doesn't talk down on people like Jason does. I enjoy Not Just Bikes but he goes about explaining things with a pretty pretentious attitude.
@@carstarsarstenstesenn its not pretentious if its true
"Why are we building airports and roads for cars when we have this thing called WINTER? What a waste of money! Don't these people know that you can't drive or fly a plane when there are snowstorms and black ice everywhere?"
Says who. We fly and drive at minus 40 in blizards, etc. What part of the world are you in?
@@markplain2555 lmao
@@markplain2555 We drive and fly in those conditions because of preparation and maintenance. If we didn't plow roads or de-ice planes, there wouldn't be very much driving or flying in winter either.
@@markplain2555 I get that sarcasm can be hard to read without body language and tone, but boy howdy I don't think I've ever seen someone miss the point worse than this.
@@jacobms911 okay so we are all in agreement. I missed the sarcasm. I guess I have to pay for the next round of beers.
Non-cyclists tend to underestimate the heat your body generates when exercising. For me, cycling in the winter is about heat management.
for real, actually overheating has frequently been the biggest problem for me. besides my bike being horse shit, but I can manage even with all of the friction
Goes to show that they have never done a long hike either. I learned real quick about appropriate winter clothing and regulating body temperature when hiking in the Pacific NW.
On a 20 minute commute even at below 0° C, I'll be freezing the first five, ok five and sweating balls arriving. With just regular trousers, a tshirt and fleece jacket.
I could never figure out how to keep my fingers and toes from going numb, not to mention my nose. (The wind-chill when cycling is intense.) I think maybe I just have poor circulation. If I'm walking I can at least put my hands in my pockets, but that's a bad idea when cycling. ;)
@@MrBirdnose It's easy enough, just wear good gloves, boots, a balaclava below 0 and a tuque when it's really cold. A good place to shop is the ski section of the store.
perfect video, and highlights the lack of maintenance or effort to keep biking and walking infrastructure open compared to the ludicrous effort that we put in for snow removal for cars.
Ottawa can be especially bad on the pedestrian side. A surprising number of useful pedestrian staircases and pathways in the central city are just... closed in winter (even before snow arrives, which is crazy). Imagine if a city just closed some of its urban roads for four months a year to avoid maintaining them!
@@OhTheUrbanity closing urban roads to cars sounds like a great idea. Make them understand what it's like only having a quater of your route built for your mode of transport. 😆
@@OhTheUrbanity I used to live in Hamilton. One year, the Roads department produced a set of alternatives to them not getting the budget they wanted. These ranged from making some roads car-free to allowing them to revert to gravel roads. Needless to say, the car-dependent people on those roads went berserk.
@@OhTheUrbanity let us not forget not just bikes video on winter cycling
Oh thats just because of car and oil lobbies. And also the fact that the city doesnt fund it equally
I got studded tires for this first time this month. I always thought I'd be frigid biking in the winter. Turns out I love it and it's a total game changer. Why did it take me almost 40 years to figure this out?
just joined the team last week (with studded tire) was freaking cold... but overall i think it is working for me
Studded tires are illegal in most parts of the world. They mess up the roads.
@@markplain2555 On motor vehicles. They're generally legal on bicycles and other lightweight vehicles.
@@dereksauer8108 I don't know where you get the "generally" legal term. The Ministry of Transport Ontario is clear on this matter: studded tires or chains are illegal. I discussed this with The company that put tires on my car. They explained that they don't carry studded tires at any of their branches world wide cause they. Break up the tar on roads.
@@markplain2555 As far as I know, any law refers to "vehicle" and not explicitely bikes. Anyhow a car with normal tires is more damaging to a road than a bike with studded tires, just out of sheer weight of a car, so even if it is "illeagal" a studded bike tire will not "mess up roads"
Excuse my ignorance for a second... I was unaware until this video that the Rideau gets plowed... I don't know why this didn't occur to me, how else would people be able to skate after a snow fall...
I've always agreed with these videos, but now I'm mad about it. If we can plow a river... why is it so hard to plow a bike lane?!
a plowed ice skating river sounds so magical. I hate being cold but it makes me want to go see. it.
A big part might be that bike gutters have to be used as a snow disposal because there isn’t enough clearance on the roads. They mentioned snow dumps in the video, but it would also be easier to just plow the snow to the side without interfering with the bike lane if the infrastructure is prepared for it. Clearances between car roads and bike lanes should be standard anyways, but even more so if the space is required to clear roads from snow in snowy times
Isn't ploughing contributing to climate change? Isn't climate change the greatest existential threat to humanity ever?
For the most part your city has to buy an entire separate FLEET of narrower plow trucks to make it work. Bike lanes are not generally wide enough to fit a plow truck through, and those narrower trucks are pretty worthless at plowing the roads people actually use.
@@willythemailboy2 I agree, but here in Michigan we have plenty of those narrow trucks already being used for sidewalks AND bike paths. Im guessing other cold regions also use some plowing trucks for sidewalks?
As a person from Winnipeg the main deterrent is not the weather (although that is a factor) it's that I don't trust the infrastructure enough as it currently is. We need more bike lanes here and they need to be located on thoroughfares where business are.
Yup!
also the level of theft here
I agree, the current cycling infrastructure in Winnipeg is garbage. I am hoping to persue a career in changing that.
@@L_Fleury me too I’m going into city planning in Winnipeg and one of the most crucial things is improving the AT infrastructure. I look forward to the chance of potentially working together years from now lol.
@@SkyOnosson THIS. I’ve gotten my bike stolen before and almost all of my other friends have as well I now keep 2 locks everywhere I go.
Of all the different transportation modes, the one most resilient to winter weather (besides underground rail, of course) is probably walking. If conditions are severe enough, you might need boots, trekking poles, microspikes, even snowshoes. But, you will get there.
Even some (if not most) birds fly less in winter and prefer walking (or hopping). I guess it's easier to stay warm that way.
@@lonestarr1490 It's more about energy use I should think. If there's less food available, flying is VERY energetically expensive.
Walking? Are you crazy?
Maybe a couple of blocks
@@karolkrska7280 no , he is just built different
I live in wisconsin and my friend was complaining about our local mall being worse than what it use to be. anyway I mentioned that we should start putting more investment into our downtown and stuff and then the argument came up that its not car friendly enough like a mall. blah blah she isn't really into urban planning but then started arguing about how "nobody wants to walk in Wisconsin weather". anyway this video would've been very helpful like 4 days ago lol
It's a good thing that I'm not getting into conversations like this because when someone says something like "it's not car friendly", I'd probably immediately hit them with the, "and that's a good thing."
@@dandarr5035 I did that. More than once. Always getting frown faces.
nobody wants to walk in Wisconsin weather = I fucking hate the cold so biking is literally the same as walking, you're outside in the cold rather than a heated vehicle.
i. hate. the. cold. even bringing out the garbage, that's 3 feet from my door, I bundle up.
the PATH in Toronto is my dream - underground shops connected via tunnels, some leading to the subway, some buildings have direct access to the PATH system, so you don't have to go outside.
"nobody wants to walk in wisconsin weather" um? you're still bipedal, right? because while wheels get stuck in snow, bipedal beings don't. of course if you are a bipedal being you have an obligation to clear out sidewalks for people who are hindered by snow
I prefer to walk in the cold than drive.
Maintanence is soo important.
I live in the cycling country of the world (The Netherlands), and stupidly enough that doesn't prevent people from complaining about the snow either.
When I went to secondary school, my mum used to always say when it snowed: Go early because you will need to walk.
Well, I started to ignore her, because no matter how much it had snowed, NEVER in my life have I had to walk to school, for the whole way. Yeah, sure, I sometimes had to walk the 100m out of my street, but other than that, the cycle paths were plowed (or in case of s bicycle gutter, I just drove on the side road, and didnt get ran over, because drivers are nice-ish here).
The only times Ive had a hard time and had to walk, when it was actually still snowing.
So here you just proved to me, what I've known my whole life: you can certainly bike when it has snowed, just as long as maintenance does its work.
The problem in North America is that bike infrastructure is a small lane no more that 6 feet wide. You have cars ballooning at 45-50 mph without any separation. Biking is a death wish unless you bike for recreation on some incomplete bike paths in some parks. "Share the road" is what they tell you. Sure!!!
@@AJNoon It means cars passing you at high speeds and you have no protection.
I started riding my unicycle through the winter 4 years ago. It's now one of my favorite times to ride.
You, sir, have guts.
Godamn that's why I hate the internet. I was happy that I managed to go in the snow on a bicycle but there you are riding a freaking UNICYCLE in it.
Unicycle? Through winter? RESPECT!
Here in Paris the winters aren't as cold as in Canada, but as an urban cyclist there, using my bike to go to work, I've invested in winter and rain-adapted clothes. And I've come to love cycling when it's raining or cold. I mean I'm completely equipped from head to toe to stay dry from rain, or warm from the cold, and it's super cozy. It's like sleeping in a tent when it's raining. I'm dry and warm, while it's raining outside. Great feeling.
I bike a lot in Sweden during the winter and we have a lot of protected bike lanes. The always get plowed but the main problem is that it gets really slippery even with studded tires on. This especially happens when there is freezing rain. It becomes very dangerous to go downhill. This could of course be solved by putting heating under the sloped bike roads like they sometimes do on roads so that buses don't get stuck going uphill - but that is, as usual, down to what mode of transportation the city wants you to use. Thanks for a great video!!
Same here in The Netherlands, except for the downhill part.
Yes, This is especially bad when the temperature is around 0 degrees. The ice on the bike paths melts in the day, and then freezes again in the night, making the gravel sink into the ice. Because of this I have fallen twice on ice in the last weeks, and started walking or getting rides in cars from other people instead.
@@frej2229 that's why removing snow from paths is so important.
@@Dyllon2012 they do remove the snow, it's just that there is always a thin layer of packed snow left behind
@@Dyllon2012 it's the same reason people don't use motorcycles in the winter reality check biking in the winter is asking to get injured
winter cycling in Oulu, Finland... a 30% bike mode in summer, 10% in the winter! (located 200km south of the arctic circle, it has just 8 (!) hours of sunshine in the month december and is almost as cold as Edmonton, but with 88% humidity in winter !.)
People are going to think we're roommates
Hey you're "Ugly Condos" video is great! I'm really looking forward to watching more of your vids.
Thanks for the recommendation Urbanity~
"...and they were roommates"
"OMG, they were roommates"
As a fellow Ottawa citizen who winter cycled you are right it is not the temperature that deters us but the city maintenance. I literally cried with frustration when 3 weeks after the big storm I still couldn't cycle safely to work because bike lanes and sidewalks were not cleared well and I kept falling even with studded tires. When I finally gave up and cycled on the road cars blared their horns at me and drove inches from my bike. I got home and just said I couldn't do this anymore.
Makes sense, that sucks though, sorry the infrastructure fails us so often!
@@OhTheUrbanityi share the sorrow
I just started winter cycling this year and it’s surprisingly easier that anticipated, especially with Montreal’s cycle lanes. I’m almost never cold, in fact I tend to get hot!
I would really recommended getting full fenders and a mudflap on the front one. It keeps my pants clean, and prevent spaying salty slush on the drivetrain.
My experience is the same. It's easy to dress warm but it's actually hard to dress just cool enough to stay cool but not get cold. Usually i end up sweating more in winter than in summer...
This
I't's double funny because here in South East Asia, people also against bicycles because of rain and heat while most of us use motorcycles, which is bicycles but with gas-guzzling engines. It's all actually infrastructure problem. People don't cycle because they aren't served by same amount of infra, which in turn they never think it's possible at all.
"Too damn hot and humid to bike" is definitely a thing. I'm currently in Florida. -_-
@Martin Constantineau I agree that we need the infrastructure. There are summer days here where cycling is not advisable though. Most of the time it is fine.
FWIW: I'm trying to figure out how to get more parents in my area to let their kids get to and from school by bike (or walk). It's sort of crazy how few there are. Kids growing up thinking that cars are the only way to get around. Also, my kid genuinely feels like a weirdo because he is the only kid in his class who bikes.
We've tried nothing and we're all out of ideas! For real though, I cycled all the time in the winter while living in Utah. Generally speaking, if weather was bad enough to actually prevent cycling, driving was also going to be bad. The worst place to ride was on the stroad I used to get to the train since people were terrible about clearing snow off the sidewalk (riding on said road would be suicide since it is a 7 lane stroad with a 45mph speed limit).
I do not blame you. I'm afraid to deal with Utah drivers at 15mph (as in the posted speed limit, so 20-30mph). Always thinking the shoulder is somehow another lane, and in some places it's common practice to park on the left side of the street.
I’m from winnipeg and when Winnipeg gets cold (a decent portion of the winter), you generally try to stay outside for as little time as possible.
Resident of Montreal here. I picked up biking again this year after watching videos from you and Not Just Bikes. I had seen the countless tired arguments about cycling, but I thought I'd give it a shot this year. All I have to say is: It's very easy lol. All the critics have clearly never tried it. I find it's actually easier than walking. When you walk, there is always the likelihood that you're gonna slip on a patch of ice or something. I've never slipped once on my bike with my trusty studded tire. Best way to change this culture of not biking in winter is to lead by example!
"Countless tired arguments about bicycling"
Heckuva good pun there
When you realise that cars/roads require more money for maintenance then bike lanes during the winter but somehow people can say bike lanes are a waste of money lol.
But then you find out that the gas tax is about 24% of all tax revenue for a city (once transferred down from the feds to the province to the city) and is used to upgrade, build and maintain those roads - you get to realise that cyclists are literally being subsidised by motorists... but hey bashing motorists is the big thing on this channel.
@@markplain2555 your argument is very narrow, since in many cases the money comes from other tax sources and with advent of electric vehicles, the gas tax only has so many years to live. Are you wanting to prioritise a city for people or for driving through?
Also consider that historically the train companies were forced to subsidise the road and air businesses, in the US.
The city has these adorable baby plows that probably cost nothing to run to plow the sidewalks. They even have dispensers they can hook on the back for sand or salt. I don't know what they actually cost to operate but I imagine its far less than the dumptrucks the city converts into street plows every year.
@@markplain2555 We're critical of car-dependent development but I think you'll find we're pretty particular about not "bashing" drivers on a personal level. It's not really our style.
@@markplain2555 I have no idea about Canadian taxes, so I can't outright say that is bullshit... I can only compare to my Germany. Here the even higher gas taxes don't finance roads. And on top of that there the 5000€+ that the general public (including of course non-car-drivers) subsidize each car per year if you account for indirect costs.
So having that in mind (and knowing similar results from other countries) I doubt that Canada is the only country where car drivers subsidize any other mode of transportation.
I started off listening saying to myself, "Yeah, but..." and "Well, how about..." and you addressed every question I had. Of course, in my area we're still struggling to get sufficient summer infrastructure, but one can hope.
One of the bigger challenges with cycling is trying to not overheat, but for some reason it becomes rather trivial in the winter. And as for snow, I find that a mountain bike handles rough terrain way better than most cars. Plus with a bike you don't have windows to defrost, and if needed you can simply store it inside, equating to zero snow removal. In basically every possible way, biking in the winter is so much easy than driving. So yeah I really hate it when people claim I'm the crazy one for cycling year round.
I completely agree, plus the fact that if you get stuck in some deep snow, you can usually just lift your bike over it until you can ride again.
One time I tried biking to school in the winter because my bus never came. I lost control on the snow and my bike literally slipped into the street. This wasn’t a thin-tyred bike either, it was a mountain bike. I got back out of the road and called my mom to drive me instead. From there on I was pretty much convinced that winter biking wasn’t a thing. Then I stumbled across the video 😄
I’m also in Ottawa lol
I commute by bike 12 months a year in Toronto. For the big snowfall (22 inches) a couple weeks ago, I rode to the office the night before the storm and slept over. I took one day off my bike. And was back to biking the next day. This was a time that cars should not have been on the road either. Now excuse me while I hop on my bike to go grocery shopping. -22C windchill this morning, but it's lovely and sunny! Thanks for another great video. Winter cycling is totally doable!
I don't know if I entirely believe you about riding the next day. I live on Richmond street and the bike lane was closed down for over a week during that big snow fall. And did I get this right, you slept over in your office?
Yep. I rode the bus for the two large snow storms we've had so far in Montreal but right back on the bike the next day. The brown slush is a challenge even with studded tires but that just makes it fun instead of the usual commute.
@@markplain2555 You can ride in the road just fine, they're plowed for the most part.
@@markplain2555 I live by Old Mill and work by the airport. I just took main roads (side streets were too dicy). They were clear enough to ride on by Tuesday after the storm.
@@knarf_on_a_bike okay but then you were lucky. Richmond and Adelaide bike paths were snow. Banks for about one week.
As some one who bikes in Ottawa in the winter, I've noticed that beyond the half hearted attempt Ottawa makes in general o clear the streets of snow, the larger issue is the drivers on the road who just don't expect us to be there and thus don't look for us. I just got hit by a car for the first time this year and it came down to the fact that the driver did not look for me cause he did not expect a bike to be on the road. Mind you he also gave me a half heated sorry wave and then drove off leaving me with a 160$ repair bill for a dive shaft replacement and wheel repair, but that's a whole other can of worms
Why don't we treat these crashes like car wrecks? Shouldn't their liability insurance pay for that?
@@Descriptor413 it would appear that this was literally a hit and run. Driver waved and rode off.
One of the things I find frustrating about winter is that here in Toronto the bike lanes are very poorly maintained so I spend much more time in general traffic lanes (with cars). And you're right, they just don't give us proper distance. I get honked at regularly, and far too often it seems cars come ~closer~ to me during snow events than on other days. Which makes no sense, if anything they should be giving me ~more~ room. . .
Sorry to hear of your collision and bike damage. Hope you weren't hurt.
Do you have a chainless bike? Very cool!
@@knarf_on_a_bike yes it was a hit and run, I called 911 and filed a police report then called a friend to pick me up and get my bike to a repair shop.
I was not injured as I saw him a sec before he hit be so I was jumping off my bike before contact was made.. had some minor whiplash for a day or two but other than that I got off easy. My bike on the other hand had to replace the whole crank sytem as the pedal crank was bent over the chain. had to have my rear derailer straightened and rear wheel trued and some spokes replaced.
no my bike is a old chain, but I am saving up for a belt drive in the future.
@@Descriptor413 by law, yes their insurance should be paying for it, but I didn't get his plate due to being so mad and surprised that it happened. I also learned by the officer that I talked to that it would be a good idea for me to get insurance on my bike as well.
The "people don't/can't bike in winter"-argument even comes up in Vienna, where this winter we've had just two days where snow didn't melt immediately upon touching asphalt, leaving maybe 3cm of snow on those two days 😅 Also ignoring that last December at least 46% of the year-average traffic per month was counted here..
How interesting!
When I was younger, I loved winter bicycling.
That was in the seventies and eighties.
Today, there are bikes that are ideally suited for ice and snow.
Some are exotic, and use six inch wide, twenty inch diameter two-ply ATV tires.
I live in Winnipeg and I still see people ride their bikes during the wintertime.
So, i do bike all year around, and i live in the northern parts of Sweden. The lowest temp I have bicycled in was around -25 C.
Dynamo lights and extended mudflaps are a nice to have during winter besides studded tires and IGH. Great video once again! Merci beaucoup à vous deux 🙏☺️
Aside from the studded tires, all those things are nice to have at any time of year. Unless you live somewhere that never rains.
@@kevinlove4356 yeah that's for sure but battery lights especially suffer during cold times and are a pain to setup with gloves. I ride em all year long and they're definitely a nice to have 😊👍
I am in a small city in Wyoming with a climate similar to Calgary. This video really resonated with me. I had a dedicated winter bike, a beautiful 90s MTB with an internal drive hub. Building that bike taught me journeyman level bike mechanics (thank RUclips) and there have been just a handful of days I needed my car. My biking partner stuck with derailleur gears and has a set of refurbished wheels with studded tires. Takes her more time to put bar mitts on than swap tires.
Good channel recommendations at the end. Shifer helped me get over my anxiety about winter bike commuting. My coworkers think I'm insane, but I don't deal with road rage on the bike trail, and I save a LOT of money on gas. And his channel led me to search out others, like this one.
Back when I lived in a more bike friendly part of Toronto and the best bike infrastructure we had was painted bicycle gutters, my bike went away for the winter the moment the bike gutter turned into a snow gutter. I found cycling in 3C weather during autumn perfectly enjoyable and better than sweating like crazy in 30C July. The filthiness of the roads in the winter also ruined it for me.
Such a strong, hearty lot. I can’t imagine cycling in conditions like that. I take my hat off to you. I live where there are palm trees, with orange and grapefruit trees in my back yard. If the temperature in the morning dips to a low of 50 degrees F (burr) 😊, I bundle up with a thick jacket, gloves and a warm tuque to cover my ears. And I still feel cold as I ride along. I smile wide when I spot winter visitors out walking or riding. How do I know they are winter visitors? They are wearing shorts and t-shirts. For them, it’s a heat wave. I don’t think I could handle riding a bike where you are in the winter. Pedal on you brave souls. Loved the video. It makes me feel like a wimp. 😂😂
It just takes a little time to climatize then you can get use to any weather if your open to the paradigm shift.
Though granted I’ve observed that it seams harder for people from warmer climates to adjust to colder ones🤗
@@sheleavitt06 Yeah, I recall watching a video (I think it was 'Why 25 degrees really is hot in the UK | Did You Know?') saying it's easier to adapt to the heat than the cold.
Been recommended your videos from the RUclips Algorithm.
Greatly enjoy it. Subbing.
Even manage to educate my mom about urban design and why less cars on the road and not needing to use one as transport everywhere is a good thing
Huge thanks to the local bike club in Calgary who, in the 80s and 90s, started plowing the Bow River pathway with a 'sled'. It was great. The city eventuality took over and now plows lots of paths usually on the day it snows. It's awesome.
The one thing about winter cycling; get good gloves. The rest of your body will warm up from moving, but your hands are too exposed to the wind and holding onto cold handlebars.
Wow those graphs on winter's cold/snowy days are so good! Thx for the info
People spend hours plowing snow off the parking lots and roads onto sidewalks and bike paths and then wonder why the sidewalks and bike paths are under 3 feet of snow...
As someone living in a German city which does not experience Canadian winters but still regular snow days and even some snow storms, for me winter is not the problem. It's mostly fall: Heavy wind and rain are far worse to handle than a bit of cold and snow, especially if they are unpredictable (like heavy rain or sleet combined with harsh wind for 20 Minutes and clear sunshine before and after)
Wind and hills are a bikers real enemy. Gruss aus Kanada, war in Frankfurt am Main geboren.
As a long-time Ottawa winter commuter by bike, one can learn quickly and improve one's clothing and gear set-up, and become adept at tailoring one's gear choice of the day per the weather forecasts (for winter, spring, summer and fall). When my kids were little, my winter biking was the only way to reach the childcare and after-school care locations by the cut-off time. The downtown Ottawa-Gatineau bus network routes would get paralyzed during even small snow storms. Car parking was not an option. Biking was my only reliable option and deep down, I was far warmer (and happier) than any other office worker shivering in their office-clothing standing at a bus stop (and then crammed in the bus and overheating once their buses finally came). Once at work, I did a quick full change into my suit and tie. A key skill to learn to commute by bike is not to overheat and get all sweaty, so getting one's clothing right requires venting zippers and flexible clothing choices.
as someone who lives in winterpeg, this year i have gotten a lot more into biking to my destination. i probably will still go back to walking + bus in the winter, as the protected bike lanes do get cleared, but the painted ones remain a snow dump, leaving disconnected sections of clear protected bike lanes all over the place
As an all year bicyclist there are 2 annoying weather conditions: rain and black ice. Snow usually is ok if you put on winter/dirt tires.
Conclusion: once you put all your twisted car centric ideas aside, winter is a great PRO bike infrastructure argument. In my experience, the only thing that makes winter cycling worse is feeling uncomfortable because of decreased visibility, less daylight and slippery roads. All thingss that are easily fixable by better bike inrastructure. Also, where I live winters are mostly rainy and to me cycling in the rain isn't that bad, but having to stand still in the rain for minutes on end to cross some badly designed traffic junction really sucks.
It's really frustrating how bike trails and even some sidewalks get neglected when it snows. Even to walk my dog I have to walk in the street because the snow on the sidewalk and bike trail doesn't get removed.
Fantastic points! Thank you for this!
Northeast Europe here. Got studded tyres last year and it has been very fun, makes every trip an adventure. If there is ever a section with too much snow just hop off, push your bike and continue pedalling when it's possible. Though I tend to use sidewalks in winter, because roads are covered in brown salty sludge.
Good show, reminds me why I fled from Detoilet-Windsor area to Albuquerque in 1972!
Winter biking is some of the most fun I've had with clothes on. It's like a secret pleasure that's right in front of everyones' eyes. The hero worship that comes from people imagining the worst case scenario isn't too bad either :)
Great video! So many good points 😊
This video is great and I loved the analysis about Canadian winters! Biking in some Canadian cities is an unpleasant and dangerous experience but that's not due to the nature of cycling or winter, it's a deliberate choice to not focus on maintenance as much as other modes.
Well said! And thanks!
Even in Winnipeg, I have a friend who cycled through the winter when he lived there!
2-3 weeks is exactly how much I don't bike in Calgary 😉👍🐧
There's also lots of people who basically only go from warm building, to remote started car, to warm building as their winter experience.
and then they brag about how tuff us canadians are for living through "the harshest winter on the planet" 🤣🤣
I feel like the whole point of civilization is not having to be cold and miserable in the winter. ;)
I have two decades of winter cycling experience under the belt now, having lived my entire life in Finland. It's fine, even in a smaller city with less budget.
Hi from park lafontaine! Your videos are all well made and I appreciate them very much. Are the two of you researchers? Your videos are so well thought out. I feel like each video could be the seed of a worthy thesis. Bravo!
Appreciate it and thanks for watching! One of us is a researcher by training and the other is an editor by training :). Ah we miss park lafontaine, hopefully we will make it back soon.
@@OhTheUrbanity Wow, thanks for the response. And interesting to learn about your respective disciplines. Thank you so much for what you do!
People say bikes cannot be a serious mode of transport, because North America has winters. Ok, tell them shorts and sandals cannot be a serious way to dress for the same reason, and force them to wear snow boots and rain pants at 30C and sunshine in summer.
I've lived most of my life in Oulu, Finland, but haven't really done much winter biking until I got back into it this winter.
It's... not perfect. It's not as easy as summer biking. Tire ruts on refrozen slush are scary, biking when the air hurts your face is not great, even with my city's ridiculously good snow removal you occasionally have to go through snow piles, etc..
But it's still nice. I hope that that's the message people get from these videos. Winter biking is not as nice as summer biking. But it's nice.
I remember when the polar vortex came down a few years ago and despite it being below 0 F, we just when sledding on the dunes.
Can confirm that cold weather in Saskatchewan isn't what keeps me off the bike. Unplowed roads is what makes me take the bus instead.
If you live in the city and don't own a car you can afford the most insanely bad ass all weather, electric assist bike set up and STILL spend less money annually than a car or truck. I don't live in the city anymore but when I did my car spent most of it's time parked, including in the winter. Walking, biking or train travel is FAR more convenient and affordable when you get used to them. Cars in the city are nothing but an emotional and financial drain.
Agree!
Excellent video! I ride year round in Toronto and I adjust for winter riding. My bike currently has studded tires on and I have Bar Mitts on to protect my hands. I dress in layers and wear winter boots and I'm always warm, sometimes too warm. Winter cycling is absolutely doable and you don't have to be "hard core" to do it. Toronto Cycling infrastructure has definitely taken a hit this winter.
I should try Bar Mitts. My thumbs get cold below -20 with my current mitts. Do they work on drop bars?
@@knarf_on_a_bike Yes, they have Bar Mitts for drop bars. Bar Mitts are a brand, so you may want to look into other pogies as well, maybe ones with added insulation if you ride in super cold temps.
@@WheelsonaBike thank you so much for the info! 😀
This is actually really, really well-written. I'm glad you mentioned the whole "winter clothes" thing.
I grew up in florida and froze my ass off almost every winter because that wind speed and humidity can come out of nowhere and I'm never "fully" prepared, but when I moved to a colder place further North I learned:
1) "normal" days still demand 5ish extra minutes of throwing clothes on (no stepping into flip flops and leaving).
2) the "cold" days are actually not even that cold once you've commited to the insulated, wind-breaking, oversized jacket.
In the end I moved back down south because NC and all those neighboring states are cess pools... (most of them agree :P )
I bike year round here in Uppsala, Sweden. After a snow storm, the municipality prioritizes major bike lanes and bike roads as well as major bus routes (cleared within 4 hours), minor bike roads and footpaths (5 hours) and finally other roads and parking spaces (within 6 hours). They usually start before 4 in the morning so even if you go to work early it's usually OK to bike. If the conditions are so bad you can't bike, it usually means it's not really possible to drive either and you'll see cars and buses stuck everywhere too.
I live in Germany and when there is some snowfall there is total chaos. Last bigger snowfall they stopped all bus and tram service for a week even as they had the routes plowed by day 2. The had also a tram derrail on a down slope because it packed all the snow under it which lifted it out the rails. This is in a 200k city where there is less than 20cm of snowfall.
Great video! It really does come down to how you dress. That being said we have relatively mild winters here so I don't have to layer up too much in order to bike, but then again our bicycling infrastructure (or lack thereof) sucks for the most part. :P
Due to the pandemic, I decided I wanted to be able to bike, no matter what time of year it is. So I got studded tyres for my oldest bike. Wow. I still take it easy on the slippery bits, but what a game changer! Now I actually enjoy biking during winter, especially on hard packed snow and ice. I've had two hour rides in minus 15 degrees C, and it was fine. Just a matter of putting on some warm clothes, boots and lobster gloves. If I can go skiing for hours in the cold, I can go biking, too.
Kansas City here. I'm frustrated when people complain about our winters, which in my opinion only last two months of the year. January and February.
Over three inches shuts the city down.
My favorite time to ride my bike on a college campus in NW Michigan was when snow was still relatively fresh. As long as it was below the pedals, wasn't too afraid of riding my bike in it. They plowed early morning between 6-7am so if it started accumulating after that, it was just something we had to deal with for the day. Honestly, much preferred bicycling over driving or walking in snowy weather, though hooning the car around in a parking lot with fresh powder is always fun.
It is possible - see city of Oulu Finland for example.
Unfortunately, it is very unlikely to happened any time soon here in Canada. The municipality of Whistler has a great network of bike lanes, but it is not maintained in winter at all. In Vancouver, city fails to remove snow from roads and sidewalks for several days.
I live at Finland and use bike whole year. Temperature has never been reason to pick bus (yes i can use bus to go where ever i would like to and it's not that expensive). Bike simply is more flexible and most of time faster (straighter route etc.).It's fresh snow which makes me pick bus, snow plowing simply takes some time and bus has less issue with snow than bikes.
Once you have travelled around 5-10min heat is bigger issue than cold, I usually have to have less clothing while biking than walking (less layers). So I feel cold at beginning and most likely sweating at end if not careful with speed. Then again i always carry backpack with layers with me, so it's easy gain or lose layers.
I would recommend to have good 4 row studded tires and good pedals for muddy/snow weathers ("Shimano Pd-Gr500 Flat" etc. which have real grip to all boots)
Man I wish I didn't live in car-centric, drive-everywhere suburbia.
you're not alone
Snow (and even ice !) is not as slippery as people think for bikes.
Even without special tires, I once was surprised I could bike on an outdoor ice rink (just an experiment^^) and it even felt arguably more stable than walking.
---
And to tell my little winter biking story: I'm from Paris and worked for a year and half in Edmonton. Upon arriving in summer, I was so shocked by car insurance prices that I tried to delay the purchase of a car as much as possible. My roommates were sort of joking on how (not) far I would bike into the winter. I ended up biking the whole time, didn't buy a car thus saving a shitload of money. And honestly it wasn't even that bad. The worst to me was clearly the dressing and undressing.
Just to brag about it, I even got my most Canadian experience that way: biking 1h30 in the middle of the night, by -20something, with full hockey gear in my backpack just to go to a hockey beginner course, every week.
This was a great Video, thank you very much!
And here I am, a blizzard biking enjoyer. The more snow the better!
Here in Orlando Florida during the summer it rains everyday but the rain is usually before 9am or between 2pm and 4pm so I would usually miss it on my commute.
In Winnipeg, even when it's -32 before wind chill, I'm still opening my jacket usually halfway before my commute is over.
In the city where I live during winter too there is a professor at U. of A. cyclist living in this city with his new fangled bicycle which he invented for himself out cycling sometimes in chilly enough weather to need a hat sometimes too. A bicycle in which he can pedal ahead in a more reclined position so he can pedal ahead with less of his skin surface area situated perpendicular to the wind direction at the time and so he can be more comfortable when resting with it on an LRT cars too. Driving a vehicle in our city in the winter here in Edmonton, Alberta Canada is sometimes a lot harder than cycling and/or taking public transit. Like when getting to West Edmonton Mall during the shopping for Christmas season.
here in europe we just cycle in the winter if if there is snow on the rode
As an Australian, I am used to the opposite problem:
Most summers, Melbourne has upwards of 7 days over 35C, which is usually too hot to safely cycle more than a relatively short distance on most routes.
There are large areas you can't ride to because of the risk of heatstroke due to lack of shade.
"You can't cycle anywhere in summer, it's too hot" - even the sports cyclists stick to dawn and dusk.
Very interesting, and makes sense!
I live in Finland and have biking a year around since I have been 8 years old. I biking to work in every weather. MTB is an exellent bike during the winter even when the bikelane isn't yet blowed.
I think its pretty dang fun to ride in the snow, youve just got to make sure to have the right tires and pressures
I like cycling in winter. I don't stand at a bus stop freezing cold, I can always ride faster to get warmer. ;)
I rode my escooter every day last winter, including during snowstorms. Studded tires are a game changer. My favorite was one morning a truck was stuck in an intersection in a ridge of snow left by a crossing plow. I picked up my scooter and put it back down past the ridge and kept riding laughing my ass off at the guy stuck behind me.😂
The big difference between bikes in winter and cars in winter is that where four-wheelers can recover from loss of control, two-wheelers generally can not, especially loss of control on front tire. Low and uneven grip makes it far more dangerous to ride, and with the recent advent of the bike delivery guys that don't stop riding in winter I keep hearing about more and more of them crashing- into cars, into people, just slipping on a patch of ice.
I still do witer riding though. A studded tire on the front, a thin soft compound tire on the back, layers upon layers and a ski mask, and a lot of skill to keep upright. And skip the transitory periods between positive and negative temps, they're both the slipperiest and the dirtiest, not worth it.
I live in northern Michigan in the US so share a lot of the same winter conditions as my Canadian neighbors. I really enjoy recreational winter cycling. I'll admit I always get a chuckle out of folks who say it's just too cold to be biking. I'll also admit that infrastructure is the biggest barrier for winter cycling. Now I am retired so I have the luxury of being able to set my of my own schedule. I live in a small town and find the only time that it is safe to ride is very late in evening or extreme early-morning. I'm talking like 11:30 PM-4 AM. That's because the only infrastructure available to me during winter is the main roads. So during this time there is very little if any traffic. Like I said I am retired so I have this luxury but obviously this is not ideal for most. We have a nice bike path just outside of town that a individual volunteers to clear but all the connecting routes through town to get to this path are not maintained at all. Why do I winter cycle? Because it's just too damn cold to ski! :)
Forget the coat if you feel cold. Go to any sports store and get a super thin thermal under set. I did weekly shopping by walking yesterday in Toronto at -19c in a hoodie and I as too warm.
You and I have very different bodies xD I wear 100% merino wool thermals tops and bottoms, wool socks, fleece mid layer and 800 down jacket with down filled mittens and under mitten made of merino wool and I still feel cold...Genes matter.
I live in the UK, and ride my bike all year. We don't usually get as much snow here as some other countries, but there is no weather in which I haven't ridden my bike.
As they say, there is no such thing as bad weather, just inappropriate clothing.
I'm in favor of winter cycling, but keep in mind that walking/jogging in the winter isn't nearly as bad as cycling for multiple reasons:
• Bicycles are very sensitive to both the driving surface and the wind. Moving by foot can easily walk across rough/bumpy terrain, even slippery ice to a degree, and wind doesn't really affect foot movement at all.
• Bicycling is moving at a much faster speed, so it increases any effective windchill, such that it's _even colder_ than whatever the existing windchill is.
• This is very minor, since most people aren't affected by this because they have higher quality bikes and/or keep them indoors more often, and/or don't have quite as nasty weather as much, but in the winter I've had the ratcheting system in the wheels freeze up, and brakes freeze up. This can result in an unsafe or even outright unusable bicycle (such as with the ratcheting system stuck open, making pedaling do nothing). Even just the bike locks can potentially freeze (although that's probably usually resolvable or surmountable)
We don’t have much winter in Texas and the sidewalks are still icy because they don’t clear them. If that doesn’t say that it’s a issue of infrastructure not being maintained, I don’t know does
I live in rural Ottawa, I've been wanting to bike all winter but my street doesn't get plowed. It's not too cold, the snows just too deep. The city wants to give my village a bike path network but if they don't clear it I won't be able to use it for 3 long months. Though I guess I can just use my snowshoes lol.
We rode to school in the snow every day when I was a kid. Uphill both ways and with no shoes.
Cycling in winter is some of the best times in a way. Barely any pedestrians on sidewalks and far less incompetent cyclists. Commute with ease because you don't have to take idiots into account when riding.
This year was an exception, but last year I'm Toronto, I rollerbladed all winter except for 2 weeks
Unfortunately the bike infrastructure here in Halifax is almost non-existent. There are some separated lanes but are all in downtown, it's not connected to any other part of the city, so you'll have to bike next to cars, which in the winter is asking to die, as most people don't use winter tires.
people not using wintertires while living in a cold area is just blowing my mind!
I'm from denmark, and this year we only had a few days of snow, but I still didn't think twice about putting my winter tires on in the fall.
Winter tires aren't only good for the snow, they also handle water better than summer tires, and we do get a lot of rain. however, we don't, like ALL of our neighbors, have a law for using winter tires, and unfortunately I think it's too late to impose now.. but you guys should!
@@mortenhartvigkristiansen7760 Halifax is not cold enough during the year for people to justify paying 500-1000 dollars on a set o tires. The economy here is only now growing, so a lot of students with no money and a lot of low paying workers.
My roommate has a stable job, decent pay and still doesn't think he has enough money to buy winter tires. He drove me around one day on heavy snow and we almost crashed drifting into a Church.
My issue cycling this winter was ice. Ultimately I ended up walking to to work. My car deals with ice patches left behind by the plows while my bike does not.
One of the best urbanism channels
I used to live a 10 minute walk away from work in Kanata and I biked to work pretty much every day in winter because I'd rather spend 5 minutes outside than 10.