Pedestrian-cyclist cohabitation: a case study of pedestrian streets in Montreal
Practice Overview
Discover who is cycling on our roads and explore the various cycling practices across Quebec.
Discover all 3 subjects of the thematic
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Biking as a Means of Transportation
Far from only being a recreational activity, biking is becoming recognized as a means of transportation for all, children and adults alike. Still largely unexploited, its potential is phenomenal and could launch cities in the province to the top of the list of the most bikeable cities in the world.
A Means of Transportation More and More Popular
Steadily increasing in the past 25 years, biking is more and more used as a means of transportation by the population of Quebec.
Whether it is to get to work, to school, to the grocery store or other activities, almost one out of two cyclists uses biking during the warmer months of the year. During winter, biking is almost exclusively used for transportation purposes.
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Source: Data collected for the État du vélo 2020 by Vélo Québec, gathered in Poirier, A. and Thiériault, J. (2021). État de la pratique du vélo au Québec en 2020
An increase Accelerating Across Quebec
Biking’s modal share has doubled in the past five years in the greater Montreal area, ranking it as one of the most bikeable cities in Canada and in North America.
Not only being observed in Montreal, the recent increase can be noticed in other cities like Trois-Rivières or Sherbrooke.
Sources: (Montreal and neighbourhoods) Detailed tables from the Enquête métropolitaine Perspective mobilité de l'Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain - (Other Quebec municipalities in 2011/12) Vélo Québec (2021). L'État du vélo à Québec/Gatineau/Trois-Rivières/Sherbrooke en 2020 - (Other Quebec municipalities in 2021 and Canadian cities) Statistics Canada, 2021 Census of Population - (Worldwide) Census data gathered on the Wikipedia page Modal Share - (Oulu) Pratte, J. (2011). Mainstreaming bicycling in winter cities : The case of Oulu, Finland
An Enormous Potential to Tap
According to the 2021 Canadian census, 39 % of worker in Quebec live 5 km or less from their workplace, which only represents a bike trip of 20 minutes. This proportion even reaches 46 % or more in mid-sized cities like Trois-Rivières, Saguenay or Sherbrooke and is over 60 % in smaller cities like Val d’Or, Victoriaville or Matane.
Beyond commuting trips, 18 % to 25 % of all trips in larger cities in Quebec could be done by bike. When considering only short trips without cargo or passengers, this potential can even be increased by taking into account the longer distances made possible by electric bikes and the ability to carry children or groceries by bike. considérant les distances accrues parcourables grâce au vélo électrique et la possibilité de transporter des enfants ou des courses avec son vélo.
Credits: © Anne Williams
A Significant Proportion of Youth Cyclists
Amongst cyclists who bike for transportation purposes, children and youth in general are well represented, being one out of three utilitarian cyclists in cities like Saguenay, Sherbrooke or Boucherville. Moreover, these young cyclists are regular bike commuters. No matter their age, 33 % of them bike more than once a week during summer.
Source: Data collected for the État du vélo 2020 by Vélo Québec, gathered in Poirier, A. and Thiériault, J. (2021). État de la pratique du vélo au Québec en 2020
Limits to Bike Usage for Youth
By their behavior and decisions, parents act as role-models for their children’s mobility, especially under the age of 12 years old. In addition, many factors influence their propensity to let their children walk or bike for their daily trips and commute, the two main ones being children’s safety and distance to travel.
Therefore, adapting our environment with biking infrastructures separated from vehicle traffic and education programs on how to bike safely for children are the two best ways to develop their autonomous mobility and reassure their parents.
In 2020, 39 % of parents in Quebec reported that their children’s daily trips were too long to be done by bike. For elementary school children, parents seem to be comfortable with a maximum distance of 1 km to let their child walk to school and 1.2 km for biking. That being said, in the past, most children walkes and biked longer distances. For instance, in 1971, 80 % of them walked to school.
Furthermore, trips of 2 km are easily done in around 20 minutes by children in grades 5 and 6 of elementary school. For the same duration, adolescents can easily cover up to 5 km.
For 23 % of parents, road safety and motorized vehicles are the main obstacles to let their children walk and bike autonomously. although legitimate, this concern induces nonetheless a vicious cycle. As the streets are seen as dangerous, parents prefer to drive their children to school, contributing to the number of cars on our street and increasing the danger level, which discourages other parents from letting their children bike to school.
Socio-economic condition and parents’ mobility habits are key factors when it comes to children’s transportation choices. They are more susceptible to use active transportation if their family are more comfortable financially and if at least one parent is using this type of mobility. Children from immigrant families are less likely to walk or bike.
Beyond the essential role of parents, the social environment is also an important factor. Having an older sibling or having an occupation during the school year will encourage autonomous mobility.
