Written by Dorinda So, Executive Director at pointA
At pointA, we focus on the demand side of sustainable transportation, which means we provide knowledge, support, and incentives to employees and residents to try alternative modes of transportation other than driving alone, which contributes GHG emissions and adds to congestion on the roads. Transportation is a leading contributor to the GHG emissions in most regions in Canada and therefore, through our programs, we support the reduction of GHG emissions by working to increase the number of cycling trips every year, which is an affordable and effective way to get around.
Key to this transition and growth is the issue of cycling safety. Of upmost importance is of course cycling infrastructure such as separated bike lanes, but the bike itself must also be safe. Bikes are vehicles after all and they too need to be maintained, preferably by experienced mechanics or else they just end up in the landfill.
The problem is that we don’t have enough bike mechanics. Bike mechanics are the “gateway role” to the rest of the bike industry, which means that every career in the bike industry builds upon the skills acquired from repairing and maintaining bikes. Trained bike mechanics can set up their own bike shops and services, work as wholesalers, manufacturers, procurement specialists, designers, or work in the bike tourism industry. These are the critical jobs that not only ensure our bikes are safe, but also generate economic growth.
Last year, we formed Bike Training Collective Canada with The Centre of Active Transportation (TCAT), with funding support from the City of Toronto, and the Peter Gilgan Foundation to bring together four training organizations (The Learning Enrichment Foundation, CultureLink, Charlie’s Freewheels, and the Canadian E-Bike Association) to expand the excellent training work that they already do, providing bike mechanic training to many people, including youth, women, and new Canadians.
We’re working to scale up the number of bike mechanics trained because the City of Toronto’s 2040 net-zero strategy, TransformTO, has set a goal to ensure that 75% of all trips under 5 kilometres are taken via public transit, walked or cycled, with a further push of moving transit users and drivers to cycling. If the City is successful in achieving this target, it means that we’ll see 648 million trips per year – a 4,800% increase from the current 13 million annual cycling trips taken in Toronto.
Currently, there are about 200 bike mechanics working in Toronto who can service 53,000 bikes every year, but by 2040, we’ll need 3,000 to 12,400 bike mechanics – a growth of 1,400% to 6,100% over the next 15 years. At current rates, we are only expected to have 1,100 bike mechanics by 2040, falling short of even the lowest target.
Scaling up the number of bike mechanics will not only enable more people to cycle safely, but also generate significant economic growth: 5,000 cycling and cycling-related businesses paying $1.2 billion in wages annually, 36,500 full-time positions, and $3.3 billion in sales – just in Toronto alone. To ensure that other regions can also benefit from these gains, the Collective has ambitions to grow our work across Canada so that bike mechanics can work anywhere across the country. This would include developing a national standard curriculum for bike mechanics, closing the gap between training and employment, and offering bike mechanics with more employment opportunities. We also want to partner with local bike shops and cycling businesses and organizations so that we can share resources and grow the industry together.
Increasing cycling is not just good for emissions reduction or congestion mitigation, it also produces economic growth that can create viable, long-term jobs for a burgeoning industry that is poised to expand to meet the expected demand for cycling, in Toronto and beyond.
For more information and to learn how you be part of the Bike Collective’s work, visit: www.bikecareer.ca.
Note: The estimates and economic impacts above are calculated by McSweeney & Associates for the City of Toronto.
