May 26, 2008 (Toronto, ON) – With the surge in popularity of cycling and the success of Toronto’s Bike to Work Week, the city has revamped the event and introduced Bike Month for 2008 from May 26-June 21. Over the past five years, the number of trips made on bicycle has almost doubled, which led the City of Toronto to expand the concept to a month-long affair with 150 events. A calendar of Bike Month events is being published and will be available at public libraries, community centres, civic centres, and from environmental groups and a growing list of businesses.

The official launch of Bike Month will be Toronto’s 19th annual Group Commute through the streets of Toronto on Monday, May 26. Cyclists will converge from various points around the city and meet at Yonge and Bloor for a group ride to Nathan Phillips Square. Other major events will include an unveiling of the TTC’s new Bike Racks on Buses, as well as the Trailhead opening in the Crothers Wood area.

Also as part of the festivities, crit racing comes back to the city as the Toronto Criterium is back and will take place on a road circuit in the city’s historic St. Lawrence Market on Friday, May 30. The inaugural St. Lawrence Market criterium was held 17 years ago in 1990, and the 2008 event marks the first return of bike racing to downtown Toronto in 10 years.

Many of Canada’s top road racers are expected to compete, and race organizer Ziggy Martuzalski said there’s overwhelming interest from across Ontario, Quebec and the Great Lake states. The Toronto Criterium kicks off with a children’s race at 5:45 pm. The professional and Elite athletes’ race begins at 7:30 pm.

“I am ecstatic that we have been able to bring this classic event back to this beautiful and historic venue,” says Councillor Adrian Heaps, chair of the Toronto Cycling Committee, adding, “This is a showcase event in our Bike Month activities; it is a sign that the City openly embraces cycling both as a sporting event as well as a vital mode of transportation.”

Spectators will also be able to browse the Bike Expo in Bercyz Park, behind Toronto’s historic Flatiron Building. Racers can register for this Ontario-Cycling-Association-sanctioned race at www.ontariocycling.org. The total value of prizes for the race is $20,000. For more information, please visit www.torontocriterium.com.

For more information on any Bike Month activities, call the City
Cycling office at 416-392-7592 or click here.