Grant Burke left the federal public service a month ago, but his former employer is still putting him to work. As front store manager at Full Cycle bike shop in Hintonburg, Burke has seen brisk demand for commuter-style bikes and servicing that has extended well into the typically slow summer months.
“Normally we’re like, ‘OK, it’s going to start to get a little bit chill,’ right?” he said. “It has not been chill.”
Growing demand for commuter bikes
Burke, who used to co-own Tall Tree Cycles, noticed an increasing number of co-workers locking their bikes at Natural Resources Canada’s office near Dow’s Lake. Now, he sees the trend continuing, with many customers seeking functional, unpretentious bikes. “This is going to be a daily driver,” he said. “Think of it like a Honda Civic of bikes.”
Outside government office buildings downtown, bike racks are crowded with such bikes. Public servants told the Ottawa Citizen that storage facilities are only getting fuller, and city traffic counter data supports this observation.
City data shows rebound
The City of Ottawa operates 28 permanent and four temporary counters tracking cycling and pedestrian activity. Bike traffic in and out of the downtown core is captured at three locations: Laurier Avenue at Metcalfe Street, O’Connor Street at Somerset Street, and Nanny Goat Hill near Bronson Avenue and Slater Street.
Since 2019, the data “appear to reflect the impacts of COVID-19,” according to Kalle Hakala, program manager in active transportation planning. Declines in daily and weekday averages between 2019 and 2020 are “likely linked to reduced commuting,” he added. But after a steep plunge at the start of the pandemic, the numbers have been steadily climbing.
Infrastructure challenges
Bike Ottawa’s Florence Lehmann, a former public servant, used to take the Laurier Avenue bike lane into the office. This week, shortly after the federal four-day return-to-office policy took effect, she walked around downtown Ottawa photographing bike racks jammed to the brim with commuter bicycles.
The available infrastructure, she said, is a “mix and match.” Some buildings follow the gold standard: sheltered bike parking accessible only with a key card. Other government workers are left to fend for themselves, locking their bikes wherever they can find a space on the street. Multiple public servants in the latter camp told the Citizen they’ve had bikes stolen at work in the past.
