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6. The PEDAL Bike Depot

The PEDAL Bike Depot

A pilot facility for bicycle education, recycling, and mobility programs.

Pedal Energy Development Alternatives (PEDAL) promotes the protection of the environment by reconditioning or recycling bicycles headed for the landfill and by promoting and facilitating cycling as a viable transportation form. Unaffordable or unavailable personal transportation can constitute a serious barrier to the pursuit of economic livelihood and personal fulfillment. PEDAL makes independent transportation accessible to economically disadvantaged residents of Vancouver, thus increasing their mobility. PEDAL initiatives engage people in participatory and empowering ways, and many of those who work with PEDAL go on to become more engaged in their communities as active change agents.

What are they doing?

The PEDAL Bike Depot is a non-retail educational facility where used bicycles can be reclaimed from the waste stream to be refurbished by staff, volunteers, work placements, and at-risk youth. The physical workshop and educational space will be located in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver, in proximity to low income populations.

The main benefits of the Bike Depot include:

1. Increasing the presence of bicycles on city streets

   Bicycles are a key component in green transportation strategies for urban centres in Canada. Vancouver is already known as a world-class cycling city. Further promoting bicycles (and giving out free bicycles to people in need) will ultimately increase the presence of bicycles on city streets, giving further support to developing improved cycling infrastructure in Vancouver. In this sense, all Vancouverites will benefit from the PEDAL Bike Depot's programs, in terms of clean air, developing awareness of cycling, and expanded infrastructure for bicycles in Vancouver.

2. Increasing mobility of low income people

   For poor people, lack of affordable transportation can be a real barrier to obtaining employment and accessing social services. Often purchasing a car is the first goal for new immigrant families, as independent transportation is viewed as necessary to obtaining employment. By offering bicycles as an affordable and clean transportation choice, the Bike Depot can assist in increasing mobility of low-income people and their families in Vancouver. The PEDAL Bike Depot will give away 300 free bicycles and sell 400 refurbished bicycles at low cost in the first year of operations.

3. Teaching skills in bicycle maintenance

   Part of PEDAL's mandate is to encourage self-reliant transportation. Through both education programs and work placements, the PEDAL Bike Depot will give 65 individuals per year direct skills in bicycle maintenance. These skills are straightforward to learn, and bike technology is standardized. Thus, lessons in bicycle maintenance are often passed on from cyclist to cyclist. It is anticipated that participants in the Bike Depot's educational programs will pass on parts of their lessons to other cyclists, thus extending the reach of our educational programs beyond the people directly engaged in the programs.

Where can you find more information?

Pedal Energy Development Alternatives Website

Date modified:

2010-02-03

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