Lake Ontario Waterfront Trail News

An Ezine Produced by the Waterfront Regeneration Trust

CIBC* COIPThe Lake Ontario waterfront municipalities, conservation authorities and community groupsThe Eastern Lake Ontario – St. Lawrence River Waterfront Working Group MapArt* Niagara Freewheelers Bicycle Touring Club* Regional Niagara Bicycling Committee St. Lawrence Cement* Tilley Endurables

April 2006

In this issue:

Trust Kicks Off Trail Manager’s End to End Tour
New Mobility Hub Launched in Toronto
Upcoming Conferences and Community Events
- Lake Erie Ontario Bicycling Route (OBR) Tour
- Celebration of Trails - Event Development Workshops

Trust Kicks Off Trail Manager’s End to End Tour

It’s been 4 years since our last end to end tour in 2002. This year we decided to go the distance with another complete end to end tour which will take us all the way from Niagara-on-the-Lake to the Quebec border. As well as being a great opportunity to enjoy the Trail and connect with our partners along the waterfront, this tour will serve as a trial run in advance of the re-opening of the Trail in 2007. The re-opening will coincide with the 15th anniversary of the Regeneration, the report that got the ball rolling with its recommendation for the Waterfront Trail. The first leg of the Trail Manager’s End to End Tour kicked off on April 24th in Niagara-on-the-Lake when we met with area trail managers and local media. From Monday to Thursday, the group endured strong winds and some very cold spring weather. We traveled 168 kms from NOTL to Toronto’s eastern Beach community. Overall the experience was outstanding. It is inspiring to see how many improvements have been made to the Trail and learn about the exciting enhancements planned for the future.

This year the Trust will be undertaking a project to update the Trail Design Guidelines created in 1996. As part of the tour, the Trust and trail managers will review the tremendous progress to date on the 650 kms of the Waterfront Trail. It’s our opportunity to compare theory to practice and see what works well and what needs more attention. It’s also a chance to incorporate feedback from local municipalities on their innovative solutions to the challenges of building the trail. Input from communities along the trail will be used to improve and enhance the Trail Design Guidelines in the future. The Trust gratefully acknowledges the Ministry of Health Promotion for its contribution towards this work.

Congratulations and thanks to Clive Buist, Darcy Baker, Ken Forgeron, Stuart Green, Rob Norman, Steve Barnhart, Richard Roberts, Ruth Marland for taking time to join and/or meet the tour on its first leg. We are looking forward to meeting up with as many trail managers, councilors and tourism staff as possible on this tour.

To view the press release for the Tour, click here.

New Mobility Hub Launched in Toronto

April 25th marked the launch of an exciting new integrated transportation hub at Exhibition Place, right on downtown Toronto’s waterfront. The New Mobility Hub brings together a wide variety of transportation modes, including BikeShare, TTC, GO Transit, Auto Share and improved cycling facilities. By offering easy and convenient connections between different transportation modes, the New Mobility Hub is expected to encourage the use of sustainable forms of transportation, including bicycling and car-sharing.

This is great news for Waterfront Trail cyclists! The availability of commuter bike lockers as well as the integration of the popular BikeShare program with motorized transportation will provide Trail users with increased options for combining cycling and other transportation modes to access the Waterfront Trail.

The New Mobility Hub project is headed by Moving the Economy, a partnership of the City of Toronto, Transportation Options and the Federal Government of Canada. The project was co-funded by Transport Canada, through the Transportation Planning and Modal Integration initiative of the Strategic Highway Infrastructure Program and the City of Toronto.

For more information about the New Mobility Hub, visit www.movingtheeconomy.ca/content/mte_hubAbout.html or contact Briana Illingworth, Executive Director, by phone at (416) 392 1556 or by email at billing@toronto.ca.

Upcoming Conferences and Community Events:

Lake Erie Ontario Bicycling Route (OBR) Tour

The Cycle Ontario Alliance is looking for cyclists to participate in a promotional tour of the Ontario Bicycling Route. The trip will run from Windsor to Niagara-on-the-Lake over 7 days, from Saturday June 24 to Saturday July 1st. It is designed to gain recognition and support for the Ontario Bicycling Route, which consists of a proposed network of on-road cycling trails that will connect all regions across Ontario. Riders will have the opportunity to participate in media and meeting events with various stakeholders.

The cost of the trip is about $350, which includes accommodation (mostly camping) and meals. For more information about the trip, please contact John Sigurjonsson of Canadian Trails Adventure Tours at info@canadiantrails.com.

To learn more about the Ontario Bicycling Route, go to www.cycleontario.ca/pcrn.

Celebration of Trails - Event Development Workshops

Celebration of Trails, an annual celebration of trails events and communities in Haliburton, Northumberland, Peterborough, City of Kawartha Lakes, Hastings and other area communities, is hosting a series of workshops entitled “How to Create a Successful Trails Event.” These workshops are designed to provide:

Tips for creating successful Trails Events
Planning resources for Trail Events- rules and regulations, safety, insurance, etc.
Ideas on types of events that could be planned and offered on trails
Networking opportunities with trail event organizers and community stakeholders
The opportunity to learn more about how you can benefit from the Celebration of Trails initiative, including promotion, support and event planning assistance

There is a workshop is taking place at the Keeler Centre in Colborne on Tues. May 9th, 6:30pm - 9:30pm. Other workshops are taking place in Lindsay (May 8th), Madoc (May 8th), Peterborough (May 9th) and Haliburton (May 10th).

For more information or to register for a workshop, contact Michlynne Murphy by email at mmurphy@kawarthasmallbusiness.com or by phone at (705) 328-0261.

Happy Spring!

Vicki Barron, Executive Director;
Marlaine Koehler, Program Director;
and Nikki Rendle, Editor Lake Ontario Waterfront Trail News

The Waterfront Regeneration Trust
372 Richmond Street West, Suite 308
Toronto, Ontario
M5V 1X6
Tel: 416-943-8080
Fax: 416-943-8068
Email: nr@wrtrust.com
www.waterfronttrail.org

Visit www.waterfronttrail.org to download 90 online colour maps of the Waterfront Trail, from Niagara-on-the-Lake to Brockville!

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