2022 BCCC Cycling Grant Program Update
Our 2022 grant recipients have just completed their project term and we are so excited to showcase their accomplishments!
Port Alberni/Alberni Valley Transition Town Society: Port Alberni Student Cycling Skills and Safety Program - Funding of a cycling skills and education program for high school students to transfer cycling safety and encouragement of cycling to elementary school children.
Outcome/Impact on the Community: Local youth will have access to supervised skills, safety and recreational bicycle riding programs, providing access to trails throughout our region and at all schools in our district through the use of the new trailer for the transport of bikes to the various locations in the community. Most importantly, the trailer will allow every grade 5 and 6 student in our community the possibility of accessing bike safety and skills training even if they don’t have their own bike. With the generous help of this grant of $1810 we have been able to assist our community (with the help of a local bike shop, Rotary club and youth alcohol service who also contributed to the project) to acquire a bicycle trailer for up to 20 bikes.
The trailer will be used for transporting bikes for community bike training and skills camps put on by our Parks and Recreation as well as School District based programs for grades 5 and 6 students.
West Kootenay Cycling Coalition: Go By Bike in the West Kootenays - Through promotions and activity events like Go By Bike in the spring and fall, WKCC will bring more programs and events to the West Kootenays and to promote the WKCC so that we can build a stronger collective voice and be better advocates for cyclists in the region.
Outcome/Impact on the Community: We are very grateful for the grant from the BCCC. It has allowed us to do a number of things to bring awareness to our organization and help us grow our membership. There are so many that it is hard to write them out in any way other than a list!
Bike and trailer ready to party!
1. Purchase insurance so that we can run fun events in our communities such as two evening "bike raves." where people dress up in lights and bike as a group together. Here is a picture of our VP's bike rave bike with lights, a boom box, and a flag from our sticker challenge.
2. Build and host a new website that is easily updatable by WKCC volunteers.
3. Buy materials so that we can have a booth at public events such as the Nelson e-bike expo pictured here.
4. Allow free membership so that anyone can join without a cost barrier or the work of processing finances, which allows our volunteers to focus on cycling advocacy.
5. Buy materials for fun challenge events such as Nelson's flag and sticker challenge that we ran with the fall GoByBike week. Here are some of the sticker sheets we have for placing on the flags.
6. We have also been able to support the work of our Nelson to Castlegar bike lane feasibility project by renting halls and printing supplies for public consultation meetings in communities along the route. Below is a map of the route that we were able to print for the public consultation meetings thanks to the grant. These meetings have been a large source of new member sign ups.
Cycle 16 Trail Society: Cycle 16 Multi-Use Trail Phase 1 Signage - increase ridership and safety with improved signage along the 3.8 km stretch from the Bulkley Bridge to the Babine Lake Road to help give clear instructions about driveway crossings, intersections and challenging grades.
Outcome/Impact on the Community: There is palpable excitement in the community. Although users are not advised to ride on the trail as it is still a construction site, cyclists and walkers are very keen. Having the first 4 km phase completed will give positive momentum for the next two phases. The trail connects directly to a mobile home park with 80 families. Cycle 16 envisions residents will be able to access the trail to commute to employment, schools, recreational facilities and all other built environments in the Town of Smithers. The trail offers a safe option to a very busy Highway 16.
Comox Valley Cycling Coalition: Digital Marketing for Adult Education (Ride Right) - Digital marketing campaign and instructor training to increase adult cycling and safety in Comox Valley.
Outcome/Impact to Community - Overall, we’ve seen an impressive increase in our social media presence, which continues to grow at a steady pace. Promotion of the Annual General Meeting was particularly successful with over 50 attendees and 2 new members prior to the event. The frequency and the visual quality of our posts has also given our accounts an updated, professional look and feel while remaining engaging, accessible, and informative for all, and has greatly improved our outreach to get more adults riding!
Active Communities Bella Coola - Better Cycling Bella Coola - This project provided matching funds for 2 bike racks, installation. and a celebration event during Go By Bike week Spring 2022.
Outcome/Impact to Community - The grant has helped Bella Coola with a small start to improving the cycling environment by increasing safety awareness and convenience measures for cyclists. The announcements drew attention to the BCCC funding initiatives and has helped and encouraged those who commute with bikes for errands, school cycling programs to have a community hub to feel welcomed. The Bella Coola townsite is 4km from the Nuxalk Nation Reserve. The Bella Coola post office shares a corner with the Credit Union and the liquor store. At the same time we are working on 6 highway "Share the Road" signs will be mounted on the areas of narrow shoulders from Bella Coola to Hagensborg by the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure.
