About CYCLE Kingston   !

Cycle Kingston is a grassroots, registered Canadian charity whose mandate is to promote and encourage cycling in Kingston through education and public outreach.

Purpose

The legally stated purpose of Cycle Kingston is as follows:

The object of the corporation is to educate the public about cycling safety by:

• (a) organizing public awareness activities on cycling safety for all road users,
• (b) educating cyclists about federal, provincial and municipal laws that apply to road users,
• (c) teaching cyclists of all ages safe riding habits
• (d) collaborating with individuals, groups, organizations, municipal officials, and others to enhance the value of our cycling education programs,
• (e) compiling information related to cycling to further the objects of the corporation,
• (f) undertaking all ancillary and incidental activities which promote the objects of the corporation

Our focus is on making cycling education available to as many people as possible by using different methods (such as courses, class presentations, media advertising, etc.) so that people will become empowered to learn to ride safely and more inclined to make the choice to cycle.

Board of Directors

• Hal Cain - President
• Neal Scott - Vice-President
• Andy Mills - Treasurer
• Paul Rappell - Secretary
• Mike Brownlee
• Ross Trethewey
• Andrea McGowan

History

Cycle Kingston was originally founded in 2004 in response to a funding opportunity made available to support climate change goals of Environment Canada. Cycle Kingston received funding from the federal government, four other funding agencies, and in-kind products and services to carry out a summer program called “Shifting Gears” which promoted cycling as an alternative to automobile transportation, primarily through the hiring of two Cycling Ambassadors. The Ambassadors carried out a number of educational and awareness activities, and encouraged citizens to track the distance they travelled by bicycle instead of by car.

In 2005, the City of Kingston contracted with Cycle Kingston to carry out the Cycling Ambassador program again, but on a smaller scale, as part of their participation in (and funding from) the One-Tonne Challenge initiative of the federal government. The contract was for one year with the anticipation of being renewed for a second year (2006).

In 2006, with a change in the federal government, the One-Tonne Challenge program was cancelled, and the City of Kingston terminated its contract with Cycle Kingston. Throughout the following year, 2006, Cycle Kingston volunteers organized a couple small scale activities (such as bicycle parking at events, bike week roll-in breakfasts, and car-free day prize draws). In 2006 and into 2007, the steering committee of Cycle Kingston began the long process of incorporating as a legal non-profit and registering as a charity. The process – which included drafting a set of bylaws - took over a year, but as of April 6, 2007, Cycle Kingston had achieved these goals.

The board of directors (previously steering committee) felt that it was too late to begin work on the summer of 2007, so instead has been planning for 2008 and beyond. For 2008 activities, Cycle Kingston received a grant from: 1) The Ontario Trillium Foundation to hire a program coordinator (Jennifer Foote) to get programs up and running; 2) Canada Summer Jobs to hire two cycling ambassadors, and; 3) The Communities in Action Fund to run weekend clinics for kids. Throughout this process, we have been consulting partners, such as the Health Unit and the City of Kingston, to get buy-in and commitments of support.