Town receives honour for being bicycle-friendly

The town has once again been named a Silver Bicycle Friendly community by the Share the Road.

With spring around the corner and warmer weather coming, looking for a good place to cycle?

Look no further than Collingwood.

It’s time to dust off the old bike because the town has been honoured as a Silver Bicycle Friendly Community (BFC) by the Share the Road Cycling Coalition.

The organization advocates for a bicycle-friendly Ontario with the goal of being the most bicycle-friendly place in North America.

The silver designation means Collingwood is committed to making cycling safe, accessible and enjoyable for residents and visitors.

For communities to earn a designation, they must excel in engineering, education, encouragement, and evaluation and planning.

“This recognition shows that Collingwood is working hard to make cycling safe, easy to use, and enjoyable for everyone who lives here or visits,” says Collingwood Mayor Yvonne Hamlin. “It reflects the work we’ve done and will continue to do to build a community where active transportation is supported and encouraged for everyone.”

The BFC program was launched in 2010 to provide guidance and support for municipalities actively promoting cycling.

Collingwood was already awarded silver in 2021 but continues to work toward the gold status.

Only four cities in Ontario have the gold honour: Toronto, Ottawa, Kitchener and Waterloo.

Newmarket and Wasaga Beach currently fall under the bronze designation.

Most of the other communities in the region have honourable mentions including Barrie, Bracebridge, Midland, Aurora and Orillia.