The Windsor Law Centre for Cities has released a new report: Windsor’s Cycling History, authored by Windsor Law Professor and former Dean of Law, Dr. Christopher Waters.
As the author suggests, despite its ‘Motor City’ label, Windsor has been and is a cycling city as well. In his report, Professor Waters recounts a century and a half of cycling history in Windsor.
“From the bicycle craze of the 1890s, to the bicycle boom of the 1970s, to its resurgence during the pandemic, Windsor’s engagement with cycling has been significant and unbroken,” writes Dr. Waters. “A string of cycling plans in the city -going back to the 1970s- have been unambitiously implemented. Despite this, some advances have been made in improving infrastructure for active transportation and, through it all, Windsor’s utilitarian and recreational cycling scenes have been remarkably resilient.”
The report argues that even if we have never fully realized the potential of our flat topography, mild winters, the good bones of our urban core, and proximity to natural and built heritage – Windsor is a cycling city. As the environmental, health, equity and city-building benefits of cycling come into sharp focus in the twenty-first century, it is an opportune time to highlight Windsor’s cycling, and cycling policy, past and present.
Dr. Waters is a former Chair of the Windsor Bicycling Committee and rides a ‘beaten-up’ commuter bike daily. He researches on international law and cycling law. He is also the author of the second edition of Every Cyclist’s Guide to Canadian Law (forthcoming from Irwin Press).
Read the full report on the Windsor Law Centre for Cities website.
Read this story on the DailyNews website.
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