Ottawa – The City, EnviroCentre and community partners are launching Bike to Work Week in Ottawa, featuring a series of events to raise awareness, promote safe cycling and encourage residents to cycle to work for fun, fitness and the environment.

“Bike to Work Week will help raise awareness of the many benefits of biking as a healthy and environmentally friendly way to commute in Ottawa,” said Councillor Maria McRae, Chair of Ottawa’s Transportation Committee. “EnviroCentre has organized events with partners, stakeholders and sponsors that will promote cycling and provide commuters with assistance and information that will make cycling safer and more enjoyable for everyone in the City.”

Residents are encouraged to complete an online pledge to cycle to work and be eligible for great prizes including a bike, gear for commuting, gift certificates for local bike stores and a free CAN-BIKE course. These and many other prizes are provided by official sponsors of Bike to Work Week including: the Bank Street Promenade, Full Cycle, Bridgehead, Kunstadt Sports, Canadian Cycling Association, the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Ottawa, Fosters Sports Center and Cocoa Camino.

The full schedule of events is available at ottawa.ca/b2ww and on the EnviroCentre Website and includes an all-day informative “Cycling Celebration Station” on the Ottawa River Pathway by the Canadian War Museum, a “Lunch and Learn” workshops, and a BBQ on Thursday, June 10, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at 156 Bank Street with special guest, His Excellency, Ambassador Wilhelmus Geerts of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The BBQ is a fundraiser for the Ottawa Helmets on Kids Initiative and will include free bike tune-ups provided by Fosters Sports Center.

The BBQ event will also feature entertainment and the presentation of the Bruce Timmermans Cycling Award to recognize outstanding contributions in the encouragement of cycling in Ottawa.

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