[ECO]The Rise of Bike Sharing Programs in Canada

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The rise of bike sharing programs in Canada

A few months ago, I wrote 

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 about the increase in BIXI usage in Montreal. BIXI is Montreal’s bike sharing program and the first public bike sharing system in North America. In 2023, 1 in 4 Montrealers took 11.7 million trips, an increase of 31 percent from 2022 and 55 percent from 2021.

BIXI has set the stage for bike sharing programs, which are exploding across the country. Fewer Canadians have been using public buses and trains since the pandemic hit in 2020 and are turning to biking as a way to get around. Riders like the convenience of hopping on a rented bike and dropping it off at their final destination without having to think about the maintenance, storage, or security stresses that come with owning a bike.

Toronto’s Bike Share program, which was introduced in 2011, started with a fleet of 1000 bikes and 90 Smart Stations (bike stations without kiosks). Today, the program has close to 10,000 bikes and over 900 Smart Stations. Toronto’s Bike Share program recorded 5.7 million trips in 2023 and 4.5 million in 2022. The introduction of this bike sharing program is also part of Toronto’s “TransformTO” sustainable strategy, whereby the city plans to reach net zero emissions by 2040.

In 2019, Calgary piloted its Shared Micromobility program, which included the use of e-bikes and e-scooters. Since the introduction of these vehicles, the city has recorded nearly 4 million kilometres ridden. The city also saw a 25 percent increase in ridership between 2021 and 203, with over 1.3 million trips being made each year. The benefits of renting an e-scooter are that they operate on a dockless system, meaning that they are not required to be returned to a kiosk or docking station.

Vancouver’s

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is the city’s official bike sharing program. They have over 2500 bikes, including over 600 e-bikes,  all over the city and over 250 stations to pick up and drop off the bikes. In 2023, the bike sharing program recorded 1.2 million rides, up from 2022 which had 977,000 rides. The total distance travelled also grew by 38% from 2.72 million km to 3.77 million km in 2023.

The introduction of e-bikes (electric bikes that run on batteries and help make cycling easier, especially when travelling uphill) in all of these programs has also helped to increase ridership. Another factor in the rise in ridership is the minimal financial investment of using one of these programs. Many of them offer pay-as-you-go packages or annual packages, which sometimes cost less than purchasing bus or train tickets.

Of course, one of the drawbacks of these bike sharing programs in a country like Canada is that because of snowy and icy winters, the bikes or scooters can generally only be used in the spring, summer and fall months. In 2023, BIXI in Montreal was the only bike sharing program to swap out its summer bike fleet for winter bikes that had studded tired and non-slip pedals. BIXI logged 467,000 trips between November and March, which is double what the company estimated. Many bike paths around the city were also cleared and salted to allow bikers access during these months.

Bike sharing programs are expanding across Canada, and it is very encouraging to see how many Canadians are opting to use these programs. Cities are creating more bike paths and are making it safer for people to bike. With more bike users, we might see a demand and use for cars to decrease and carbon emissions to go down as a result. Slowly but surely, we are biking our way to a more sustainable future.

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