It’s time to get your bicycle out of the garage for a tune up — Bike to Work Week is just around the corner.
Organizers launched the 19th edition of the event, to be held May 27 to June 2, on Wednesday. The idea is to promote bicycling as a viable option to and from work, said Frank Hudson, executive director of Bike to Work Greater Victoria.
The event began with just 500 cyclists signing up and, last year, more than 7,000 cyclists parked their cars at home and rode their bikes to work.
The incentive to get more cars replaced with bicycles is greater this year with the eight-month closure of the Craigflower Bridge causing snarls as its replacement is built.
The benefits of choosing cycling over driving a car include financial ones, with the Canadian Automobile Association estimating a cyclist doing a 16-kilometre, round-trip commute saves $10 a day over driving.
Adults who bike to work have better weight, blood pressure and blood sugar levels, say organizers. Adolescents who cycle regularly are about 50 per cent less likely to be overweight as adults.
A popular aspect of the bike to work week is the commuter challenge, which pits cyclists against a motorists for a timed “race” during a commute into downtown Victoria. The challenge is set this year for 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. on May 22.
For more information, go to biketowork.ca/victoria.
