{"id":4705,"date":"2014-07-30T09:00:05","date_gmt":"2014-07-30T13:00:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/?p=4705"},"modified":"2014-07-29T14:22:30","modified_gmt":"2014-07-29T18:22:30","slug":"discovering-victorias-vital-human-infrastructure","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/2014\/07\/30\/discovering-victorias-vital-human-infrastructure\/","title":{"rendered":"Discovering Victoria\u2019s vital human infrastructure"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/feature-cities-for-people-new.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-4182\" src=\"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/feature-cities-for-people-new-600x83.jpg\" alt=\"cities for people\" width=\"600\" height=\"83\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/feature-cities-for-people-new-600x83.jpg 600w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/feature-cities-for-people-new-300x41.jpg 300w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/feature-cities-for-people-new-940x130.jpg 940w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/feature-cities-for-people-new.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Author\u2019s Note:<\/strong> Earlier this month, <a title=\"Modacity\" href=\"http:\/\/www.modacitylife.com\" target=\"_blank\">Modacity<\/a> were invited by the <a title=\"Greater Victoria Cycling Coalition\" href=\"http:\/\/gvcc.bc.ca\" target=\"_blank\">Greater Victoria Cycling Coalition<\/a> to kick off their brand new <a title=\"Trans-Form Speaker Series\" href=\"http:\/\/gvcc.bc.ca\/july-11-presentation-as-easy-as-riding-a-bike\/\" target=\"_blank\">Trans-Form Speaker Series<\/a>. So our family packed up our panniers, and made the <a title=\"multi-modal journey\" href=\"http:\/\/www.modacitylife.com\/blog\/our-cycling-world-just-got-a-little-bigger\" target=\"_blank\">multi-modal journey<\/a> to Vancouver Island via train, bus, ferry, and bicycle. We also had the opportunity to spend some time cycling and photographing their city streets, and chatting with \u00a0local advocates. The end result is the following photo essay\u00a0that attempts to capture the state of utility cycling in Victoria in 2014, both for better and for worse.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\t\t<div class='not-prose mt-12'><ul id='gallery-1' class='gallery galleryid-4705 gallery-columns-3 gallery-size-thumbnail grid grid-cols-3 gap-x-6 gap-y-8'><li class='gallery-item text-sm'><a class='fancybox' rel='gallery-4705' data-title-id='gallery-caption-4818' href='https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/31.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/31-150x150.jpg\" class=\"w-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/31-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/31-62x62.jpg 62w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a><\/li><li class='gallery-item text-sm'><a class='fancybox' rel='gallery-4705' data-title-id='gallery-caption-4819' href='https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/101.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/101-150x150.jpg\" class=\"w-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/101-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/101-62x62.jpg 62w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a><\/li><li class='gallery-item text-sm'><a class='fancybox' rel='gallery-4705' data-title-id='gallery-caption-4820' href='https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/21.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/21-150x150.jpg\" class=\"w-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/21-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/21-62x62.jpg 62w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a><\/li><li class='gallery-item text-sm'><a class='fancybox' rel='gallery-4705' data-title-id='gallery-caption-4821' href='https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/71.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/71-150x150.jpg\" class=\"w-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/71-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/71-62x62.jpg 62w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a><\/li><li class='gallery-item text-sm'><a class='fancybox' rel='gallery-4705' data-title-id='gallery-caption-4822' href='https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/81.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/81-150x150.jpg\" class=\"w-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/81-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/81-62x62.jpg 62w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a><\/li><li class='gallery-item text-sm'><a class='fancybox' rel='gallery-4705' data-title-id='gallery-caption-4823' href='https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/91.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/91-150x150.jpg\" class=\"w-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/91-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/91-62x62.jpg 62w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a><\/li><li class='gallery-item text-sm'><a class='fancybox' rel='gallery-4705' data-title-id='gallery-caption-4824' href='https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/41.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/41-150x150.jpg\" class=\"w-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/41-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/41-62x62.jpg 62w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a><\/li><li class='gallery-item text-sm'><a class='fancybox' rel='gallery-4705' data-title-id='gallery-caption-4825' href='https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/51.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/51-150x150.jpg\" class=\"w-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/51-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/51-62x62.jpg 62w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a><\/li><li class='gallery-item text-sm'><a class='fancybox' rel='gallery-4705' data-title-id='gallery-caption-4826' href='https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/61.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/61-150x150.jpg\" class=\"w-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/61-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/61-62x62.jpg 62w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a><\/li><li class='gallery-item text-sm'><a class='fancybox' rel='gallery-4705' data-title-id='gallery-caption-4827' href='https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/112.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/112-150x150.jpg\" class=\"w-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/112-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/112-62x62.jpg 62w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a><\/li><li class='gallery-item text-sm'><a class='fancybox' rel='gallery-4705' data-title-id='gallery-caption-4828' href='https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/121.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/121-150x150.jpg\" class=\"w-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/121-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/121-62x62.jpg 62w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a><\/li><li class='gallery-item text-sm'><a class='fancybox' rel='gallery-4705' data-title-id='gallery-caption-4815' href='https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/13.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/13-150x150.jpg\" class=\"w-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/13-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/13-62x62.jpg 62w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n\n<p>A bittersweet thing happened to Victoria \u2013 the sleepy capital of British Columbia found on the southernmost tip of Vancouver Island \u2013 during the late 1990s. Buoyed by news that they led the country with an impressive <a title=\"10% of their population\" href=\"http:\/\/www.victoria.ca\/EN\/main\/community\/sustainability\/environmental\/transportation-initiatives.html\" target=\"_blank\">10% of their population<\/a> biking to work, local advocates naively declared themselves \u201c<a title=\"Canada's Cycling Capital\" href=\"http:\/\/www.victoria.ca\/EN\/main\/community\/about\/transportation\/cycling.html\" target=\"_blank\">Canada\u2019s Cycling Capital<\/a>\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>There\u2019s no doubt the region took a few meagre steps to facilitate this one type of journey, including a series of <a title=\"rail-to-trail\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gallopinggoosetrail.com\" target=\"_blank\">rail-to-trail<\/a>\u00a0conversions, and a <a title=\"decent set\" href=\"http:\/\/www.victoria.ca\/EN\/main\/community\/about\/cycling\/our-cycling-network\/biking-routes-in-victoria.html\" target=\"_blank\">decent set<\/a> of painted bike lanes and sharrows. However, it remains an often overemphasized statistic (making up just one in five daily trips) that was as much a product of circumstance \u2013 a small population (just over 80,000), compact size (less than 20 sq. km.), mild climate, moderate topography \u2013 than it was of design and political will.<\/p>\n<p>This premature assertion soon became more of a curse than a blessing, as politicians and city officials sometimes used it as an excuse not to invest resources in much-needed infrastructure. When pushed to increase budgets and staffing levels around active transportation projects, they would occasionally\u00a0point to that title (and one misleading digit) as proof that it simply wasn\u2019t needed.<\/p>\n<p>There have definitely\u00a0been other factors at work, including a risk-averse culture at City Hall, inadequate staffing levels, a lack of political leadership, an older generation of senior planners and engineers, a disconnected road network, and a not-so-effective advocacy community.<\/p>\n<p>But regardless of the cause, cycling uptake has <a title=\"stagnated\" href=\"http:\/\/www.timescolonist.com\/opinion\/op-ed\/comment-victoria-woefully-behind-on-cycling-plan-1.712698\" target=\"_blank\">stagnated<\/a> for 15 years; Victoria has fallen woefully behind the rest of the continent, and is\u00a0only now beginning to realize it\u00a0has some serious catching-up to do.<\/p>\n<p>Luckily, the City of Victoria appears ready to right those wrongs in 2014, as it updates its <a title=\"Bicycle Master Plan\" href=\"http:\/\/www.victoria.ca\/EN\/main\/community\/about\/cycling\/update-to-the-bicycle-master-plan.html\" target=\"_blank\">Bicycle Master Plan<\/a> for the first time since 1995, with <a title=\"$5-million\" href=\"https:\/\/victoria.civicweb.net\/Documents\/DocumentList.aspx?ID=69128\" target=\"_blank\">$5 million<\/a> worth of crucial <a title=\"infrastructure projects\" href=\"http:\/\/www.victoria.ca\/EN\/main\/community\/about\/cycling\/new-cycling-projects.html\" target=\"_blank\">infrastructure projects<\/a> over the next five years (an astounding four-fold increase in the annual budget) that will make cycling safe and comfortable for all of its residents. This process was driven by an enthusiastic and passionate group of citizens \u2013 all of who volunteer countless hours out of love for the city they call home.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cBe the Change We Want to See\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Susan Stokhof works full-time as a business analyst for the provincial government. Outside of the office, you\u2019ll find her working tirelessly to promote what is possible when you design a lifestyle around the bicycle. Inspired by two-wheeled travels to Amsterdam and Haarlem with her Dutch husband Laszlo, she founded <a title=\"Le V\u00e9lo Victoria\" href=\"http:\/\/levelovictoria.co\" target=\"_blank\">Le V\u00e9lo Victoria<\/a> to \u201cbring the sexy back to cycling; while providing stylish, yet functional accessories that perfectly compliment your wardrobe, ride, and destination.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In addition to an online boutique and travelling pop-up, Susan provides a vital voice in the push to normalize cycling\u00a0in Victoria. From regular features on <a title=\"her blog\" href=\"http:\/\/levelovictoria.co\/blogs\/news\/12511565-in-conversation-with-cecily-walker\" target=\"_blank\">her blog<\/a> about the citizen cycling movement (with a particular focus on <a title=\"women\" href=\"http:\/\/levelovictoria.co\/blogs\/news\/14306277-guest-blogger-olena-russell\" target=\"_blank\">women<\/a> who cycle for transport), to sponsoring <a title=\"events\" href=\"http:\/\/levelovictoria.co\/blogs\/news\/14809209-pop-up-and-as-easy-as-riding-a-bike-a-trans-form-speakers-series-1\" target=\"_blank\">events<\/a> that bring guest speakers to the island to inspire and inform, she rightly puts her money (and boundless energy) where her mouth is.<\/p>\n<p>Most importantly, Susan\u2019s website presents powerful, rarely seen images of bicycle normalcy, in a region where sport and recreational cycling still reign supreme. \u201cWe\u2019re attempting to promote a lifestyle we want to see, especially in Victoria. The more people buy into the idea cycling is a normal activity that millions partake in every single day, the more likely we are to build better bicycle infrastructure here. I believe we need to be the change we want to see.\u201d On that point she is exactly right.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cEvery Day Is an Adventure\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Mike Russell has been a police officer for over 10 years, first with the <a title=\"Edmonton Police Service\" href=\"http:\/\/www.edmontonpolice.ca\" target=\"_blank\">Edmonton Police Service<\/a>, and most recently working as the <a title=\"Victoria Police Department\" href=\"https:\/\/www.vicpd.ca\" target=\"_blank\">Victoria Police Department<\/a>\u2019s Social Media Officer and Media Spokesperson. He and his wife Olena headed west from oil country in 2008, a move which enabled a gradual transition from owning two cars, to one, to their current status as a car-free family of five (with one more on the way).<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMuch like others in our situation, the family car was becoming a very expensive lawn ornament, its use so negligible it wasn\u2019t worth keeping any more. Our mantra is \u2018every day is an adventure\u2019, and when you travel by alternate means, it truly is.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>As a result, Mike and Olena are able to use some of their newly liberated transport budget on a fleet of bicycles. Some are daily commuter bikes \u2013 such as the large \u2018bakfiets\u2019 cargo bike Olena uses to haul around two kids at a time. Some are antique bicycles Mike lovingly restores in their garage. \u201cIn total, including two cargo bikes and all of the kids\u2019 bikes, we have\u00a013. We&#8217;re set for almost every age and stage of our children\u2019s lives, and considering as of January we&#8217;ll have four, we better be!&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Less time commuting long distances (and less time paying for it) means they spend more time contributing to local civic affairs. It permits them to volunteer with the <a title=\"Greater Victoria Cycling Coalition\" href=\"http:\/\/gvcc.bc.ca\" target=\"_blank\">Greater Victoria Cycling Coalition<\/a>, and to participate in various community consultations, food security initiatives, charitable causes, and <a title=\"placemaking events\" href=\"http:\/\/rethinkurban.com\/2014\/creative-change\/taking-to-the-street-for-talk-about-streets\/\" target=\"_blank\">placemaking events<\/a>. The Russells are doing everything in their power to make Victoria a better place for their children, something that is only further enabled by their car-free existence.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cBikes Mean Business\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Ray Straatsma migrated from the Lower Mainland to Vancouver Island in late 2009, when his partner took a job with the provincial government. After\u00a0seven years as a bike\u00a0and transit advocate in Vancouver, he took a brief hiatus, eventually involving himself in local cycling matters, and settling into his current role\u00a0managing special projects\u00a0for\u00a0the <a title=\"Greater Victoria Cycling Coalition\" href=\"http:\/\/gvcc.bc.ca\" target=\"_blank\">Greater Victoria Cycling Coalition<\/a>. Earlier this year, Ray co-authored a report entitled \u201c<a title=\"Bikes Mean Business\" href=\"http:\/\/gvcc.bc.ca\/advocacy\/bikes-mean-business\/\" target=\"_blank\">Bikes Mean Business<\/a>\u201d, supported with funding from the City of Victoria <a title=\"Special Grants Program\" href=\"http:\/\/www.victoria.ca\/EN\/main\/departments\/parks-rec-culture\/culture\/sustainability-grants.html\" target=\"_blank\">Special Grants Program<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt surprises many of us [at the GVCC] that City Hall has not generally seized the opportunity to be a leading cycling city \u2013 despite clear tourism, economic and social benefits.\u201d So Ray set about articulating these prospects in a more palatable format, interviewing over 500 people on sidewalks, followed by 125 downtown businesses.<\/p>\n<p>The results speak for themselves: almost three-quarters of those surveyed (71%) arrived downtown by foot, bicycle, or public transit. Predictably, business owners significantly underestimated how many customers walked and cycled to their establishment; however, a majority \u201cwere supportive of bike facilities, improved sidewalks, better transit, and other transport investments for the city\u2019s downtown.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ray believes this report will elevate the discourse around the business case for bike infrastructure, and eliminate a lingering sense of complacency among civic leaders. \u201cWe don\u2019t really have the type of bike network that existing riders deserve, let alone facilities that will generate new ones \u2013 namely women, families, and novices.\u201d He appears to have succeeded, with city council and staff advancing all but one of the report\u2019s five key recommendations, in the four short months since it was published.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Raised Expectations and Lofty Goals<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In the meantime, raised expectations and lofty goals (<a title=\"60% of all trips\" href=\"http:\/\/www.victoria.ca\/EN\/main\/community\/about\/cycling.html\" target=\"_blank\">60% of all trips<\/a> by bike\/foot\/transit in 2041) have motivated the City of Victoria to bring its inadequate, out-of-date, and disconnected bicycle network up to 21st-century design standards. But with a tax base and operating budget that is a fraction of its Canadian counterparts, this upgrade will take a certain amount of patience and creativity.<\/p>\n<p>The city\u2019s first two physically separated cycle tracks are in the planning stages \u2013 one on a <a title=\"well-used downtown street\" href=\"http:\/\/www.victoria.ca\/assets\/Departments\/Engineering~Public~Works\/Documents\/Bicycle%20Infrastructure%20Improvements%20Fact%20Sheet.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">well-used downtown street<\/a> and another on a <a title=\"scenic waterfront route\" href=\"http:\/\/www.victoria.ca\/EN\/main\/community\/about\/cycling\/new-cycling-projects\/dallas-road-bike-path.html\" target=\"_blank\">scenic waterfront route<\/a> \u2013 both designed to coincide with other road construction. Connecting to one of those cycle tracks is the 90-year-old Johnson Street Bridge, in the midst of a <a title=\"$93-million replacement\" href=\"http:\/\/www.johnsonstreetbridge.com\/new-bridge\/design\/\" target=\"_blank\">$93-million replacement<\/a>, with 50% of the new deck space dedicated to pedestrians and bicycles.<\/p>\n<p>While local politicians seem willing to talk the talk, it will be up to selfless citizens like Susan, Mike, Olena, and Ray to ensure they continue to walk the walk. For now, Victoria remains \u201cCanada\u2019s Cycling Capital\u201d in name only (a title Montreal has <a title=\"rightfully earned\" href=\"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/2014\/06\/16\/north-americas-best-kept-cycling-secret\/\" target=\"_blank\">rightfully earned<\/a> with decades of hard work and political will). But with the human infrastructure outlined above, there\u2019s every chance they will seize this remarkable opportunity, and fulfill its potential; not just as a good, but as a <strong><em>great<\/em><\/strong> cycling city.<\/p>\n<p><em>**<\/em><br \/>\n<em> [To view the full collection of photographs taken by the author, please click <a title=\"here\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/media\/set\/?set=a.782640391787920.1073741833.754899121228714\" target=\"_blank\">here<\/a>.]<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>**<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Chris Bruntlett is the co-founder of <a title=\"Modacity\" href=\"http:\/\/www.modacitylife.com\" target=\"_blank\">Modacity<\/a>, a multi-service consultancy focused on inspiring healthier, happier, simpler forms of urban mobility through words, photography and film. You can find Chris on Twitter: <a title=\"@modacitylife\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/modacitylife\" target=\"_blank\">@modacitylife<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/Cities-for-people-logo-NEW.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-4579\" src=\"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/Cities-for-people-logo-NEW.jpg\" alt=\"Cities-for-people-logo-NEW\" width=\"150\" height=\"74\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<h3>The Cities For People features are a project between\u00a0<em>Spacing\u00a0<\/em>and <a href=\"http:\/\/citiesforpeople.ca\/en\" target=\"_blank\">Cities For People<\/a><\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Author\u2019s Note: Earlier this month, Modacity were invited by the Greater Victoria Cycling Coalition to kick off their brand new Trans-Form Speaker Series. So our family packed up our panniers, and made the multi-modal journey to Vancouver Island via train, bus, ferry, and bicycle. We also had the opportunity to spend some time cycling and<a href=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/2014\/07\/30\/discovering-victorias-vital-human-infrastructure\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"sr-only\">&#8220;Discovering Victoria\u2019s vital human infrastructure&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8222,"featured_media":4815,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18,476,23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4705","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bikes","category-cities-for-people","category-urban-design"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Discovering Victoria\u2019s vital human infrastructure - Spacing National<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/national\/2014\/07\/30\/discovering-victorias-vital-human-infrastructure\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Discovering Victoria\u2019s vital human infrastructure - Spacing National\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Author\u2019s Note: Earlier this month, Modacity were invited by the Greater Victoria Cycling Coalition to kick off their brand new Trans-Form Speaker Series. So our family packed up our panniers, and made the multi-modal journey to Vancouver Island via train, bus, ferry, and bicycle. 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