Complete Streets Forum well-timed for Toronto

With bikes vying with transit and road tolls as the hot election issue, a Complete Streets Forum this week at the Royal York Hotel should excite lots of interest in political and planning circles.

The Complete Streets movement is about making roads safer and friendlier for pedestrians and cyclists, as well as motorists and transit riders.

The conference this Thursday and Friday will include speakers from Toronto and regional municipalities. But there will also be presentations from New York and North Carolina.

New York's strides in developing pedestrian and cycling-friendly spaces have been well documented. But Charlotte, N.C.'s achievements are less well known. Last year its Urban Street Design Guidelines were recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as a contributor to the smart growth, anti-sprawl movement.

The conference, organized by the Toronto Active Transportation Coalition, kicks off  Thursday at 7p.m. with a presentation by Kaj Mook, the director of NS OV-fiets, a bike rental system available at all Dutch railway stations. It's being presented in conjunction with the Toronto Cyclists Union and Go Green Go Dutch Go Bike! at Hart House at U of T.